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Presentation tips
Jan. 2nd, 2012 09:24 amAs I did a couple blog posts earlier, I'm reposting some comments in response to a review of a book on public speaking in The Simple Dollar.
The book appears to provide good advice based on my own career as an occasional teacher and trainer. (I've received excellent ratings for all my talks... often in the top 5% of the speakers at STC conferences.) However, a few points weren't made explicit in the review or were omitted. Since this blog is about communication, a few thoughts from my own experience:
The first thing to do is ask yourself what about the topic excites you. If you're not excited by the topic, odds are good you won't be able to communicate why it's important and interesting to anyone else. On the other hand, if you can feel excited or inspired by the topic, you can enjoy giving the presentation and share your excitement with the audience; I've found that makes all the difference.
I've also found that when I remind myself why I'm doing the presentation, and remind myself that (by and large) I like my audience, that removes 90% of the pressure because the context changes to become a dialogue or conversation with people I like and who I hope will like me, not a lecture to an audience that is there against their will or to criticize me.
Second, work until you understand the topic thoroughly. One of the biggest fears of speakers is that someone will ask you a question you can't answer and that this will make you look like a fool. It's never possible to know everything about a topic, and sometimes you'll even run up against a troll who's out to make themselves look good at your expense. But if you establish a friendly, helpful attitude right from the start, as I suggested earlier, the troll's more likely to look bad than you are. That's particularly true if you're willing to admit your ignorance: the best response when you don't know the answer is "here's my gut impression, but to be honest, I'm not sure; leave me your e-mail address after the presentation and I'll try to get you a better answer once I'm home again".
The point about rapid pacing is correct, but misleading. You should never race through a presentation like you're trying to sing a Gilbert and Sullivan "patter" song. On the contrary, you must speak at a brisk but unhurried pace, like you would in any other conversation. Of course, the overall presentation must not drag: present only the key points, and don't belabor any point by endlessly supporting it with details. Present only the key points, and only the key details required to support those points.
Lastly, a point about brevity: Presentations must be as long as required to cover the required material, neither longer nor shorter. If you've been hired to give a full-day workshop, "concise" simply isn't possible; 8 hours isn't "concise" in any reasonable interpretation of the word. But do account for the attention span of your audience. Some excellent advice I've seen repeated by really good speakers is "think sitcom, not movie of the week". Half an hour is a typical attention span, but in practice, for longer presentations such as half- or full-day workshops, you may need to think "mini-series": a series of 1-hour presentations separated by breaks. This keeps the audience awake and interested, and gives them time to absorb what you've said.
The book appears to provide good advice based on my own career as an occasional teacher and trainer. (I've received excellent ratings for all my talks... often in the top 5% of the speakers at STC conferences.) However, a few points weren't made explicit in the review or were omitted. Since this blog is about communication, a few thoughts from my own experience:
The first thing to do is ask yourself what about the topic excites you. If you're not excited by the topic, odds are good you won't be able to communicate why it's important and interesting to anyone else. On the other hand, if you can feel excited or inspired by the topic, you can enjoy giving the presentation and share your excitement with the audience; I've found that makes all the difference.
I've also found that when I remind myself why I'm doing the presentation, and remind myself that (by and large) I like my audience, that removes 90% of the pressure because the context changes to become a dialogue or conversation with people I like and who I hope will like me, not a lecture to an audience that is there against their will or to criticize me.
Second, work until you understand the topic thoroughly. One of the biggest fears of speakers is that someone will ask you a question you can't answer and that this will make you look like a fool. It's never possible to know everything about a topic, and sometimes you'll even run up against a troll who's out to make themselves look good at your expense. But if you establish a friendly, helpful attitude right from the start, as I suggested earlier, the troll's more likely to look bad than you are. That's particularly true if you're willing to admit your ignorance: the best response when you don't know the answer is "here's my gut impression, but to be honest, I'm not sure; leave me your e-mail address after the presentation and I'll try to get you a better answer once I'm home again".
The point about rapid pacing is correct, but misleading. You should never race through a presentation like you're trying to sing a Gilbert and Sullivan "patter" song. On the contrary, you must speak at a brisk but unhurried pace, like you would in any other conversation. Of course, the overall presentation must not drag: present only the key points, and don't belabor any point by endlessly supporting it with details. Present only the key points, and only the key details required to support those points.
Lastly, a point about brevity: Presentations must be as long as required to cover the required material, neither longer nor shorter. If you've been hired to give a full-day workshop, "concise" simply isn't possible; 8 hours isn't "concise" in any reasonable interpretation of the word. But do account for the attention span of your audience. Some excellent advice I've seen repeated by really good speakers is "think sitcom, not movie of the week". Half an hour is a typical attention span, but in practice, for longer presentations such as half- or full-day workshops, you may need to think "mini-series": a series of 1-hour presentations separated by breaks. This keeps the audience awake and interested, and gives them time to absorb what you've said.