I watched the recordings of my talks this week.

It’s not a comfortable experience.

You see things you’d rather not see.
You notice moments that felt different in your head.
You realise how unreliable your memory is.

But it’s also one of the most useful things I’ve done.

💡 ONE IDEA WELL

If you want to get better at presenting,
you probably don’t need more tips.

Most of us already have enough of those.

What we lack is something else.

A clear view of what we’re actually doing.

Because presenting creates a strange distortion.

From the inside, everything feels heightened.
You’re aware of time, of pressure, of what’s coming next.
You notice every hesitation.
You overestimate how awkward things felt.
You underestimate the things that landed.

It’s a bit like hearing your own voice recorded for the first time.
Unfamiliar. Slightly uncomfortable. Not quite how you imagined.

Without something external -a recording, a specific observation, a deliberate reflection -
you’re left with a version of events that isn’t quite true.

And if the picture isn’t clear,
it’s very hard to know what to change.

🎥 FIVE THINGS I NOTICED WATCHING MYSELF BACK

1. Your memory of a talk isn’t the truth

There were parts I was sure I’d rushed.

I hadn’t.

Moments I thought hadn’t landed.

They had.

And things I barely noticed at the time
that stood out clearly on video.

What you feel on stage is shaped by adrenaline, timing, and attention.

It’s not a reliable account of what actually happened.

2. “That was great” is useless feedback

A few people came up afterwards and said kind things.

I appreciated it.

But it didn’t help me improve.

Unless you ask for something specific - pacing, clarity, structure, presence - most feedback defaults to politeness.

It tells you how people felt.
Not what you should change.

3. The camera shows you what the audience sees

Watching it back felt slightly painful.

But also clarifying.

The camera doesn’t care how experienced you are.
It doesn’t care how the room felt.

It just shows you what was there.

Where you paused.
How you moved.

What you did with your hands.
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4. You have habits you don’t know you have

Apparently, I have a tendency towards what I can only describe as T-rex hands.

Elbows tucked in.
Small movements.
A bit constrained.

I wouldn’t have told you that before watching the video.

Now I can’t unsee it.

We all have these small patterns.
They’re invisible to us - until they aren’t.

5. Improvement starts with noticing

None of this required more effort.

No new techniques.
No extra slides.
No dramatic changes.

Just… looking.

And seeing clearly enough to adjust next time.

🧭 TRY THIS

If you have the option:

Record your next talk.

Then, when you’re ready, watch it back.

Not to criticise.
Not to pick it apart.

Just to notice:

• What actually landed
• Where you felt rushed (and whether you were)
• What your body is doing
• What you’d do slightly differently next time

It’s easy to rely on how something felt.

It’s harder to look at what actually happened.

But that’s usually where the useful information is.

And once you’ve seen it…

you can’t unsee it.

If you’re working on a talk at the moment,
or thinking about how to improve your presenting,

just reply to this email.

I’m always interested in what people notice when they start looking a little more closely.​
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Speak soon,

Andy