In our newest "how can we help you?" thread, a reader writes:
I have my first conference presentation coming up with a dedicated commentator. Any tips for navigating the session will be very much appreciated! What is the general aim of a commentary? What do I say after the commentator finishes? What are some strategies for navigating the Q&A? (Do people like presenting papers? I've been regretting submitting this one for months!)
Congrats to the OP, and great questions! I'm curious to hear how other readers answer, but here are some quick thoughts:
- Any general tips?: If at all possible, don't read your paper. Instead, either present from a couple-page handout or from a PowerPoint (though if you plan for the latter, make sure the conference has A/V!). Also, try to get your commentary in advance from your commentator–at a minimum, a few days in advance and ideally a week or two before that so that you have time to think through a good response. Then, if at all possible, write out your response, at least in bullet-points. It's generally a good idea to practice your talk so that you see what works and to ensure that your talk fits properly into your allotted time. Also, try to speak fairly slowly and deliberately. Finally, be sure to present the version of the paper that your commentator received. It is extremely bad form to 'revise' your paper and present a different version after they have read the version you submitted.
What is the general aim of a commentary?: This really depends on the commentator. Some commentators are relatively constructive, motivating a few critical questions for the speaker to answer. Alas, other commentators can be more aggressive, trying to raise a devastating objection or two.
What to say after the commentator finishes?: I always try to be gracious and thank the commentator. But after thanking them, just try to respond to whatever questions or objections they had the best that you can! If your commentator was aggressive in their commentary, try not to respond in kind–as needlessly adversarial talks and commentaries can be uncomfortable to sit through and potentially reflect poorly on the participants, particularly if the rhetoric gets a bit hot.
What are some strategies for navigating the Q&A?: Write down the questions you field on a note-pad. This will help you keep the question in mind as you answer, but more importantly give you some time to think through your answer before replying. Generally speaking, I've found it beneficial not to rush–that is, not to respond to a question immediately, blurting out whatever first comes to mind. When you receive a question, particularly a difficult one, you can always pause for a bit to collect and formulate your thoughts. Finally, if you don't feel like you have a particularly good answer to a question, you can always say something like, "That's a really good question. I'll need to think about it some more." You don't want to do this too much, as it signifies to your audience that you don't think you have a good answer to the question–but still, it's a known strategy that people use from time to time. It can be surprisingly hard to think up good answers to audience questions on the fly, as in my experience you can experience a bit of a 'deer in the headlights' effect as a speaker (i.e. the pressure of being in front of an audience can interfere with your ability to focus). Sometimes, you'll only be able to think through a good answer to a question after your talk. Such is life–though one thing that I've done on occasion is come back to and answer an earlier question if it occurs to me later.
Do people like presenting papers?: For the most part, I do! It sort of depends on the paper, as some papers are more difficult to present than others–and sometimes I do regret submitting a particular paper, if for example I later decide that I'm not terribly happy with it.
But these are just my answers. What are yours? Do you have any tips that a first-time conference presenter might find helpful?
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