The Golden Globe Awards showed us that co-hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are not just one-hit wonders, that 12 Years a Slave and American Hustle are best bets for Oscars, and that too many star performers cannot, for the life of them, ad-lib on stage.
金球奖颁奖典礼给了我们这些信息:蒂娜•菲和艾米•波勒这两个人的搭档主持不只是昙花一现的精彩;《为奴十二载》(12 Years a Slave)和《美国骗局》(American Hustle)是有最可能摘得奥斯卡桂冠的影片;另外,许许多多的明星演员即使拼了老命,也无法在舞台上做好即兴演出。
What we saw on Sunday night was not just highly entertaining and thoroughly Tweetable; it was packed with performance lessons for everyone in business. Here are three:
周日晚上的金球奖颁奖典礼不只具有高度的娱乐性,可以作为Twitter上的谈资;对于商业人士来说,它还是一堂堂精彩的表演课。下面是大家可以从中学到的三点:
1. Always prepare. Jacqueline Bisset, whom I've admired for her beauty and talent, was downright disoriented in her acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actress. The 69-year-old British actress showed us how awful it can be when you fail to prepare. No excuses, even if you think your chances of reaching the stage are remote. Here's how this translates to business: Don't assume you'll have no role to play in an upcoming meeting. Be ready to be called on. Every meeting, including social events, merits some degree of prep work. Back to Bisset, who won her Globe for her performance in the BBC's Dancing on the Edge: Maybe she decided to have a drink. While they poured, she should have had scrawled a few lines to say on stage, then smiled her radiant smile and all would have been good. That works for you too.
1. 随时作好准备。我一直仰慕杰奎琳•贝塞特的美貌和才华,然而在得知荣获金球奖最佳女配角奖后,她的致辞简直是一团糟。我们从这位69岁的英国女演员身上看到:如果不提前做好准备,局面会有多么糟糕。我们在这方面不能找任何借口,即使你觉得走上舞台的机会很小,也该做好准备。转化到工作中就是这样:不要以为即将召开的会议跟你没有任何关系,你不用扮演任何角色——做好发表意见的准备吧。每一场会议,甚至是社交活动,都需要一定程度的准备。回到比塞特的例子中,她因为在英国广播公司(BBC)的电视剧《边缘之舞》(Dancing on the Edge)中的精彩表现而获奖。得知获奖时,她其实可以先喝杯酒镇定一下。这样,别人为她倒酒时,她就可以编好在舞台上要说的话,说完之后再给出一个光芒四射的微笑,这样整体效果就会很好。如果遇到相同情况,你也可以使用这一招。
2. Recognize your spotlight. Jennifer Lawrence also seemed surprised to win the Best Supporting Actress award in the film category, for American Hustle. But unlike Bisset, she pulled herself together. The 23-year-old Lawrence graciously pointed out the more seasoned actors she was up against. As she named them, the cameras focused on Helen Mirren, who appeared sanguine, and then Jessica Lange, who looked sour. Lange made me think of corporate presenters who look uninterested as a team partner speaks. They're either bored and/or assume that no one is looking at them. Better to model Ms. Mirren. You are always on stage.
2. 注意聚光灯的指向。得知因为《美国骗局》而获得剧情/音乐/喜剧类最佳女配角奖时,詹妮弗•劳伦斯也表现得十分惊讶。但与比塞特不同,她很快恢复了镇定。现年23岁的劳伦斯很有礼貌地提到了比她经验更丰富的女演员海伦•米伦和洁西卡•兰芝。她提到谁的名字,镜头就会对准谁,于是我们看到海伦•米伦神采奕奕的样子,而洁西卡•兰芝则表现得有点冷淡。兰芝让我想到了公司里的一种人,他们在团队成员说话时,总表现出一副冷淡、不感兴趣的样子。这些人要么是真的觉得厌烦,要么是以为没有人会看他们,或者两者兼而有之。当然,我们最好还是向海伦•米伦学习。要记得:你永远都在舞台上。
3. Make hay while the sun shines. Back in Kansas City, my hometown, that's the way they told us to make the most of the spotlight. I don't understand why more actors don't follow this advice. Every year at award shows, stars get up, one after another, and struggle to remember everyone who has had something to do with bringing them into the world and making them famous--while few in the audience know or care about the people they mention. These "winners" can't win. They inevitably forget someone important. They also miss opportunity. Better to do as Bono did: He and his band, U2, won a Globe for Ordinary Love, the song they wrote for Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. In his speech, Bono worked on persuading people to want to see the movie. Matthew McConaughey also scored, accepting the Best Actor in a Drama award for Dallas Buyers Club. Here's the corporate case: Too many business presenters waste time showing org charts—a sure snooze that typically comes at the start of a presentation when capturing attention is most critical. I say, park that unless it's sure to make me want to buy what you're selling.
3. 有机会就要好好抓住。在我的故乡堪萨斯城,长辈们总是教导我们:有机会就要好好抓住。我不明白,为什么越来越多的演员不再听从这个劝告。每年的颁奖晚会上,明星们一个个地站上奖台,费力地回忆一个个曾帮助他们走向世界并成名的人的名字——实际上,观众中很少有人知道,也丝毫不关心这里面都有谁。这些“赢家”们在致辞这一问题上却“失败”了。不可避免地,他们总会忘记某些重要的人的名字;他们也丧失了一个很好的说话机会。在这点上,博诺的做法才是最好的。博诺和他的乐队U2因为歌曲《平凡的爱》(Ordinary Love)而获奖,这首歌是他们为电影《曼德拉:漫漫自由路》(Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom)创作的。博诺在致辞中说劝人们都去看看这部电影。马修•麦康纳的致辞也不错,他因为在《达拉斯买家俱乐部》(Dallas Buyers Club)中的表演而获得了剧情类最佳男主角奖。公司里的情况则是这样:演示刚开始时,许多发言人都会把时间浪费在组织结构图上——这当然让人犯困,因为这个时候抓住听众的注意力才是最最关键的!我的意见是,如果不能确定某样图表或数据能让观众产生购买产品的欲望,就把它去掉吧。把这些全都去掉,只留下有用的东西,说完就立即鞠躬下台!