Presentation Skills Blog

Presentation Masterclass 18th Jan

2012-01-02T13:18:00.001Z

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2011-12-21T15:02:00.002Z

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Preparing For Public Speaking Perfection

2011-10-07T16:46:00.001+01:00

It does not take a genius to be aware that, when it comes to the delivery of perfect presentations, the amount of time you spend preparing and practicing has a dramatic impact on your end results. You should never be tempted to substitute substance for style. Yet, whilst content is king, delivery that is either too laboured or too fluffy results in the most brilliant of messages being lost on audiences.

So, start with a study of content first. Research your subject matter on the internet. Read books and industry publications. Take note if your subject matter is currently in the news, and consider if your presentations can be given directly relevant topical slants. It is also good to talk, so speak with people who are authorities on your subject matter, and also people who are not. Different angles give you a rounded overview that influences your own unique standpoint.

With key content under your belt, you have not yet won the war, but can momentarily rest on the laurels of having a major battle in the bag. Your best organisational game face now needs to emerge in order for you to pre plan a script that flows logically and naturally. Many experienced speakers build their presentations upon initial frameworks of 15% introduction, 70% main body and 15% summary, although there are no specifically dictated hard and fast rules.

Undertake practice runs of your presentations, to yourself, a colleague, a friend or your cat. Tape record or video yourself when practicing your presentations. Be open to taking constructive criticism on board and act as your own toughest critic, identifying and addressing your own strong and weak points when listening to and watching yourself back.

When your big day dawns, stay calm at all costs. It is, admittedly, easier said than done. Yet you can go some way to remaining grounded before the delivery of your presentations with plenty of deep breaths and a steady intake of water. Dress comfortably but formally. Smart suits are preferable for both male and female presenters, always accompanied by ties for men and minimal accessories and jewellery for women.

When taking to your stage, engage, engage, engage! Adopt a natural and open manner, let your energy and enthusiasm shine through infectiously and never forget to smile. Involving audiences at the receiving ends of your presentations from the get go is essential to creating satisfactory working partnerships between you and them. You can build instant rapport by posing searching questions to capture their attention, a public speaking ploy regularly implemented by the pros.

Do not speak in an uncharacteristic or unnatural way. This will only give your presentations – and yourself – airs of insincerity. Get in to a groove that is right for you, which should be neither too fast paced nor too slow moving. By all means harness appropriate humour. Self deprecation can be disarmingly endearing, so a laugh at your own expense is perfectly acceptable during presentations. Yet do avoid laughing at the expense of audience members.

Stick with what you intrinsically understand and avoid what you do not. Throwing in ‘big talk, for the sake of trying to sound clever is a no go area. Those listening to your presentations may have genuine questions that you are foolishly unable to answer. With job almost done, redress queries raised during your closing summary with care, patience and tact.

Always bear in mind that the due diligence you invest in your preparation for public speaking holds they key to leaving favourable lasting impressions long after your final thank you has been delivered.

Proficiently Preparing Eleventh Hour Presentations

2011-10-06T09:26:00.001+01:00

You share the company of hundreds of thousands of other professionals around the planet if the thought of public speaking fills your mind with dread, and your stomach with butterflies. Public speaking is often a daunting enough prospect in its own right. What if you are coerced in to giving presentations at the very last minute?

You know all about failing to prepare and preparing to fail. You are correct in assuming that even the most competent and experienced presenters remain steadfastly true to the mantra of preparation. In that respect, being expected to deliver presentations with only 24 hours notice, or even half an hours notice, spins sideways what you have been taught to trust. Yet happen it can and happen it does. Just like mastery of the art of public speaking in general, impromptu public speaking challenges are tackled head on with practice, plus a few common sense ground rules in your back pocket.

1) Plan To The Power Of Three
You need to grasp your subject matter and logically organise it when preparing to deliver presentations happening upon you at the eleventh hour. The notion of a beginning, a middle and an ending is nothing new you to you. It is a primary basic that you were taught to apply to story writing during your school days. The same applies to impromptu presentations. Your clarity of thought is enhanced and your panic reduced by arranging what you need to say in to an orderly opening, a main body, and a closure.

2) Start Well To Continue Well
Your opening gambit should pack a powerful punch. Bear in mind that last minute presentations are not usually random, but are required to address specific issues somewhat urgently. Direct questions usually make attention grabbing headlines. Try getting off on a good footing by stating the task at hand - for example, this is what we are working on, this is where we are currently at, and this is where we intend to be, so how do we go about getting there as efficiently and quickly as possible? Bingo! Isn’t that the very essence of what your audience is there to find out?

3) Remain Committed
Regardless of the duration of your short notice presentations, hark back to the power of three in the main body by breaking it down according to your introductory statements. Reiterate the current position. Expose and clarify potential concerns and impediments. Confirm the plan of action moving forward, addressing the points you have already raised. This provides your audience with a situation, issues and solutions.

4) Wrap It Up Potently
The closing statements of any presentations need to be as potent as the openers. In fact, they become one and the same thing when you bring your closing section right back to start and reiterate your opening gambit. This is your check back to ensure that all concerns have been addressed and that your audience understands the journey you have just taken them on. Furthermore, closing questions, and calls to action, give both presenter and audience ample opportunity share their views, clarifying that everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet and are ready to move cohesively forward.

Progressing Presentations From Good To Better To Best

2011-10-04T10:54:00.001+01:00

Your first tentative steps in to the art of public speaking are often taken from school age as a youngster. You may be required to fine hone these initial skills throughout the rest of your educational and professional life. Like with the evolution of most skills, practice makes perfect, as you go through many stages of the learning curve, from novice to expert.

Classroom presentations about books on the curriculum are very different to presentations you might be required to give when pitching yourself at a job interview to a panel of employees. Likewise, interview presentations differ substantially from public speaking as an authority on your subject matter to audiences. Yet your lifetime’s worth of presentations, as a student, an executive or an academic, is given the edge by the application of a few basic principles.

Regardless of your age, your level of public speaking experience and your audiences, these tips form bases from which you can continuously improve from good to better to best:-

1) Prepare To Succeed
Knowledge always equates to power, yet words are often hollow. Audience members do not want to be bored by presenters reading out what can already be scanned on an overstuffed screen. Minimising your materials, and maximising your knowledge of the subject at hand, are imperative to the proficient preparation quality presentations, thus enabling you to deliver them with authority and aplomb.

2) Critique Practice Run Throughs
Video yourself doing dry run presentations, and critique yourself firmly but fairly. Ask a trusted confidante to sit in on your rehearsals and be prepared to take their feedback on the chin.

3) Look Them In The Eyes
Aim to gain rapport with your audience by looking directly at them - not at your laptop, your notes, or your feet. However, avoid the unintentional temptation to make a particular audience member your focal point when public speaking. It makes an innocent participant feel self conscious and uncomfortable.

4) Speak With Then, Not Just At Them
Encourage audiences to interact with you during your presentations. Allowing them to interject with doubts, questions and relevant comments is testament to the fact that they are engaged with you. Your competent feedback further enhances their confidence in you and what you have to say.

5) Clock The Atmosphere
Let your emotional intelligence guide you. At certain points during your presentations, the mood of your audiences might get confrontational and heated, or down tempo and low on energy. Drop in anecdotes or jokes at such junctures, to lighten any tension or regain waning engagement.

6) Avoid Useless Fillers
Whether you have a tendency to “um” and “ah”, or use particular turns of phrase over frequently when you speak, weaning yourself off them will improve your public speaking. They are often more irritating to audiences than you realise.

7) Answer Questions Accurately
When preparing your presentations, put yourself in your audience’s shoes and anticipate the questions they might fire at you. This is a great way of forearming and forewarning yourself. Besides taking audience questions throughout the duration of your presentations, make sure you leave plenty of time at the end for closing questions. The answers you provide should confirm and amplify the messages you deliver throughout the session.

Learning To Overcome Public Speaking Palpitations

2011-10-03T12:16:00.001+01:00

You might know or work with certain individuals who approach the delivery of presentations with unbelievable gusto – we all do. Never fear that you are some sort lost cause if you, on the contrary, are totally daunted and flawed at the prospect. In fact, they are in the minority and you are in the majority, as public speaking ranks highly as a universal worst case scenario, striking untold terror in to millions of people worldwide.

However, like or not – and let’s be honest, in most cases we are definitely talking about like it not – you are more than likely to be called upon to give a number of presentations throughout your personal and professional life. Confident and proficient public speaking is realistically within your grasp when you learn to believe in yourself and aim to master your craft. Just like any other skill, it comes naturally to a gifted few, yet requires fine honing for most mere mortals.

You can and you will beat the palpitations caused by looming presentations. Those ‘in the know’ have done so by learning about what are known as the five Ps of public speaking and by incorporating the wisdom of these simple lessons in to their codes of conduct and plans of action.

1) Passion
It is imperatively important that you are passionate about the subject matter of your presentations. If you are not fired up about it, why on earth would anyone else be? Think about the know-like-trust theory. The more you know about the topic at hand, the more you will hopefully like it. Consequently, the more you know and like it, the more you will not only trust it, but you will also trust yourself to share your views about it, cojently and enthusiastically, with your audiences.

2) Persistence
“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try and try again”. Have a little mettle and do not get too down in the mouth if your first few presentations fall slightly short of the triumphs you had envisaged. Keep your chin up and aim to deliver your presentations repeatedly if you can, noting the vast improvements you make each time.

3) Positivity
Just before the delivery of your presentations, focus in on your ‘can do’ rather than your ‘can’t do’ mindset. Tell yourself that you can and you will knock your audience’s socks off with your dynamic presentations and deft delivery skills. Glasses half full are infinitely more appealing than glasses half empty, so inspire yourself to go for it and spread some joy.

