Microphones...

I remember going to a church and the keynote speaker of the conference got up in front of the crowd and immediately turned off his lapel microphone and took it off. He smile and said, “I’ve been known to overpower many a microphone. Can everyone here me ok?” I mean, we really had no choice. No one was going to speak up. It was a huge crowd. And you could prolly figure what happened after that.

The next hour he walked around and every time he had his back toward one part of the crowd, that part of the peeps could not hear. It is inevitable that the guy was going to drop in volume, as most speakers do to drive home a very serious and important point. This guy was no exception. The guy was very articulate and clear in his presentation. But the fact was that he needed the mic like anyone else. I don’t know if he had some insecurity within himself, you know, because there is no hiding behind a microphone. Or he actually was pompous enough to think that he voice was the exception. It was not.

This is the same stuff that you hear peeps do at weddings, corporate events and pretty much everywhere. So let me be the voice in the back of your head next time you face this situation – USE THE MICROPHONE. No one can hear you all the time. The first thing that I do when I get to a church or camp or event to speak is find the sound person. I ask that person if I am going to have a mic. When they tell me that I will prolly not need it, I ask for one anyway. It is better to be safe than sorry. If there is someone on the sound board, he or she will be able to control you from the back. If your voice is too loud, then they will turn it down, and visa versa.

Let this be your warning. And better yet, when you are in the crowd next time and someone asks if everyone can hear them… let your voice be heard as the punk heckler in the back with a resounding, “Turn on the mic!” It’s kinda fun.