Send me your presentation If someone asks me to “send them my presentation” I must apologize for not videoing it. A presentation is a live event, like a play or concert. If I didn’t video record it, I can’t send it to you. The slides (the support visuals) are only a component of the presentation. A presentation is an interesting, focused, memorable experience you create for an audience. The slides (support visuals) are there for amplification, clarification and perhaps some decoration, but they are not the presentation. A presentation is much like a play. The scenery is not the play, the script is not the play, the actors (by themselves)… Read More
Continue ReadingMythBusters… Is a picture is worth a thousand words?
I don’t believe this phrase applies to presentations. Apparently, the phrase originates in the American advertising industry in the early 1900’s. Sorry it’s not from a Chinese or Japanese philosopher. In modern presentations images can serve three functions: amplification, clarification and decoration. You want your pictures to perform one or more of those functions, especially amplification and clarification. What every presenter is shooting for is to have a picture communicate one, or a few important words. Words like success, urgency, hope, concern, safety and enthusiasm to name a very few. One picture can convey an emotion that the average speaker may never convey – never mind how many words they… Read More
Continue ReadingIt’s time for the annual sales meeting!
Get on the bus to the that pretty good hotel. Get your orthopedic seat cushion ready, you are going to sit through a lot of presentations. And get ready to give that business overview you’ve been asked to give! With internal corporate presentations you have two strategy choices. Give a good, average, OK presentation (lots of graphs and charts) and be forgettable. A presentation that gets you off anyone’s radar because no one will remember what you said by break time. The other option is to try to “win” your presentation. Be more interesting, more focused and above all else, more memorable than your colleagues. If the first option is… Read More
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