4) Practice
Going overboard with the practicing of your presentations simply does not exist, as practice makes perfect. Go through your presentations out loud to yourself, and also in front of trusted colleagues, family members or friends who will offer you firm yet fair feedback. Then go back to the drawing board to redress any issues with your flow and wording. If at all possible, it is also a great nerve soother to have a practice in the actual rooms in which your presentations will be delivered. The environments will feel less hostile and more familiar to you.

5) Preparation
Comprehensive preparation offsets a multitude of sins. Once your subject matter has been agreed upon, your first port of call should be your own experience, backed up by copious research. The coupling of what you know and what you have learnt will make preparing for your presentations much easier, free flowing and logical. Your preparation also extends to a pre-understanding of your audiences. Knowing about their age groups and levels of proficiency in the topics under the microscope gives you the competitive edge to pitch your content and style just so.

All Presentations Should Tell Good Stories

2011-10-02T10:15:00.001+01:00

When you think about it, the end goal of most presentations is to convince, whether that means convincing your audience to agree with your point of view, or convincing them to take the action you want them to take. Professional presenters with vast amounts of public speaking experience are usually great story tellers. In order for your presentations to come across convincingly to your audiences, they require the focus, logic and sequence of any engaging story.

You might or might not be aware of falling victim to some or all of the common mistakes that initially trip up novice presenters. Most of these learners’ mistakes relate directly back to the ethos of story telling in presentations – or lack of it. When preparing for forthcoming presentations, or looking back retrospectively at old ones, you might give yourself a confidence boost by answering a few hypothetical questions honestly.

Are you prepared to offer appropriate answers to the broad range of questions that might be posed by your audience?
If not, might your inability to appropriately answer audience questions be due to a lack of flow in your presentation?
Are your slides truly sequentially ordered?
Are you sometimes guilty of randomly leaping from one aspect of your subject matter to another without any logical connection between the two?
Do you put yourself in danger of leaving gaping holes in your presentations by trying to sound too clever, for example, by presenting answers and conclusions that lack supporting evidence?
Do you try too hard to amplify your knowledge of your subject matter by including information that is indirectly related but not directly relevant to your presentations?

Searching questions indeed and you might be wondering how they relate to the harnessing of your story telling skills to enhance your public speaking effectiveness. They do, as they are all about focus, logic and sequence:-

Focus – keep to the point. Identify information that seem interesting and smart, but realistically bears little relevance to the core messages you aim to send. Once you have identified these curveballs, eradicate them, even if you desperately want to include them because you think they sound good.

Logic – tempting as it is to provide answers and conclusions first, followed by rhyme and reason afterwards, it is illogical. Notice how the stories contained in your presentations flow so much more smoothly when you simply reverse the order of certain slides. Questions first, arguments and evidence in the middle, answers and solutions last but not least.

Sequence – stories lacking in sequential orderliness are confusing, often to the degree that they might initially capture attention, but ultimately fail to retain it. It is impossible for you to over check that your presentations are sequentially correct. When going to the time and trouble that preparation for successful presentations demands, it is a crying shame if your subject matter is right, but the sequence in which you present it is erratic and disjointed.

Your ability to recognise the mistakes you are prone to making, coupled with your willingness to improve your public speaking performances, equates to half your battle being won. So sit tight with a copy of your presentation in front of you and see how you can make instantaneously dramatic differences.

Waving A Permanent Farewell To Public Speaking Worries

2011-10-01T09:06:00.001+01:00

Even the most competent and experienced of professional presenters admit that their nerves, at times, emerge to the forefront and threaten to get the better of them. So, if presentations are new to you, or something that you are just tentatively starting to get used to, your public speaking fears are far from irrational. Yet they are something that you need to learn to control. Otherwise, you might find that your pre-presentation jitters gather insidious momentum and manifest themselves in unnecessary stress levels that can ultimately impede your performances.

Agreed that words can come easily and that the conquering of public speaking fears can be easier said then done. Yet you can wave your worries permanent farewells by talking yourself in to a more positive mindset and adopting optimistic behavioral patterns.

1) Convince Yourself That Presentations Are Nothing Stressful
Give yourself a talking to from the head rather than the heart. It is estimated that an average human being speaks anywhere between 7,000 to 20,000 words per day, so talking is no more a new phenomenon to you that breathing and eating. Putting it in to logical perspective, there is no reason why presentations should pose more problems that the conducting of everyday conversations. The major differences, of course, are that presentations are organised, not spontaneous and delivered to audiences rather a few familiar faces. The shifting of your mindset from stressed to unstressed cannot be expected to happen overnight. You can, however, expect to ease yourself from one extreme to the other by concentrating on your messages, rather than getting fraught about how you are going to send them. This will help to make your style increasingly more conversational and relaxed.

2) Forget About Public Speaking Perfection
Try not to bog yourself down with preconceptions about what makes presentations perfect. Is there actually such a thing as perfection, or is it simply in the eyes of the beholders? You are understandably anxious about not wanting to make a fool of yourself in front on an audience. Offer yourself consolation in the thought that their main focus is on what you have to say. They are not there to judge and rate your public speaking aplomb.

3) Focus On Your Purpose
Amidst the hand wringing and brow wiping that you might endure before delivering presentations, endeavour with all your might not to lose sight of your purpose. Your ability to build and maintain audience rapport is undeniably important. Yet your inability to banish the nerves that blight your public speaking engagements can result in the shifting of the onus from clear and concise subject matter to over thinking your delivery techniques.

4) Believe You Are Good – And Become Good
During your novice experiences of giving presentations, you will pick up many ‘what to do’s’ and ‘what not to do’s’ as part of the natural learning curve. If you have put all of your background work in before you deliver your presentations publicly, there is little reason for you to be unconfident. Methodical organisation of your subject matter, and due diligence to practicing, goes hand in hand with the refining of your end delivery. Your back of office labour is half of your battle won. When front of stage, you will already be well on your way to winning the war and reaping the applause and rewards.

10 steps to creating the perfect presentation

2011-09-30T11:25:00.001+01:00

If you have ever been tasked to prepare and deliver presentations, at intimate internal meetings or large industry gatherings, you will understand nervous energy. The jitters are generated by your acknowledgement that you will not only be judged on what you say, but also on how you say it. Thankfully, there are tried and tested steps that can help you conquer the collywobbles, before you arrive on the public speaking stage, and whilst you are performing on it.

Step 1 – Planning
Improve the flow and organisation of your presentations by carefully targeting and pre-planning your content. Aim to address the specific needs of your audiences by understanding that the content you include in a sales pitch is totally different from what you use for an industry conference.
Rather than simply offering rafts of generalisations, hone your subject matter in to the theme of the event at which you are presenting, or address any topical issues that are currently big news.
Once you have decided on the main ideas you wish your presentations to impart, incorporate them in to storylines. Make your stories audience focused and develop them in accordance with your overriding theme. Go to great pains to ensure that your stories flow logically and sequentially, so as not to confuse your audiences by skipping backwards and forwards. Ensure that your stories pack potent punches by embellishing them with human examples, whether they are your own, your colleagues, your clients or suppliers, even famous or historical figures.

Step 2 – Choosing Words
Avoid the temptation to throw in words and phrases simply because you like the sound of them. They are rendered inadequate if they do not directly correlate to the core of your presentations. Public speaking is doubtlessly enhanced by the use of richly descriptive language, but it is equally as diminished by poor word choices. By all means make dynamic choices, but stick to the point when saying what you mean. Your audiences will not be foiled if they are unconvinced that you do not mean what you say.

Step 3 – Cutting Jargon
A small amount of ‘industry speak’ is acceptable if your presentations are delivered to audiences who solely operate within a particular sector. If you find that your presentations are intentionally or unintentionally peppered with jargon, ask yourself if you have included it to simply enhance your stature as an authority on your subject matter. Will anything be lost by ditching them and speaking plainly and cojently? Likewise, avoid using slang in a bid to sound ‘down with the kids’.

Step 4 – Avoiding Pauses
Reduce your tendency to slip annoying “Ummms” and “Errrs” in to your presentations by giving yourself alternative stalling devices. Instead of mumbling and fumbling, take a sip of water or ask your audience if they have any questions at this stage whilst you recover from momentary concentration lapses.

Step 5 – Practicing
The spoken word is a powerful thing and, whilst practice may not immediately make your presentations perfect, it will certainly set you on the right track to getting there. After choosing your words carefully, practice delivering them with charisma and passion.

Step 6 - Empathising
Your carefully planned presentations will be dead in the water if you are unable to empathise with your audiences and kindle immediate rapport with them. From the get go, make and maintain eye contact. Be open and smile. Gauge their reactions by spotting if they are glazing over in confusion or nodding in concurrence.

Step 7 – Being You
It is only natural to want to put your game face forward when public speaking. Yet do not confuse this with false airs and graces or a feigned style of speaking. You have been asked to speak and your audiences largely want to learn from your presentations, so do not forget to be the way you are. Anything else is false and unnatural.

Step 8 – Performing
A natural and relaxed style is an important contributory factor to friendly and well received presentations. You might, however, check that you do not become too casual and forget that you are under public scrutiny. Maintain a strong and open posture, respond to your audiences, but do not allow yourself to get unnecessarily sidetracked. Do not scratch unless you absolutely have to, fidget, mess with your hair or shuffle your papers.

Step 9 – Enlisting Humour
By all means include a few jokes if you have confidence in your ability to pull them off. If you are naturally quick witted, a little appropriate humour will complement your presentations. However, carefully avoid anything that audience members have the remotest chance of finding embarrassing or uncomfortable.

