As a special event host, I’ve rubbed elbows with more than a few high-profile personalities. During the NFL Draft in Kansas City, I was hired to host a BBQ sauce competition event featuring none other than Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce #87.
This was back when Patrick Mahomes’ favorite passing target only had two Super Bowl rings. Before he was dating any famous singer-songwriter.
B-lister at best, right? 😉
In any case, this story isn’t about him. This is a story about how I saved a Travis Kelce experience from crashing into an ocean of disappointment.
Lately, I’ve been going back to the basics to define what makes a special event host truly… special. I’ve identified five elements:
5. Prepare, don’t plan
4. Listen and speak with your whole body
3. Alignment over change
2. Authentically connect
1. It ain’t about you
Last month, we discussed the difference between preparing and planning as a special event host. Today, we’re going to cover some more ground on that list.
I know, I know. You’re a Swifftie and only here for the Kelce story.
Meanwhile, back in Kansas City…
You’re probably familiar with Kelce Jam. Previously, the NFL Draft was in Kansas City, right in Kelce’s “backyard”. Kelce decided to host this huge music festival that Friday night, smack in the middle of the draft schedule.
One of my gigs was the morning after Kelce Jam.
If you saw any footage from that event, you might guess what I was thinking that morning.
“That guy was going pretty hard last night. I don’t know if he’s going to make it this morning.”
Still, the crowd is hyped. Most of them weren’t at Kelce Jam, and this is their chance to see their hometown hero up close.
Like I do with any special event, I’m taking in the energy of the room as the venue begins to fill. I’m feeling the temperature.
I’m listening with my whole body.
I’m hearing that people are excited about Kelce being here. Some had been waiting since 7 AM when the doors didn’t open until 10 AM. I’m listening to the production managers gauge Kelce’s whereabouts. Time ticks by, and I’m hearing that people are starting to get a little disappointed because he’s not here yet.
At this point, as the host of this special event, I’m seeing the ways this party goes south faster than a Canadian goose with a jetpack. These people are not going to stick around for another two-ish hours if their main man doesn’t show up.
All things considered, I’m starting to reprogram the event in my brain (prepare, don’t plan!). If Kelce doesn’t show up, I need to know what I’m going to do. How am I going to make this the experience this audience thought they were going to have — even without him?
Because I am listening with my full body to the energy in the room, to the words in the room, I am ready. When official word finally drops that Kelce isn’t going to show, my response wasn’t panic.
It was: “Cool. Let’s do this dance.”
At present, I know exactly how to captain this ship. I know how I’m going to use the energy in the room. Surely, I know how I’m going to flip the problem into a solution.
Active listening as a special event host
Listening is the acquisition of knowledge and information. When we’re listening, we’re gaining perspective.
That’s one side of the coin. On the other side, listening is about letting people know that we’re seeing them, and we’re hearing them to understand. Accordingly, receive the information and send back communication that you have received it before immediately responding or dismissing it.
If you’re talking to me and I’m thinking about the next moment or I’m looking down at my phone, you’re not going to feel seen, nor feel heard. You’re going to feel insignificant.
Any marriage therapist worth their $250 an hour will tell you the value of active listening. It’s more than the words your ears collect.
As a special event host, especially when the event is live, listening is about making that connection. We’re making people feel seen. We’re making every individual in that audience feel heard.
And we’re making the brand be seen and heard. We’re showing the audience that they are part of a collective community. We’re communicating that they belong.
What I’m explaining doesn’t have to be complicated. In a lot of ways, hosting from a giant stage is just like inviting people into your house for a party.
When they first walk in the door, people don’t know where the bathroom is. Or where all the chicken wings are laid out in the kitchen. They haven’t seen these things.
So you tell them. You’re directing them and walking them through the house. You’re making them feel seen, making sure you hear their needs.
As their host, you need to welcome them into the experience.
The forgotten sense
Intuition doesn’t get enough credit or acknowledgment. But listening to your intuition is clutch as a special event host.
Your body knows. So listen to what your Spidey sense is telling you. That’s going to help guide you through the live event.
Intuitively, I knew that Kelce probably wasn’t going to show up for that event. I trusted that feeling.
So while I was listening to the production managers explain when he was going to arrive, I was mentally preparing for the future circumstance I knew was coming. I listened to my intuition.
While you’re listening with your whole body, don’t underestimate or overlook your intuition.
How your body speaks
As hosts, we can get super focused on the mic in our hand and the sound of our voice in the speakers. It’s easy to forget that we’re communicating in other ways.
Remember to give your body words to speak.
As a special event host, you can come out onto the stage, not say any words at all, and still get the energy of that crowd through the roof.
Or if the room’s energy is already elevated, and you need it to come down, you can do that with your body language.
“Get up offa that thang”
Vinh Giang is a keynote speaker I follow on Instagram. He tells a story about when he first got into public speaking and complained to his theater coach that he never got a standing ovation.
His coach responded: “It’s because you’re not commanding the room with your body language.”
Vinh then shows an older video where he walks off stage with a quick, “Thanks, guys.” And everyone politely claps.
Then he shows a second clip where he thanks everyone and takes a bow. As he comes up out of the bow, he lifts his hands with his palms open. It’s a gesture that receives their applause and demonstrates exactly what he wants them to do.
The entire crowd stands in approval. With his body, he’s communicated to the audience that they have his permission and the space to give a standing ovation.
As a special event host, you’re navigating and puppeteering what is happening out in that crowd. Often, the audience needs that permission. They’re looking for cues from you, whether they realize it or not.
It’s all in the vibes
As a special event host, it’s your job to communicate openness with your body. It’s your role to come on stage and connect to the audience, one by one.
You connect to a sea of 10,000 people by looking one person in the eye. That connection radiates out to the rest of the audience.
Within seconds and minutes, you have a sea of people dancing, clapping, making ridiculous sounds and even massaging their neighbors’ shoulders.
All because you’ve connected with Ted on the front row and made him feel seen. You’ve told the rest of the audience with your body language that the party is about to start. You’ve listened and acknowledged the energy in the room, redirecting it into a cannonball of excitement that’s waiting to explode.
That’s the power of listening and speaking with your whole body. That’s the superpower you need to succeed as a special event host.
Stay tuned for more breakdowns of the last three elements of what I believe makes a special event host truly… special!
3 Responses