One of the most memorable moments of my career is also one of the most inexplicable and awkward.
I’m at the Thessaloniki International Fair, at the booth for an EU project about its public programs. The fair’s visitors are mostly Greek, with a smaller number from abroad. I’ve been at our booth for a few hours already, and the Thessaloniki afternoon humidity is starting to get to me, so what I’m about to tell you makes even more sense.
Two women approach the booth. Naturally, I smile and invite them to take the quiz with me or answer some questions on our interactive wall. They don’t move. They’re just smiling at me.
A few moments later, a couple of men join them. I greet them and ask if they’d like to join the women and play. Mind you, I ask in Greek and quickly switch to English. Nada. Zero. Zilch.
This goes on for a few more awkward moments. Imagine me talking to all of them, making eye contact left to right. I’m now looking at 10 to 12 people who all know each other, looking at me, just smiling.
I must be about four questions in when one woman answers in English.
Relieved, I smile, step closer and ask a follow-up question. Everyone is still looking at me. She waits for someone else to respond, and here we go again: nada.
At this point, I look really confused. I look at the woman, then at the group, and joke: “Why are you not talking to me? What have I done? Is it my perfume?” The woman at the front laughs again.
Then she turns her head to the side and says something under her breath. I lean in, because I’m invested now. She’s translating. Every question I’ve asked, she’s been quietly passing on to the group.
“They don’t speak English!” she tells me.
My brain now sounds like that GPS voice: Recalculating…
“But you can translate?” I ask.
“Yes!”
“Okay, then you’re my executive assistant. You’re hired!”
For the next ten minutes, I explain the entire EU program to her, and she explains it to them. I make sure to banter here and there to keep the vibe going (finally!). When they laugh, I comment on how awkward it is to wait for a joke to land, and, ironically, I have to wait for that joke to land, too.
Here’s what that afternoon taught me: you could have no one objecting to what you’re saying, you could be opening the floor for questions and getting none, you could be doing all the right and emotionally aware things, AND STILL be going nowhere with it.
But I promise you this: whether I’m on a stand, on a stage or in a meeting room, I’m always looking for that interaction with the audience. I’m not after the picture-perfect smiling audience. I’m after a real response, even if it takes a roller coaster to get there!