Step 10 – Having Confidence
Confidence inevitably grows with experience, but it is also a product of positive mental attitude. Allow your passion for your subject matter and your enthusiasm about sharing your knowledge to shine through when public speaking. Imagining that your audience will be inspired by what you have to say translate in to an enormous confidence boost.

Hints and tips for Creating and Sharing Powerpoint Presentations

2011-09-29T10:18:00.002+01:00

All presenters have their own styles and preferred delivery methods, yet, when pondering public speaking in academic and corporate environments, it is almost impossible to hark back to life before PowerPoint. This ingenious invention has transformed the way in which presentations are both given and received. However, PowerPoint presentations, just like old school lectures and speeches, run the risk of audience disengagement if you are not well versed in a few common sense and easy to follow tenets:-
1)    Definition
Never fail to keep the essence of the subject matter you hope to convey at the very forefront of your mind. Your audiences, after all, look upon you as the authority. Any ‘wishy washy’ glossing over of aspects you do not intrinsically understand can expose your lack of definitive knowledge. You can, however, give your PowerPoint presentations enhanced definition by using complementary handouts and visual representations.
2)    Style
Getting your style and tone spot on is key to unlocking the engagement and respect of your audiences. If you are public speaking to students or young professionals working in a trendy sector, acknowledge that one cap does not fit all. Use different PowerPoint animations, colours and templates than those you would select when giving presentations to traditional sectors and senior personnel.
3)    Animation
You will be aware of the cliché appertaining to pictures painting a thousand words. The same adage applies to all presentations and can be executed particularly effectively in PowerPoint presentations. Take the time and trouble to source relevant images, soundtracks and video clips. They confirm and amplify your subject matter and additionally entertain your audiences.
4)    Minimalism
The overstuffing of slides is a cardinal sin of PowerPoint presentations, albeit a trap that it is all too easy to fall in to. Too much animation is as tedious as too little and too many points and words are nothing short of a bore. As a rule of thumb, try including between three to seven points per slide and encapsulating each point in between three to seven words.
5)    Rehearsal
When preparing for any types of public speaking, including the delivery of PowerPoint presentations, practice is king. Carry our informal rehearsals in front of trusted confidantes, take their constructive criticisms on board and amend your PowerPoint presentations accordingly.
Dependent upon individual circumstances, you might be required to distribute your PowerPoint presentations amongst your audiences, either before or after delivery. There are a variety of different ways of successfully doing so, each befitting to various scenarios:-
1)    Laptop Storage
Many presentations that you give for a broad spectrum of reasons often require you to simply save your PowerPoint presentations on to your laptop before ultimate delivery. If so, you might consider erring on the side of caution and having alternatives on standby to safeguard yourself against unexpected file corruption, viruses and internet connection problems.
2)    Email Distribution
Pre or post emailing your presentations is a great way of electronically sharing. Yet it is worth having a back up plan in mind for recipients who may be unable to open up your presentations. Not everyone will have the same version of PowerPoint on their computers as you - or any version at all. If sounds and videos are included in your presentations, check and double check that your have safely zipped them in to your folders before emailing, to ensure that you send comprehensive versions.
3)    Video Conversion
The giving of online presentations is an evolving phenomenon. Likewise, you can share your PowerPoint presentations either before or after you have delivered them publicly by using the same methods. You will need to buy in to relevant software, such as PowerPoint to Video Converter, but will then have the luxury of uploading your presentations on to your blog or website, MySpace or YouTube.
4)    DVD Burning
Burning on to DVDs effectively offsets any of the potential issues you might encounter by the simple saving your PowerPoint presentations on to your laptop. DVDs additionally offer you an alternative way to share your presentations, and your audiences a simple and efficient way to view and refer back to your work.
5)    PDF Conversion
Hard copy printing of PowerPoint presentations is much less laborious and stressful when you print from PDF files rather than directly from PowerPoint. PDF files are also often easier to transmit via email, although your recipients will only be able to access your PDF files if they have Acrobat Reader or PDF Viewer on their computers.

Engaging Rather Than Annihilating Your Audiences

2011-09-28T11:52:00.001+01:00

The current economically fragile climate demands that employers need and want more input and more output from you. Couple this with ever evolving modern technology that ensures you are constantly ‘switched on’ via your Blackberry and email. It is understandable if you are finding that the amount of time you have to spare on preparing your presentations is punitive.

Yet you, and many other professionals walking in similar shoes, are regularly called upon to participate in conference calls, updates with your bosses, peers and juniors, and meetings with representatives from other branches. A lack of quality time, however, does not constitute an excuse for delivering poorly prepared presentations. Resultantly, they are highly likely to be anywhere between uncomfortable to excruciating for you to deliver, and of little value to your audience at the receiving end. Your lack public speaking prowess is unquestionably detrimental to how you are perceived within your business.

An ideal platform for improvement is therefore provided by the identification of your current public speaking type. Which are you?:-

Audience Blocked

Are you so intent on bulldozing through your content that you completely disregard the body language of your audience? They might be checking their mobile phones or texting, doodling, or simply lost in their own thoughts. When you spot these signs of audience disengagement, you pay them no heed. Your personal objective is to see your presentation through, to the letter, from end to end, heaving a sigh of relief afterwards that you managed to plod from A to B.

Audience Connected

Do you tune in to the mood of your audience and ramp the tempo up a notch with questions and recaps when you spot waning interest? You are savvy enough when delivering presentations to have learnt that the sharing of experiences and stories, and timely insertion of interactive exercises, keep energy levels high. You understand that connection with your audience is key. It gets them on board, working in partnership with you, ensuring a gratifying experience for them and you alike.

Audience Reliant

Is your reliance on constant audience reassurance so needy that you struggle to move forward towards conclusion? You are prepared to laboriously resolve a minor query of just one audience member, even if the rest of the rest of the audience are throwing up their hands in boredom and incredulity. Or one person caught sneakily texting is likely to send you in to a tailspin of self doubt that your delivery is not interesting enough, or your subject matter to easy, or too hard.

Many lesser experienced presenters suffer from being too blocked or too reliant. In your quest to up your public speaking game to achieve greater audience connection, there are a variety of simple techniques that you can adopt to help you meet your goals:-

Involve Not Alienate

Participation levels during smaller presentations are increased by doing recaps. Larger audience involvement is enhanced by interactive exercises and role plays.

Mix It Up

Rather than reading back at your audience words that they can already see on the screen, think about incorporating discussion groups, relevant images, and even video clips. Inclusion of any or all of these techniques leaves audiences with lasting impressions that far exceed verbal overload.

Make ‘Em Laugh

Try using befitting humour that directly relates to your subject matter, is not in bad taste and is inoffensive.

Qualify And Quantify

Do not simply expect your audience to blindly ingest reams of data. Draw upon your personal experiences, or those of people you know, to amplify the relevance of the points you are making.

Ask And You Shall Receive

Insert direct or hypothetical questions regularly throughout your presentations, in order to confirm your audiences understanding and keep them interested. Do not, under any circumstances, simply ask if there are any questions at the end of presentations, or do not be surprised at the consequent pregnant pause. Of course your audience will not have any questions, as their attention probably wandered after your opening slides

Failing To Prepare For Presentations Costs

2011-08-02T17:10:00.001+01:00

A staggering 78% of CEOs from Standard & Poor’s 500 companies recently surveyed ranked excellent communication as the single most important facet for their Managers to possess. Hence, when you know you have a presentation to give, no matter how far in the future it might loom, there are many factors that you need to start thinking about. None is to be kept further at the forefront of your mind than your absolute golden rule – prepare, prepare and prepare even more!

Some of the most competent presenters learnt this lesson through bitter experience and turned their initial mortification to its best advantage. If you have ever been in the unenviable position of failing to adequately prepare for a presentation… well, most folks know what failing to prepare leads to. You probably don’t need any reminding of the embarrassment you suffered as a result of blithering off the cuff.

A lack of preparation costs. It costs you in ‘face’, pride in yourself and your professional credibility in the eyes of your beholders. It also costs your audience by unnecessarily robbing them of their precious time - and probably also their wills to live as they are forced to endure your precariously rattling on. A lose:lose situation that you can’t risk recurring, as the ability to communicate effectively is a highly coveted skill in modern working environments.

It shouldn’t and doesn’t have to be a lost cause. High quality presentation training and coaching provides common sense keys to unlocking not only your speaking skills, but also your preparation modus operandi. This involves guiding you through the way your approach your brief with emotional intelligence, a clear understanding of what is required and how your presentation relates to the audience you will be speaking to. It also forewarns and forearms you to anticipate when contentious audience feedback might arise and how to engagingly deal with it if it does.

Furthermore, presentation training and coaching assists with the all important visual aspects of your presentation. Novices to presenting are generally tempted to cram as much text as possible on to each page of their Powerpoint presentations and simply read it all back to their audiences, occasionally adding a few asides. It is a common mistake for beginners to make if you are nodding your head resignedly. Yet make no bones that it is not engaging, it is rather boring. And nothing is more demotivating for relatively inexperienced presenters than noticing their audiences doze off, doodling and switch their attentions elsewhere.

It is not just about what you say or even how convincingly you say it in today’s high tech world where everything is about instant gratification. Great visuals are known to increase comprehension and ingestion by up to 400%. When looking at a screen, audiences are able to process visuals 60,000 faster than they can text, regardless of whether images are hard hitting, humorous or simply create mental associations.

At Presentation Guru, our presentation training and coaching services dig deeper than the talking of a good talk, although that is undeniably part and parcel of the process. We don’t only guide beginner to intermediate levels through presentation preparation. We also host polishing up sessions with experienced presenters, besides the rehearsal and revision of major sales pitches and Board presentations with senior management teams.

