cool under fire

Lots of people are far too serious about things they don't need to be. Take, for example, presenting with technology. You should plan for it to fail. If it doesn't fail, it's a minor miracle worth celebrating and offering another small sacrifice to the tech gods. When it does fail, don't fret. People understand. Just continue on with your talk. You know your material well enough that you can improv on it for the rest of the talk, right? And if you don't, the hard copy of the presentation is right there in front of you. Worst case scenario is that you present from notes, and act out the graphics -- that's probably far more interesting than the graphics you intended, anyway. Please avoid whining about the projector (is it worth a 20 minute gap to get another one? No, it's not.). Feel free to playfully curse the tech gods, but don't cry, and don't get mad at them. They told you it would fail; others told you; you knew it in your heart; and yet you went and tried it anyway (good for you!). DON'T READ YOUR PAPER!!! please. please. please. If you're lost and haven't highlighted the good bits, ask the audience questions and riff off that.

No matter what, stay in good spirits. Laugh about it. Even if you don't think it's funny, remember that many in the audience are laughing their butts off (inside), and the biggest question in their collective minds is: Is she/he cool under fire?