Lessons from a tragic campaign

"Where was the fire that Frans Timmermans showed in his emotional speech, during the campaign?"

It was a question interpreters asked themselves several times last night. Because now that the die had been cast, everyone suddenly seemed to show their true face again.

Campaign strategists know: since voters are adrift, they vote more for the puppet than the party (positions). Then there are two flavors: give yourself as much face as possible or mainly say what the voter wants to hear.

Do you want to be there for everyone, are you there for no one
Most puppets opted for the latter, holding their cards to their chests, hoping the voter might project his views onto them. It resulted in frenetic position play (take Omtzigt's twisting around his possible premiership), a lot of you-baking and blaming of the other (e.g. Jetten against Yesilgöz: "There is no question of an asylum crisis, but of a 'VVD crisis'"), and empty phrases (such as Yesilgöz's: "People don't need looking back, people want politicians 'who are going to fix it.'").

All the result of sophisticated campaign strategies. But with unforeseen effect: because by not showing color, hoping to please the largest possible electorate, the puppets lost their appeal. Or, as the marketing wisdom goes: if you want to be there for everyone, you are there for no one.

Yesilgöz was glued to the campaign discipline, the characteristic enthusiasm of Omtzigt and Timmermans went on ice. All three lost face and we as the Netherlands lost face.

What can we learn from this for present
How do we still get some benefit from this? Fortunately, we can always learn from other people's mistakes.

Because presenting is also about finding the delicate balance between figuring out what your audience wants to hear and showing what you stand for. That's why I always ask my clients two questions before they speak:

1. Why is it important for your audience to hear this message?
2. Why is this story important to you?

With that 2nd question, you tap into your (internal) authority. With it, you show your audience the role this topic plays in your life. You could call it your purpose or the reason you set the alarm every morning. This drive provides recognition and leadership.

Whether I can make that a little more concrete? Let me just give you some examples:
It is the young scientist who creates a cure for a disease that a childhood friend once died from.
It is the urban planner who, as a child, witnessed the reconstruction of the Roombeek neighborhood in Enschede after the May 13, 2000 fireworks disaster.

But it is also the comedian who wins an award and explains to his audience why he makes the films he does. In the video below, we take you back to 2019. In that year, comedian Sacha Baron Cohen (aka "Borat") won the International Leadership Award from the Anti-Defamation League. An award for someone who couples business success with personal commitment to diversity and equal opportunity. Many people's eyebrows went up when his nomination was announced. After all, he portrays racist stereotypes in many of his roles. Be surprised by the opening of his speech in which he lucidly shares with us his motivations. It gives him stature and authority.

So let's learn from this bizarre result: in your next presentation, share your motives and your views. Dare, in short, to show who you are. It will have a magnetic effect on your audience. We can use all the positive energy we can get in the near future!