Notes to editors:

Presentation Guru is a company specializing in providing communication excellence to the executive workplace.
More information on company can be found on www.presentationguru.co.uk
Further enquiries to:
John Davies (Marketing) – 0845 899 1248

Stand Out From the Crowd with Your Public Speaking Skills

2011-07-31T09:19:00.003+01:00

Public speaking invariably comes at or near the top of the list whenever people are asked about their greatest fears. Given that so many people are unable or unwilling to speak in public; does it really make a difference if you too are not confident about giving presentations? After all, surely if public speaking training or presentation skills training and coaching were so beneficial, everyone would be doing it; wouldn’t they? Sadly, this is not the case – for many people, their worries and fears outweigh the benefits that an ability to speak in public can bring.
So, what are these benefits?
When you are nervous about speaking in public or unsure of your presentation skills, you will be in a constant state of anxiety in any situation where you may be called upon to speak. Toasts at weddings, an invitation to present at a conference, a meeting with a valued client or supplier – the prospect of these scenarios will make you shudder. If you can rely on your presentation training and coaching and know that you will make an effective speech, you can embrace these opportunities.
It’s the very fact that the majority of people are not accomplished public speakers that makes you stand out if you are able to do so. By volunteering to take on the dreaded and challenging job of speaking to a crowd, your superiors will be impressed and your co-workers will be beyond grateful that they will not have to do so. You immediately stand out from the crowd as a confident, assertive and team-oriented individual.
Even those who hate giving presentations and speaking in public will probably have to do so at some point. If you have prepared for this possibility by undergoing presentation training and coaching you will be able to do more than simply stammer through your notes. You will be able to concentrate on the meaning of what you are saying, focus on your audience and respond to their body language and questions. By being confident in your verbal communication you are free to concentrate on the non-verbal communication that is key to making a good impression.
The ability to make presentations and speak in public opens up a wealth of different career paths. Sales, marketing, management and more are all career directions which are much more easily accessed when you have confidence in your public speaking skills and are able to give clear, effective presentations. Your co-workers and subordinates are better able to understand and follow your plans and visions, while your clients and suppliers can follow your line of reasoning and know exactly what you are trying to communicate to them.
Public speaking skills, enhanced by presentation training and coaching, bring so many benefits that you will find it hard to understand why it took you so long to take the steps you need to stand out from the crowd.
Editor notes
Presentation Guru is a specialist presentation training and coaching company aimed at senior managers. Further information can be found at www.presentationguru.co.uk or email john@presentationguru.co.uk, telephone 0845 899 1248.

Busting the Biggest Myth About Public Speaking and Presentations

2011-07-30T21:53:00.005+01:00

If you were planning on running a marathon, you wouldn’t think that the fact that you have been walking since you were a toddler meant that you had all the experience and training that you needed. Should one of your friends have that attitude, they would quite obviously be gasping for air and suffering from muscle cramps after only a short distance but you certainly wouldn’t consider them to simply be “naturally “ bad at running. Instead you would advise them that long distance running is a skill that requires training and practice if you are to be successful.

And yet, many people hold exactly this attitude about public speaking and presentation skills training. They do not see the point in seeking public speaking training or presentation training and coaching, because they do not see how it could do any good. They believe that talking is the same as speaking in public, and that one poor showing means that they simply do not have the talent. This is as ridiculous as the analogy above. There are of course some people who have a particular innate talent for public speaking in the same way that some people are naturally athletic, but all successful public speakers and presenters have had hours of presentation training and coaching in order to become as accomplished as they are.

Any fears that you might have about speaking in public or giving presentations are perfectly natural – it is unlikely that you have had the levels of presentation training and coaching that the professionals have had, so of course it seems absurd to you that you could ever perform at that level. However, this barrier is one that can easily be overcome once you realise that speaking in public is a skill like any other, and like other skills you will need to practice and train if you are to reach your potential. This knowledge allows you to understand your current level of ability as not a “natural” incapability or innate lack of talent. Instead, you are simply untrained.

With proper presentation training and coaching, you can easily become an accomplished presenter or public speaker. Successful public speakers make the entire process seem effortless as they deliver an entire presentation without notes and with panache and style.
However, it is this very element of public speaking that requires the most amount of effort. These speakers will have spent serious amounts of time preparing their presentation, training and coaching themselves not to forget any of their planned turns of phrase or body language.
The next time you begin to worry about speaking in public or making presentations, take a step back and consider how much of this worry is based on the myth that successful public speakers are simply innately talented. You will find that a little presentation training and coaching will show you just how untrue that is.
Editor notes
Presentation Guru is a specialist presentation training and coaching company aimed at senior managers. Further information can be found at www.presentationguru.co.uk or email john@presentationguru.co.uk, telephone 0845 899 1248.

Overcoming Palpitations Caused By Pending Presentations

2011-07-30T19:18:00.005+01:00

Many charismatic and commanding professionals are reduced to quivering wrecks when having to speak publicly to small or large audiences made up of people they either know or do not know. Whatever shape or size their public platform takes, they are unable to switch their mindsets positively. Their regular daily aptitude to speak cojently and confidently evades them. They feel isolated by their fears. They battle on, hoping against hope that the day will finally dawn when they do not transform in to the human equivalents of Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse whilst presenting.
In modern working environments, you don’t have to be a Senior Manager of an organisation to be asked to give a presentation. On the contrary, it is not unusual to finding yourself being asked to present during job interviews, making it all the more imperative that you tackle the fears that you share with many people. Your employment prospects can potentially hinge on your ability to deliver an engaging presentation – or not. And if you are lucky enough to bag your dream job, chances are that that there will be much of the same to follow, both internally and externally. You will be far from out of the woods, but you are not alone!
Resultantly and very understandably, many professionals at a variety of different levels call loudly for presentation skills training or coaching. What the pros have learnt from experience and understand intrinsically is why people like you are stricken with terror when faced with presenting. Whatever your own personal reasons might be, anyone’s and everyone’s reasons generally stem from a natural reluctance to sound silly.
This is a human universal that blights many people, whether during an informal chat with friends or in the workplace. You might be loathe to venture your ideas and opinions in case others don’t agree with you or fail to value your contributions – so you keep them to yourself. You are afraid of sounding stupid or showing yourself up as a charlatan who doesn’t know what they are talking about. Keeping it zipped is preferential.
You might admire those people who seem to ooze uber confidence and have inimitable knacks of always quipping in with dazzling one liners at just the right moments. Remember that they are often faking and quaking, too, but have conquered their inhibitions. Presentation training and coaching professionals know this and can share with you practical techniques to unlock your hidden potential, engage your audiences and move forward in all aspects of your life.
At Presentation Guru, we offer presentation skills training and coaching that goes far beyond the giving a humorous talk before sending you on your way. Our twenty years of experience in the art of presentations has not only benefited FTSE 100 companies; our deep insight has challenged and influenced the training of trainers. We do not claim to be the cheapest, yet we do pride ourselves in being market leaders. Our time served methods and techniques constitute your very own box of tricks to banish your presentation butterflies and jettison your jitters.

Editor notes
Presentation Guru is a specialist presentation training and coaching company aimed at senior managers. Further information can be found at http://www.presentationguru.co.uk or email john@presentationguru.co.uk, telephone 0845 899 1248.

The language of leadership

2011-07-12T14:21:00.001+01:00

resentations form an important part of business life with an average business professional being subjected to up to 2,500 presentations during his or her career, yet, they become meaningless if they cannot be understood nor remembered. A survey of Standard & Poor’s 500 companies found 78% of CEO’s ranked communication as the most important skill of a modern manager, yet the majority of us will struggle to identify five memorable presentations.

Creating a lasting memory of your presentation is critical to ensure your product or service is at the forefront of people minds.

It is interesting to discover why we remember certain things and forget so many others. We remember remember the speeches of Churchill during the war when he urged the people with passion to fight the enemy and Martin Luther King’s passionate vision in his fervent speech, “I have a dream”. We all know roughly what the speeches were about, Churchill rallying a nation in war, and King of a unified world where black and white people live in harmony. It’s interesting to ask why we remember these presentations, and more to the point the complete story from a simple phrase or sentence quoted. Yet how easily do we forget what yesterday’s business presentation was about? Was it passion, was it vision, maybe imagination or simply good delivery which triggers our process of recall?

Throughout history, great political and business leaders have had an ability to craft and articulate a message that inspires and motivates. Yet, it seems that few modern day managers and business leaders are able to follow in their footsteps, preferring to hide behind an array of PowerPoint slides and bullet points. So how do you captivate, entertain and educate your audience? How did the great leaders of the past create such evocative and memorable speeches without the use of PowerPoint?

In the midst of the blitz, Churchill raised the nations support with nothing more than great oration, “we shall fight”. Why did it work, and what magic rules of communication did Churchill apply?

Churchill told a graphical story of fighting on the beach, on the sea, and in the streets, enabling the audience to picture in their minds the ensuing battle, he repeated key phrases continuously like a mantra; ‘we will fight and never surrender’ giving the nation ownership of their own destiny, making his audience the centre of the issue, dramatising their role in the ensuing events.

Great presentations tap into the needs and aspirations of the audience, and they all have the same objective, and that is to create a lasting memory of your presentation to ensure your product or service is at the forefront of people minds. From our understanding and learning of the great speeches and presentation, we are able to pick out six key concepts and easy to implement rules to ensure your next business presentation captivates your audience and make them remember it (for the right reasons).

