Communication lessons from royalty

I recently wrote about communication and rugby. Today, I’m making the seamless transition from rugby to royalty*...

She takes a step forward and the crowd goes wild. It‘s a moment of huge celebration. And yet also of danger.

When we think of public speaking we think of the what.

The words.

The message.

The meaning.

We think less of how the what is said.

And part of that is what we do with ourselves.

Do we gesture? 

Are we animated?

Or calm?

And what’s the effect of our body language on others?

I’ve been watching a mini-series.

”The Empress” covers a small sliver of the hundreds of years when The Habsburgs were on the throne from 1282 – 1918 and ruled the vast Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The Empress is Elisabeth, known as Sisi, who when she was 16 years old, married her cousin, Emperor Franz Joseph in 1854.

In one episode, just after they're married, the royal couple are outside the church, greeting thousands of well-wishers.

Sisi is hugely popular.

Hugely.

She steps forward, closer to the crowd.

And the crowd goes even more wild.

The Empress’ mother-in-law raises an eyebrow.

And Sisi is pulled back by her husband, the Emperor.

It’s a subtle touch. 

There’s a protocol.

Behaviour that is allowed and certain behaviour that is not.

There’s no doubt that getting closer to an audience deepens engagement. 

It adds intimacy.

Boosts trust.

And it makes communication with people we don’t know so well, more similar to communication with people that we do know well.

Context is king (I know, I know, but I just had to get in that pun). 

And although not everyone lives their lives on a world stage, how we use our bodies and the space around us has a huge effect.

The next time you’re talking at an event, how can you think about the how?

✅ Where’s the ideal place for you to be?

✅ How can your body language boost your connection with your audience?

✅ And what can you do to build trust?

P.S. The image below was said to be the Emperor Franz Josef’s favourite portrait of his wife, and one that he had placed in a frame on his desk. And yes, that’s a lot of hair, isn’t it? It was washed once every two weeks with egg yolks and cognac.

*there is an actual modern day connection between rugby and royalty. Princess Anne has been the patron of Scottish Rugby Union for 37 years.