E154: Why Great MCs Make It Look Easy (And What Actually Happens Backstage)

Well, it can become quite difficult because you always have to be three steps ahead proactively.

making sure that what's happening behind the scene, what's about to happen on stage, and also what the audience is feeling, it's kind of interconnected.

So when it comes to the preparation, I think I could identify into three steps.

And step number one, I would call it the process and preparation.

So that the way I like to prepare and approach the event, that first I try to understand what is that event about and what is the key message, what are they trying to transfer and to deliver and how can me as an addition to this extended team can actually bring that energy, that knowledge, those insights.

So, for example, at HumanX, one conversation is about AI agents, the next is about European startups, then suddenly we are talking about creativity.

So my job is to make that feel like one coherent journey.

And when I go through the program, I ask four questions.

Why is the session here? What did we just talk about? What is the next question the audience should be asking and how do I get them there? And even before that, I like to speak with organizers to understand the idea behind what kind of message they want to bring to the audience.

Why are they having those people on stage? I like to call this as like being the bridge, right? Sometimes in a few sentences, but those few sentences decide whether the event feels connected or fragmented.

So I'm kind of, yeah, it's more like a very connecting connection.

And then once you get your overview about what's the mission of the event, what kind of message we want to transfer, what is in the program, we go into the research part.

And when it comes by the research, I mean more in-depth, like every speaker.

So what do we know about them? Who are they? What are they actually doing? What's their background? Why are they on stage? And what is so interesting about their perspective, about the topic that is being brought forward? And one very important thing, how do you pronounce their name? That one is really crucial as well.

Sometimes it can become a funny situation, but usually myself being with a bit more difficult name, I try to make sure that I get it right.

The researchers really try to understand best about each block of the program to make it meaningful.

It's not just to come there and do some shouting, but actually to create the value and to bridge it.

And then once I have my understanding about the program, once I have my research done about every speaker and conversation happening on stage, then I go back to the program and the script and I write those transitions.