1) Tell them a story; starting from the here and now in order to get to the then and when

2) Appeal to the aspirations of the audience; if you do this – success, if you don’t – failure, darkness, humiliation

3) Apply a series of contrasts, hot-cold, light-dark, pride-humiliation, etc, startling images and metaphors. Consider this from Peter Silas, CEO of Philips Petroleum, ‘We can no longer wait for the storm to pass. We must learn to work in the rain’

4) Repeat key phrases at least three times – ‘I have a dream’, ‘We will fight them’, ‘Education, Education, Education’, even ABBA, ‘money, money, money’!

5) Use vivid images to deliver passion - Enoch Powell’s ‘rivers of blood’ speech

6) Use simple words in short sentences (no more than 15 words) and short paragraphs (no more than 9 lines) – Nike’s ‘Just do it’, GE ‘speed, simplicity, self confidence’

See if you can inject some spice and passion into your next presentation; try and apply some of the rules described above; your audience will love you for it.

To close, an apt quote from Rudyard Kipling ‘Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind’ – if administered with the correct dosage to treat the right affliction!

Notes to editors:

The Oatmeal Group is a UK company specializing in providing communication excellence to the executive workplace. The Oatmeal Group is served through four business divisions, consultancy, training, marketing and adventures.

More information on The Oatmeal Group can be found on the company website at www.oatmealgroup.com

Further enquiries to:

John Davies (Marketing) – 0843 289 1249

How to become a professional speaker

2011-06-29T11:09:00.001+01:00

I was invited a couple of days ago to hear a Canadian entrepreneur speak about his experiences at a meeting in Cardiff and how he had made his money. It started off well, giving a background to his company, how it grew, what they did and how he managed to see it, thats was the first 30 minutes, the next 2 hrs was spent evangelising / dictating to the audience on how they should run their businesses and how NLP was the bedrock for all success. Now, call me sceptical, but what had been a good start was now becoming an arrogant pr stunt for the speaker who had now whipped himself up into a frenzy and believed he was superhuman and had the answers to everything.

What he lacked was structure. He proposed that he had always wanted to be a professional speaker and he was making money from it, yet he lacked the basic credentials of what great speakers do, they tell structured stories with a start, a middle and an end often laced with anecdotal stories, experiences and humour, but they always have structure.

I was left dissapointed, bored and annoyed that he had taken 2 hrs of my life away for not delivering what he had been expecting to deliver; so please, some advice for all aspiring speakers, keep it structured and focussed on the topic at all times.

Make your point, briefly.

2011-05-09T14:27:00.002+01:00

I've just been listening to Pakistans presidents response to the recent Osama drama on Sky and was amused by the summation of his speech which he illustrated in point form. He did'nt make 1 point, 3 or 5, but a massive 15 points! thats longer than a lot of presentations that I've seen.
If you need to make a point, keep it brief, no more than 3 please, your audience needs to be reminded of your key overriding messages only.

Simply presentations for clearer presentations.

Words to conjure up a positive emotion

2011-05-01T16:45:00.001+01:00

I'm often asked how we can create emotion and a positive experience in my presentation training courses, and the answer is both complicated and simple. There are many factors that control positivity including delivery, subject, the environment, but also the words you use will have a huge effect.

Certain words carefully placed throughout your speech will engender a more positive response from you audience. A small sample of these words include:

Acquired
Advised
Arranged
Augmented
Built
Completed
Conducted
Converted
Corrected

Created
Decreased
Designed
Developed
Devised
Directed
Doubled
Effected
Engineered

Enlarged
Ensured
Established
Expanded
Facilitated
Generated
Implemented
Improved
Increased

Initiated
Installed
Instigated
Integrated
Introduced
Launched
Managed
Negotiated
Optimised

Organised
Persuaded
Planned
Prepared
Presented
Produced
Rationalised
Reduced
Saved

Set up
Specified
Steered
Streamlined
Strengthened
Succeeded
Supervised
Trained
Won

A presentation trainer abroad

2011-05-01T16:24:00.001+01:00

I'm sure you too can't fully switch off when you're on holiday, and it was in a darkened conference hall in Corfu that I found myself sat alongside another 300 plus guests being tormented by a corporate presentation from our Thompson representative.

Now I don't mind nervousness in a presenter, but what I can't abide is poor continuity and presentations that dont translate well from corporate headquarters down to the shop floor.

In summary, the slides didn't correspond to the speech and the message was better at home in an Evangelical church than in a holiday resort.

So come on Thomson Holidays, get some presentation training for your reps and save the suffering for your holidaymakers.

What your walk says about you

2011-04-11T10:51:00.001+01:00

I'm always fascinated, and amused by new articles on bodylanguage, and this one is a real gem.

Do you have a fear of speaking in public?

2011-04-08T17:10:00.001+01:00

An estimated 75% of all speakers experience some degree of anxiety/nervousness when public speaking.The fear of public speaking, or stage fright is extremely common, and even has its own name, Glossophobia from the Greek word glōssa, meaning tongue, and phobos, fear or dread.

Symptoms include:

Intense anxiety prior to, or simply at the thought of having to verbally communicate with any group, avoidance of events which focus the group's attention on individuals in attendance, physical distress, nausea, or feelings of panic in such circumstances.

This anxiety can be grouped into physical and verbal categories. These symptoms include acute hearing, increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, dilated pupils, increased perspiration, increased oxygen intake, stiffening of neck/upper back muscles, and dry mouth. The verbal symptoms include, but are not limited to a tense voice, a quivering voice, and repetition of "Umms" and "Ahhs", vocalized pauses, which tend to comfort anxious speakers.

Some nervousness before speaking is good, it heightens your awareness and gives you that adrenalin rush to perform at your best. Try the following tips next time you speak.

1.Channel your nervous energy into the performance
2.Believe in yourself: never say 'I can't' - you always can
3.Remember - everyone started somewhere
4.Imagine how you'll feel when it's gone well
5.Focus on your strengths... and don't forget to smile!

Simply presentations run 1-1 sessions for presentation anxiety.

Vocal Coaching, how to use your voice more effectively

2011-04-04T19:16:00.001+01:00

Ever wondered what professional speakers do before a speech? Here are some tips before you get in front of that podium.

1. Stand up straight, take a wider than normal stance. It sounds obvious but standing up will be helping your voice.
2. Place your feet underneath the hipbones. This position will help support your torso.
3. Drop your shoulders. Tension in your shoulders has a detrimental effect on your voice.
4. Keep your chin level with the floor. This will prevent you squashing your neck vertebrae.
5. Release tension in your body: Do something physical to ‘use up’ excess adrenalin. This will help you sound calmer.
6. Push against a wall
7. Roll the shoulders – 4 x forwards 4 x backwards
8. Jog on the spot

Articulation Exercises: Very important if you want to improve the clarity of your voice

1.Massage the face and the jaw
2.Snarl! (good for releasing top lip tension)
3. Repeat ‘oooo….eeee’ about 5 or 6 times. Don’t rush, this will allow the lips muscles to stretch safely
4. Now read a piece of text (something from a book or perhaps a newspaper). Read it slowly and think about beginning and ending each word.

Wedding speech tips

2011-04-03T20:14:00.002+01:00

Everyone is going on about the Royal Wedding at the moment which brings me to my forthcoming wedding, and the implications of the speech.
Wedding speeches follow a separate set of rules, as the audience (in theory) don't care so much about your performance, or content, but want to hear your sincerity and of course, if you are the best man, some humour.
As a general rule, include the audience as much as possible, be as colourful and detailed as you can with the stories to include those in the audience who may not know you too well (partners of friends etc), be sincere, and be short, nobody likes people droning on about themselves, aim for 5-10 minutes max, and don't forget the toast!

Presentation training for your wedding speech can often help those suffering from huge nerves, but dont leave it to the last minute, start working towards your speech at least 4 weeks before the big event.

How to make your voice sound deeper

2011-03-30T17:42:00.002+01:00

I'm always intrigued by tips and techniques to make your voice deeper as, when we are anxious or nervous, our pitch increases so we need to speak more slowly and be conscious of breathing through our noses. However, I found this little exercise today and I'm intrigued if any of you would like to try the exercise for a couple of weeks and report back the results.

It all focuses on a little rhyme that stretches your vocal cords and goes like this:

Ding dong, King Kong, bing bong.

Repeat it 3 times daily, holding onto to ng of each word for a little longer each time. After a week, tilt you head back at the ceiling and repeat the exercise again.

Let me know if this presentation training tip works!

How to look good in front of the media

2011-03-29T13:01:00.001+01:00

Media training has historically been the reserve for large corporates who can afford to send their managers on luxury weekends to be coached by ex BBC journalists. But what about the huge amount of SME's and startups that frequently have the option of some free publicity via TV, press or radio?

Well the good news is you don't need to digest volumes of books on 'answering difficult questions' or 'how to look good in front of the camera', we can all learn to be media friendly using some basic rules.

Rule 1. Bodylanguage

Any movement in front of the camera is grossly exaggerated due to the size of the frame. So stand a little wider than normal and maintain eye contact with the interviewer at all times. Never look at the camera, assume you are having a conversation with no cameras present. Take off your sunglasses, and check you dress and hair before your start, you can't be taken seriously if you have a tuft of hair sticking up or food on your teeth.

Rule 2. Help the editor

Start and end each session with a 2-3 second pause, this will allow the editor to splice the material easily.

Rule 3. Create soundbytes

Single word answers are useless, create soundbytes using facts, figures or examples that add colour to your answer. Don't be afraid to ask for clarification, and if you don't now the answer say so, followed by either 'but I do know...' or an offer to get that information within a pre-determined timeframe.

Rule 4. Understand the order of questions

Interviewers tend to follow themes of what, why, how, where, when and who, anticipate the questions they are likely to ask.

