Six Steps to a Better Presentation
I have a pet peeve that I didn’t know I had until recently. Having been in education for along time, I’ve sat through my share of presentations. Most of the presentations have been on the positive side of tolerable, but there have been a few that left me with nothing more than a sense of relief when it was over. As I’ve considered the situations, I’ve discovered some characteristics that are common to good presentations. So, regardless of the settingbusiness, school, church, social organization, and so forthhere are some things to keep in mind next time you have to speak to a group of any size.
1. Know your material. Speakers should have confidence in their
knowledge of the material they are presenting. You might have to rely on notes or
note cards, but practice your presentation so that you don’t have to read to those in
attendance. When you start reading to mewhether from your notes or the
PowerPoint presentationI have flashbacks to my childhood and think it’s nap time!
2. Engage the audience. Let’s face it… some of the most knowledgeable
people in the world make poor presenters because they don’t know how to engage
the audience. If you are bored presenting it, just imagine how bored those listening
to you are! Engaging the audience can be accomplished through a variety of
interactive techniquesasking good discussion questions, providing fill-in-the-
blank handouts, hands-on activities, etc. Good presenters can read the audience
and can tell if they have them engaged. Be prepared to draw them back in when you
see their minds taking a field trip.
3. Connect to real life. Adults engage in educational experiences for a
variety of reasons, but one of the most prevalent reasons is their desire to learn
something that will help them in their day-to-day lives. Though you might be the
foremost expert in your field, if you can’t present material that matters to ordinary
people, you haven’t accomplished anything in your presentation. Check your ego at
the door… or you might find that you are the only person in the room who is
impressed with you!
4. Watch the time! This is a big issue for me. Adults are busy and invest
themselves in activities that often are squeezed into an already overloaded
schedule. When you start late or talk beyond the end of class, you have said, “I’m
more important than you!” Respect the time commitment of those in the room and
learn to budget your time so that you can finish before they start checking their
watches. Then, if the situation allows, make yourself available to speak one-on-one
with those who want to remain after class.
5. Don’t waste time teaching the obvious or the unnecessary. Most of us
have been around long enough to catch on to the obvious things in life. I bet that
before you can say, “That’s a picture of a clock,” most adults figured it out. On the
other hand, you might be a clock-aholic… I’m not! So, I probably don’t want the
intricate details about the clock’s construction.
6. Have a plan. View the presentation as a journey from point A to point B.
Understand why the journey is important, the path you will select to make the
journey, and the interesting details that are part of the journey. When you spend
two hours clicking through slides sharing technical information in a monotone
voice, you need to be put in time-out! That’s not education; that’s abuse!
We have this idea that all we need to be called an “expert” is a PowerPoint
presentation and a captive audience. Try videotaping your next presentation. If you
get bored or fall asleep while watching it, you need to review this article. People’s
time is too valuable for you to waste it! Think about it!
Dr. Terry Hadaway is an author, motivational speaker, university professor, and
conference leader who is recognized as a leading authority on elearning,
decision-making, and adult education. Visit his ecampus at
http://www.rapidfirelearning.com
