Yes people, Irene Ang = Rosie Phua in Singapore’s most watched local comedy Phua Chu Kang. And I am fortunate enough to be in her professional hosting class for the next ten Wednesdays. It feels good to be a student after so long.

For those of who you don’t know, Irene Ang started out as a host fifteen years ago. It was during one of her hosting gigs that she got discovered by MediaCorp. And not long after that, she clinched the leading role of Phua Chu Kang and became a local celebrity. Today, she is one of the most highly paid hosts in Singapore. She commands an hourly rate of minimum $2500/hr and very often, it goes as high as $10,000/hr. I know.. unbelievable!!!

The intent of this post is to share with two lessons that I have learnt last night at Irene’s class.

1. Host = Cheerleader
There are tons of things that a host has to do but the most important one is to be the cheerleader. As a cheerleader, your responsibility is to hype the crowd, raise the energy and set the pace. You are the link between the event and your audience. It doesn’t matter how you do it but as long as you do it, you done your job! That was quite a revelation for me. As you can see, being good at talking doesn’t necessarily make you a great host. Here’s where your empathy comes in. You got to be able to read the crowd, think on the feet and focus. Even if you have a reaaaalllllyyyyy BAD day (think Daniel Powter), you must put it aside and be your audience’s cheerleader. Who says hosting is just reading a script??!!

2. Practice as much as you can!
As you see, I am NOT the only one who subscribe to his philosophy. I was grinning from ear to ear as I heard her preach about this. But there’s one thing she said that I must share with you. And that is you got to proactively seek opportunities to - in your case - speak! It could be as simple as addressing five to six people in a get-together dinner. Or it could be introducing the keynote speaker in your company’s event. The more avenues you have to speak, the more opportunities you have to try out new techniques, to build confidence and find your style!

So what are your potential speaking avenues? Quickly list down ten of them. Let me help you by giving you more examples.

- Volunteer to present in class
- Toast on friend’s wedding
- Solicit donations in a charity event
- Summarize thoughts in a workshop
- Speak at company’s event
- Be the Toastmasters of the Day
.
.
.

And the list goes on.

Will share with you more about what I have learnt from the master herself in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, enjoy these pictures snapped during one of my recent hosting gigs at St James Power House. This was a 800-people event organized by Oh Genki and Niche It was a nerve wrecking experience as it was my first time hosting such a huge event but… the tequila shots helped tremedously! (grins)

The highlight of the party was the Niche Fashion Show, featuring our local designers. Here you can see the young models sashaying with the designers’ funky streetwear.

And that’s me and my fabulous partner, Nicole Chia who by the way is also a deejay in NUS RadioPulse.

Hosting is definitely an art and I believe that it shares many similar philosophies with speaking. I shall unravel its mystery in time to come.

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What’s one best advice you have received so far in speaking? Send them to eric@ericfeng.com. I will compile and send you all that I have received. Meanwhile, enjoy the articles at Public Speaking for All!
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