Rule 5. Get your nuggets ready

In advance of the interview, get 3 golden nuggets of information that you want to include in the interview. Answer each question and build a bridge to enable you to add your golden nugget with words like and, meanwhile, also and however. Be startling, ask yourself 'so what?' why would the audience find your answer interesting.

Brought to you by Oatmeal Training

What does it take to become an accomplished presenter?

2011-03-26T19:02:00.001Z

How do you become a better presenter?

It’s been said that it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert at anything, and presentation skills sadly are no different,

Professional speakers often quote a ratio of 1.5 hours of preparation for every minute that’s spoken, so you can see, its not an easy task to become an accomplished speaker.

Most of us don’t need to become professional speakers, but want to become confident and capable at presenting. The top 3 tips are:

1. spend a third of your time thinking about your presentation, a third creating the content, and a third rehearsing.

2. understand your audience as much as possible, what do they know about the subject, and what do they want to hear.

3. create a story, use visual metaphors, and don’t bore them to death with Powerpoint!

First impressions stick

2011-03-25T16:30:00.002Z

I've just spent the day interviewing, and now I'm reflecting on what made one candidate stand out from the next. Aside from mannerisms, dress, and the way they spoke, it was what they had in front of them that made an impact. Two of the candidates brought in conference folders, one to show her portfolio (when prompted), but the second had a neat list of all the points she wanted to raise during the interview.
Why I noticed it was because the role needed meticulous administrative skills, and being organised was a key facet to the role, and this, like any other prop you may use as part of your presentation worked incredibly effectively at reinforcing the point that she was, indeed, well organised.
So, regardless of the type of presentation, sales presentations, interviews or workshops, people do notice the detail, and it may be the detail that differentiates you and the opposition, so think laterally next time you need to reinforce a point.

The rules of using a whiteboard

2011-03-24T19:02:00.001Z

I've found a new passion for my whiteboard again, forget slideshows, retro is back.

But there are some rules to obey when using our trust white steeds:

1. Only use 2 colours, black and red, or blue and red. Use red sparingly to highlight key points.

2. Have a maximum of 20 words per A4 sheet of paper

3. If you're right handed, stand to your left (as you are looking at the whiteboard) so you don't cover it up as you are writing, and left handers, do the opposite.

4. Draw lines in pencil to stop your writing sloping up, or down

5. Use a projector to project onto the paper during your preparation, trace outlines of complex pictures, or cartoons onto the paper. Only you will be able to see the pencil lines and your audience will be amazed when you quickly draw a perfect picture!

Powerpoint tip

2011-03-24T16:45:00.001Z

I'm always amazed at how few people know about this little Powerpoint tip, press B for a black screen and W for a white screen, and again to get your screen back.

So hide your presentation next time you don't want the audience to see your slides.

http://www.presentationguru.co.uk

How much text should you really have on your slides?

2011-03-23T14:32:00.001Z

Despite the volumes of moans and articles on poor presentations, it seems like we are'nt getting any better at presenting, or creating slideshows.

I'm often asked how much text should there be on a slide, and the answer ideally is none.

The problem with slides is that the way presenters use them. The goal is to put something up that will briefly engage the audience, and then they should focus back on the presenter again. What sadly happens is that many presenters put essays up on their slides, and as the audience can read faster than they can listen, they will read the entire slide whilst ignoring what the presenter has to say.

So, back to text, ideally if you have to put text up on the slide, try an employ a 3 by 3 rule; 3 bullets, 3 words per bullet, and if you think this is too hard, start off with 6 by 6.

And lastly, font sizes; bigger is better. Size will largely depend on the equipment and environment you are presennting in, but keep fonts familiar (arial etc) with a minimum font size of 36.

Happy presenting.

The art of the umm

2011-03-11T10:09:00.001Z

Have you ever considered why we put an umm into our conversation? or like me, are you irritated by presenters who constantly utter an umm or err between sentences? There is a reason for the humble umm or voiced pause as the experts like to call them.

It stems back to the way we learn to hold a conversation, when we aren't finished, but need a little thinking time, we let our fellow conversationalists know that we haven't finished by filling the uncomfortable pause with a voiced pause. This voiced pause lets people know we haven't finished and stops people from butting into our airtime. The problem is, it doesn't quite work when you are presenting, yet how do we re-wire our brains to stop it?

Learning to stop using voiced pauses and replacing them with silent pauses takes time, but well worth the effort. Experts say that pauses however brief should be introduced every 6-9 words (depending on the audience and subject), but certainly when there is a natural break in the subject matter, or when there are key points to make.

How long should your pause be? as professional conversationalists, anything over half a second will be noticed, and as a presenter, anything up to three seconds will make a real impact. It may seem like an eternity, but it gives the audience time to digest the killer point that you have just made.

The Art of Networking

2011-02-26T09:55:00.001Z

Large-scale networking events can help you bolster your Rolodex and make connections that can land you a wealth of new contacts, connections and clients.

Coming across as both professional and engaging to those new contacts, however, isn't as simple as it may seem.

Here are seven of networking's biggest no-no's:

1. Don't arrive late.

To make things easier on yourself, time your arrival so you can maximize the interactions you're most interested in having.

"Especially for people who typically shy away from networking, the inclination is to arrive on the later side," . "The opposite is a much better strategy. Being the first person there, it's calmer, laid back, and people haven't yet settled into groups. You won't feel like there's no one to talk to."

2. Don't just stand there.

This is not the time to wait around for people to approach you. You need to work the room—even if you're on the shy side. There are ways to step outside your comfort zone and avoid awkwardness.

Start off by asking questions. And don't worry about impressing the person you're speaking with—just act naturally.

"Many people think they're bad at networking," she says. The key is to work with, rather than fight against, your natural communication style. That way, "what were liabilities become your greatest strengths,".

3. Don't feel like you need to talk to everyone.

As a budding business owner or executive, you might enter a networking event with a "more the merrier" mentality when it comes to making new connections. However, it might be advantageous to take a "less is more" stance instead.

It's better to meet fewer people and create a deeper, lasting connection than simply talking to everyone in the room.

Instead of going to a networking event and grabbing 40 business cards in two hours, speak with fewer people for a longer period of time. Give each person you talk to at least five minutes to get to know you—and you them—before you move on, she advises.

This way, you'll leave networking events energized by new, true connections rather than tuckered out from meeting too many people.

4. Don't come unprepared.

Once a new contact tells you what they're specifically looking for in terms of products or services, you need to be ready to tell them how your specific experience lines up with their needs.

Your goal isn't to hard-sell them right then and there—instead, it should be to get them interested in you and what you have to offer. To do that, you need to be prepared with an understanding of what everyone from an investor to a potential client will need, and be armed with the most relevant, useful information to show that you have a solution that works for them.

What's "useful," you ask? Results. "Don't stand there and tell them what you do, tell them what results you get. "Have examples of a situation, a problem and a solution that you can say in two breaths." Also, keep in mind that what an investor might find useful is likely different than what a customer wants to hear—so having a mental catalog of a wealth of your previous experiences will help you fill all kinds of niches.

5. Don't forget the big picture.

The bottom line is that, once you leave a networking event, you want the contacts and connections you've made to follow up with you and your services in the future.

You should know your production and delivery capabilities, and be able to set a realistic expectation for potential customers. You're trying to maintain the image of your company, and if you're not prepared to answer detailed questions that cover the ins and outs of what you have to offer, or if you can't offer it to them in a timely manner, they'll move on—fast—to someone who can.

6. Don't try to multi-task.

Within the first few minutes of meeting someone new, you probably don't whip out a notebook to write down what they're saying—and that should be a rule for networking events, as well. Instead of being distracted by a pen and paper, focus intently on the conversation you're having. After you've grabbed a business card and stepped away, jot down a few things that will help you jog your memory when you follow up with them later.

7. Don't forget to follow up.

If you're not following up, you're not networking.You should stay in touch, without thinking about what you'll get out of the relationship.

Within 48 hours of your first meeting, you should email a note that pinpoints the most important parts of your earlier conversation, so your contact remembers who you are specifically. A timely turnaround will show that you're both interested and available to continue the conversation.

Send them a link to a project you discussed, or ask them how the game they were going to that night ended up. Give them something that is useful to them.

article by Kelly Eggers

Personal branding and networking courses

Seven deadly sins

2011-02-07T18:25:00.001Z

A bit of fun but very relevant.

Seven deadly sins of presentations

The presentation before the presentation

2011-02-07T17:27:00.001Z

Sounds odd, but why risk having the audience judge you in your first couple of sentances when you could have already partially informed them before your main presentation?

I was fortunate enough quite recently to see Ranulff Fiennes present, now if you have never heard of Ran as he is affectonaly known, he is best described as the greatest living adventurer. He has a reportoire of stories that will simply amaze you and keep you gripped to the edge of your seat, however the introduction his colleague gave before he spoke was somewhat dull, laborious and didnt set the audience on fire.

If you ever need to present to a large audience, and there is a compere holding the show together, always ensure you prepare an introduction for the compere to follow. If, you arent well known as Ran (myself included), your intro should qualify you so that you get the audience to appreciate your authority and give you kudos before you say a single word, this will help you deliver a punchier message as you have already established your base credentials.

There isnt a single roule to follow, as it will depend on the audience and topic, but compere scripts should include:

who you are

what is your background

any qualifications or research that is relevant to the talk

any startling data e.g. advisor to the Home Office, guest presenter on BBC etc etc.

what you are here to discuss

Write out the script for the compere to follow to the letter. The rest is up to you, but keep it short and punchy, 2 minutes max.

