Mark Carney

by Eduardo del Buey

Mark Carney

“People will forget what you have said, they will forget what you have done, but they will never forget how you made them feel”. Maya Angelou

Last week, Mark Carney, the former Governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, pre-launched his bid to lead Canada’s Liberal Party on the Jon Stewart Show.

He performed very well.

He connected with the television audience and demonstrated a good sense of humor balanced by common sense. He spoke “off the cuff” and used words and facial expressions to show that he is highly personable, melding intelligence with experience and a down-to-earth personality.

In short, he made the audience experience him rather than simply watch or listen to him, positioning him well as a serious candidate for Liberal leader and future Prime Minister.

Compared to the incumbent, Justin Trudeau, and the leading candidate, Pierre Poilievre of the Conservative party, he appeared to be a different type of leader for a different time—a time of great uncertainty for Canada and the world.

Thus, audiences had high expectations that his official candidacy announcement just a few days later would be a special and unforgettable political event.

These expectations were shot down by his lackluster performance.

He spoke from written notes rather than speak “off the cuff” and energize his audience. Worse yet, he read them without using a teleprompter to maximize perceived engagement through eye contact with his audience.

His voice was often flat, with little emotion or energy. He lacked the oomph to accompany his life story and showed little of the elan that had emanated during his interview with Jon Stewart.

His stories sounded dry and devoid of any strong feelings.

Sometimes, a leader or would-be leader must demonstrate sangfroid and maintain their cool.

This was not one of those times.

I have taught strategic communications at the university level for several years and have published two books on the subject.

I have always used Maya Angelou’s quote as a roadmap for students to develop their narratives and deliver their thoughts and emotions to audiences.

You must use strategic inflections in your voice to emit emotion and underscore the importance of every part of a speech.

You must not read a speech of such importance; you must speak from the heart.

As an accomplished businessman and banker, he is well-versed in speaking extemporaneously and convincingly to all kinds of audiences.

He knows how important it is to connect with an audience and not only to speak to them.

Don’t get me wrong: he made many important points in differentiating himself from the opposition. But he didn’t leave the audience enthusiastic or emotional.

Mr. Carney is in the fight of his life.

He must face other Liberals to become the party's leader. If he wins, he will then have to fight an election against an opponent who uses inflammatory language and hyperbole to make his point. All in the space of a few months.

He will have to return many disaffected voters to the Liberal fold. While ideas will be important, connecting with their emotions will be paramount.

So, Mr. Carney, please abandon your speeches and notes if you want to get ahead of the game. Instead, speak “off the cuff” and directly with your audiences in ways that connect.

Use your voice and body as an instrument and play it effectively.

Don’t read, emote.

Speak with your audiences as though they were an audience of one – a friend with whom you share confidences rather than a crowd to fear.

Be yourself and not a caricature of a typical politician.

Canadians are looking for a leader to trust and follow.

Trust is based on a gut feeling and not always on a rational process.

So, connect gut to gut.

You may be your party’s last hope before a general election is called.

Don’t blow it.