Presenting under duress

2011-01-05T11:36:00.001Z

I worked with an individual over Christmas who had been told that he must start presenting the companies solution to take the burden off the director. This in itself wasn't an unreasonable request, what was unreasonable was the director expected him to deliver a thirty slide Powerpoint presentation that at best, based on the number or words, could be described as a novel.
As you'd expect, the individual was full of reluctance, anxious and wasn't happy at the prospect of boring his audience to death.
When we put ourselves up to execute a presentation we are putting our reputation and potentially career at stake, so we need to communicate ideas that excite us and give a presentation full of enthusiasm that we fully believe in. In my experience, this can never be done using someone else's slideshow, especially if it dictates the tone of the presentation through masses of text.
Like many students before, my advice has always been to create a presentation you are happy with, yes it may look totally different, but the key theme and message will be the same. Wait! I hear you cry, our company has a standard corporate presentation that must be delivered in a particular format, then change it. Create a corporate presentation that is full of pictures, this will allow the presenter to execute the same showreel, but use their own personal soundtrack, which works far more effectively.

Christmas is finally over

2010-12-27T12:12:00.001Z

Billions spent on advertising to entice you to buy the must have product for this year, coupled with another couple of billion to say that new product is now half price. Well its finally over which means that we now have to make our New Year resolutions, stick to them for at least two weeks and then get back to the grindstone of 2011.

So what are you going to do differently in 2011? was 2010 a good year for you, or ar you going to dramatically do something different to alter your wealth, happiness or health in the next twelve months?

If you havent considered making a plan, do it now! the plan itself is less important that the act of planning, as situations will change and so will your plan. Take time to stop and think about the year ahead, what you would like to achieve and what actions you need to take to achieve your goals.

Stick your plan on your refrigerator or somewhere visible, visit and update the plan regularly, and more importantly reward yourself as you start achieing your goals.

Good luck for 2011.

New presentation training dates

2010-12-16T14:45:00.002Z

2011 is looming and its time to ask ourselves, how am I going to earn more money, get a payrise, be promoted etc etc. Well I can't guarantee anything, but having great presentation skills will certainly help so I'm running some small presentation training sessions in the new year in Cardiff and Bristol.

Have a look.

http://www.presentationguru.co.uk/Presentation-training-Cardiff-Bristol.html

Export English, what did Lord Alan Sugar mean?

2010-12-08T14:20:00.002Z

I had to giggle the other day when Lord Sugar reminded the would be apprentices to talk in export English when they pitched their products abroad, what he really meant to say was when you present to an audience that English is not their first language certain rules need to be adhered to, especially if your accent is'nt BBC perfect. Be aware of:

1. pace, slow down let the audience get used to your accent, look our for visual body language that they are struggling to understand

2. TLA's (three letter acronyms) and jargon, cut it out altogether, don't assume that your audience will understand, keep it simple

3. get an undersatnding of the audiences vocabulary before you start to pitch, ask open questions, you may be suprised at how much or little they understand

4. watch out for cultural taboos and etiquette, you dont want to get off to a bad start!

5. if possible, put markers in place every couple of minutes to ensure the audience understands you, open questions work fine or quick summaries

As a golden rule, prepare the language of your presentation for an audience of 12 yr olds, you can always go up or down in complexity once you've covered point 3.

Presentation quotes, when a single sentance can sum up a presentation

2010-11-24T22:57:00.002Z

Quotes, when used sparingly can have a profound effect on your audience, especially if the quote was from someone well known, and if its witty a perfect end or start to a presentation.

Follow the link to get some useful quote resources.

http://www.presentationguru.co.uk/presentation-quotes.html

How to pitch

2010-11-22T20:42:00.001Z

A great presentastion on slideshare.

What if you need to present bad news?

2010-11-12T11:10:00.002Z

For many, there will be instances where we have to present news that is both uncomfortable and unpleasant. In a business sense, this could be a failed bid, staff cuts, redundancies, forced takeover or company closure. These types of presentations follow special rules and guidelines that do not follow conventional presentation structures.
The first rule to remember is that although you have had plenty of time to prepare yourself for the news, your colleagues or audience will not have, and it will be a huge shock for them.
The second rule is be direct in your opening statement, don't lead to a conclusion, tell them exactly what the news is immediately. There will be a lot of rumour mongering about the meeting, and they will all be anxious, so dont keep them hanging on.
The third rule is to give them an insight as to what has caused the failure, explain what actions you had tried to countermeasure the effect and the net result.
And the final rule, give them a timescale and actions over the coming weeks, if you are bringing in advisers tell them, if people are owed money, tell them the situation, and if you are expecting them to work for a period of time, or need them to handover information explain to them how this will be facilitated together with the return of company assets.
Remember. You have delivered news that may have a profound effect on the audiences livelyhood, they will be shocked then angry before they can accept the fate that has been delivered to them. So be sincere, dont try and be clever of make false promises that you cannot keep.

Entrepreneurs have passion! forget Steve Jobs, meet John Nese

2010-11-06T15:24:00.001Z

Where exactly should we be diverting our eyes to?

2010-11-03T14:05:00.002Z

I've just come back from a charity fashion show which fascinated me both from the perspective of listening to the stye of the compere, but moreso watching the models, who, were just regular people like you and I. What was interesting was where they all, without exception averted their gaze, right to the back so they did'nt have to interact with the people at the front.
Theres been a lot said about where presenters should look, with popular models being the W (imagine a W placed across your audience and then look at each point in turn) or the lighthouse effect, sweeping left then right etc etc. What happens in reality is that presenters more often than not fixate on a friendly face at the front and then spend the entire presentation talking to just one person (who smiles and nods as they feel uncomfortable with all the attention given to them). So where exactly should we look and how can we plan to make it seem natural, the answer lies in the environment; it will depend on the size of the audience and the room you are presenting in. As part of your planning process, think how you intend to interact using just your eyes, imagine where you will be looking when you pose direct questions or make key statements, but above all, don't forget the people in the back, they may be in the least illuminated part of the audience, but don't leave them in the dark.

My long awaited book is finally for sale!

2010-10-31T08:52:00.003Z

Why do business presentations fail? by John Davies B.Eng, MBA |

Sincerity is the best skill of all

2010-10-29T09:28:00.001+01:00

I stumbled upon this today, a website put together by a young entrepreneur who is clearly passionate about what he does and the results he gets, What struck me was the simplicity of the message and the cohesiveness of the video, no multimillion pound production here, just good honest information backed up with solid, personal testimonials.

Which brings me on to sincerity. People often ask me about being a polished, perfect presenter, but the truth of it is that we are all human, and we all have flaws however minor they may be, and unless you have the luxury of a professional coach and brand guru, its ok to make the occasional mistake, as long as you recover correctly.

Being honest, open and sincere with gain enormous empathy with the audience who in turn will warm to you as they acknowledge that you are genuine and not a pre fabricated politician, so relax, enjoy your presentation, and be yourself.

Check out Mark http://www.30plusbootcamp.co.uk/#

The Apprentice, its all down to communication...

2010-10-25T18:37:00.001+01:00

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/oct/25/entrepreneurs-business-research

The language of leadership on www.oatmealtraining.co.uk

2010-10-25T16:56:00.001+01:00

via oatmealtraining.co.uk

Great example of a deductive approach to a presentation, Stacey Kramer

2010-10-25T16:40:00.001+01:00

ie fact fact fact = conclusion, very moving, and quite controvertial looking at the comments! what do you think?

Personal branding article

2010-10-25T12:54:00.001+01:00

http://www.oatmealtraining.co.uk/Management-Training-Courses/Brand-yourself-f...

Sir Ken Robinson, a great example of a great speaker

2010-10-24T22:52:00.001+01:00

such talent! Sir Ken Robinson on creativity, key points which explains why we give such bad boring presentations

storytelling in your presentations

2010-10-23T13:40:00.000+01:00

Ever since the beginning of time, information and knowledge has been passed down through generations through the use of storytelling. So important was this task, that it was considered a profession, and one that took a lifetime of study to perfect. We all know the format once upon a time there was a problem, along came a solution and we all lived happily ever after, we know it so well because thats how we learnt to read from our parents and teachers and so, is a methodology that is ingrained in the very fabric that we are made of. But how can we use this in modern day presentations?

We all love a story, and we all love a story that ends happily. I've been spending the morning watching ted.com, where there are a fantastic collection of stories being told by highly acclaimed leaders in their respective fields. Many of the stories are personal stories, guided by pictures of people and places that really reinforce the essence of the subject and allow us, the audience to escape into a world full of colours, noises and smells to add to the whole experience of the presentation.

Take a look, grab some ideas, and try making your next presentation a little more personal.

Life after Powerpoint

2010-10-22T17:19:00.003+01:00

I've been spending the last couple of weeks using Keynote, which is Macs version of Powerpoint just a lot, lot better as you'd expect from the Apple guys. One of the great features is the ability to have two different views, one for the projector, and one for the presenter, which can include a timer, notes and the next slide, which is a huge leap forward for all you presenters out there that don't like using any form of written cues, which leads me to visuals. If you get a chance, look up Garr Reynolds of presentation zen fame, love his work and is a fantastic example of how you can effectively use Powerpoint, or Keynote for that matter...

NLP in presentations

2010-10-19T17:32:00.000+01:00

I've just spent the day on an NLP course seeing how, if at all it fits into presentation training, and how we can best use it to manage our audience. The good news is, its quite funky, the bad news is I'm not entirely convinced of its value. Yes you can explore language, learning styles and values, but is this really the utopia of presentations? I read recently that Obama used NLP to win the election, was it NLP or just good speech writing? or are the two synonymous, as NLP is considerably younger than the art of great oration, so is it just another management model for trainers to make some extra cash?

To be fair to NLP there are a few key pointers, the three learning styles which we should be aware of in every presentation, the use of positive language to raise the mood of the audience which of course are all facets of gaining rapport with the audience. Understanding your audience and getting them to listen and interact with you is one of the key challenges that a presenter faces, I believe that NLP may have a part to play in my future courses which I'll happily share with you over the coming weeks.

Its all doom and gloom in the UK

2010-10-19T08:47:00.000+01:00

Today its the government spending review, HMS Arc Royal has gone, so have our Jump Jets and the Severn Barrage. And the whole of the UK waits with baited breath, as for every 100 public sector jobs that go, so do 30 private sector jobs. So imagine for the moment you live in Swansea, where of a population of 160,000, 40,000 are in the public sector. So you've got pretty good good odds of losing your income over the next 12 months, and, without moving away from Swansea, little hope of finding another role. Pretty dismal stuff.

So what would you do if you found yourself in this predicament?, well to begin feel sorry for yourself, moan and get attention for a maximum of 48 hrs, get it out of your system. Then start looking at you as a brand, what do you represent, what do your friends and colleagues think of you and what exactly do you want to be? By examining where you are now you can then begin to look at the things that need to happen to get you to where you want to be, and once you have a plan, you can begin to look forward to the future.

The apprentice, what exactly is exclusivity

2010-10-18T15:52:00.000+01:00

Last weeks Apprentice saw Laura in the boardroom with her team having turned down Boots offer of an exclusive deal, which would certainly have won them the task.

So what was the correct answer? do you sell yourself out to the first person who offers you a deal? well the answer for Laura would have been an emphatic yes, based on volume alone.

However, the real world is a little more complex, offering exclusivity stops you from selling your product for a given amount of time, so you can reduce this risk by agreeing a period of time, geography or vertical markets. The secret is deciding how much income you could have generated from your product during that period of exclusivity, what the risk would be, and the cost of acquiring those sales. So to summarise, what would I have said? I would have asked what commitment they were prepared to give and asked for 2 minutes to discuss it with my team; had Laura taken that approach, she could have been top dog for the task.

100% NEW GREEN IMPROVED presentation formula

2010-10-18T14:37:00.000+01:00

The more I research the more confused I get. The majority of presentation training companies offer a quick fix to your presentation anxieties, proclaiming to turn you into a professional presenter in little more than 3 days. But I know different.

Yes, if you want to spew out dull, dry presentations, follow the 'tell them youre going to bore them, bore them and tell them that you've bored them' formula. Behave like an actor, and chances are you will become an actor, and a very bad one at that.

The problem with presenting is that it is a lifetime habit, yes you can achieve some tips and advice from training courses, but great presenters do not follow a prescribed format; its a bit like a box of lego, give the same box to two people and they will build different structures, playing on their own strengths, knowledge and life experiences. Presentations are the same, each should be hand crafted based on the needs of the audience, topic to convey and strengths of the presenter, to ignore this is simply a recipe for disaster.

So my advice to anyone doing a presentation is this, why are you presenting and what do you want the audience to do, is it to educate them, sell to them, amuse them or to gain an opinion. Get this bit right and the rest will naturally follow.

Stress at work

2010-10-18T10:45:00.001+01:00

This anxiety stress thing is huge! everyone I talk to is stressed in some kind of way, especially on a Monday morning! We all too often look at the negative side of life, the glass half full scenario, take a moment to write down five good things about your life on a postit, and stick it somewhere where you can remind yourself no matter how bad the day is, its small compared to the good things around you.

http://www.oatmealtraining.co.uk/News/Stress-at-work.html

Presentation anxiety, how do we overcome it?

2010-10-18T09:56:00.003+01:00

I've been pondering and researching all week on how to better address presentation anxiety, which if you believe the stats, is the no one fear in the US, bigger than the fear of death itself! Anxiety is largely rooted in past experiences, so in our case somewhere along the line you have had a bad presentation, or believe that you are about to give a bad presentation. The reality is that the things you fear are extremely unlikely to happen if you give yourself time to prepare, and techniques like breathing, viusualisation or simple engaging with members of the audience before your presentation will help.

I'll be talking about NLP to alleviate presentation anxiety in my next post, but please follow the attached link if you want some direct tips. http://www.oatmealtraining.co.uk/News/Scared-of-public-speaking.html

Silence is a golden UMM

2007-11-12T20:07:00.001Z

I've just returned from a 7 day conference, of which I spent a great deal of time observing peoples reaction in the lift of all places. Sounds strange, but why do people feel that they have to crack a joke, say something obvious, or just be awkward when it comes to sharing a space with someone in the small confines of a lift. We all feel like we need to add some noise when it comes to silence, some say ahh, others umm, or in the case of a lift, something even more bizzarre. Even professionals are'nt immune to this deadly virus, I witnessed a professional TV presenter crumble under the pressure of a failed satellite link with lots of umms and ahhs as she tried to regain her composure in front of the cameras.

So back to the lift, why do we feel a need to fill in voids of silence? are we not confident or comfortable with silence, or is it the confines of a small space that makes us react strangely - although this doesnt happen on the tube at all which is far more crowded and impersonal!

Should you be giving handouts?

2007-10-18T14:54:00.000+01:00

Handouts have two roles in a presentation, the first is to reinforce the learning points in more detail, for example, if you need to present data that is too detailed for the slides, and secondly, to provide a summary of the whole presentation for those arriving late, didnt attend or need to communicate the key messages to secondary audiences. Presentation handouts are not copies of the slides, this is the lazy presenters version of handouts, and correctly designed slides will make little sense without the verbal input of the presenter.

A word of caution, as soon as you hand out any form of written material, the audience will automatically skim through it to the end eliminating any effect your hard hitting conclusion or startling statistics that you may have had. Hand them out at an appropriate time, either during or at the end to help alleviate this.

Presentation anxiety, friend or foe

2007-10-18T14:32:00.000+01:00

Simply put, some anxiety is good. It's only bad when you are so nervous that its visible to the audience and prevents you from communicating clearly. All good presenters suffer from some level of anxiety, even if it doesnt show, I guarantee you that they are anxious inside before a big talk. And lets face it, we value our pride, dignity and the respect of the audience, and what we really fear is failing before an audience in any shape or form. When I ask my students what they fear, the list is fairly predictable, forgetting lines, being boring, equipment failure or even being regarded as a fraud! But the good news is, our fears rarely see the light of day and even less so if you prepare. So, research your audience, minimise the failure of equipment by testing everything and having backups, understand your topic thoroughly and REHEARSE, and your anxiety will be kept to a minimum.

Humour - use it or not?

2007-10-18T00:29:00.000+01:00

I've been pondering over a challenge from one of my students all week which is humour, do you use it in presentations or not. My stance is if you are going to use it, use it in moderation, make fun of yourself and no one else, and dont tell jokes, leave that to comedians. However, my dilemma lies in the fact that some people are jovial and funny all of the time, so their style is to be funny which contravenes my rule. My fallback position is if you are naturally funny be yourself, but only, and ONLY if you know the audience, if the audience is new and unknown, they are more likely to respond positively if you inject that humour, slowly and casually, let them get used to the funny you.

Tips on effective presentations

2007-09-17T08:33:00.000+01:00

I've just spent the weekend looking at videos of presenters on YouTube, and have to say that I'm not overly impressed with the hype that many so called professionals make when it comes to effective presentations. Many of these presentations claim a magic formula or system to make your an effective presenter, 1'000 tips, secrets of success, this seminar will change your life forever and on and on. What all these hype merchants have in common is they all want to make money by mistyfying a subject that many people are anxious about and offering a get cured fast scheme to all those people who want to present more effectively.

My conclusion is that these people are no different that the snake oil sellers of the past, there is no magic bullet, good practice yes, robust methodology definately, guaranteed results, never.

So, what am I going to do about it? well I'm going to deflate these snake oil salesmens balloons by publishing some video lessons on my blog and YouTube shortly, for free with no strings attached. These lessons will be frequent and cover all aspects of presenting from anxiety through to Powerpoint, so bookmark this blog, and lets move great presentation skills up a notch.

Effective presentations - the devil is in the detail

2007-09-13T22:48:00.000+01:00

People often forget that audiences are generally very perceptive, and will notice and pick up any fault or thing that just seems out of place. This could be as simple as unpolished shoes, misaligned graphics on your slide or simply clutter in the front of the room which isnt part of your presentation. So why is this a big deal?, well audiences have a habit of putting two and two together to make five, with subliminal conversations going like 'he has scuffed shoes, he cant be doing that well, or he doesnt care about his appearance, if he doesnt care or not doing well then surely system x must also be a losing system that is poorly constructed, and so I wont buy it'. Sounds a bit elaborate, but these conversations happen all the time in the audiences minds, so look carefully at what makes up your environment, and change it for the better.

The language of leadership

2007-09-13T09:13:00.000+01:00

Sitting at my desk starring at the vast array of how to write compelling books in front of me I ask myself what exactly is the secret recipe?

An old student of mine Al Barrantine recently sent me his thesis on corporate social responsibility, his summation was brilliant, 'it should be renamed, just do the right thing'. It struck accord with me because so many terms and models exists to feed fat consultants whose role is to make small problems into huge projects, when all along the solution is simple 'just do the right thing' or in our case 'do what feels right for you'.

You can easily break down great speeches from the past and examine how they did it, the language and structure they used, but what is important is context, mis-interpret the audiences needs and you will fail every time.

I heard a funny story the other day from a BT engineer, who asked me what I did for a living; he quoted a presentation delivered by a senior BT manager to field engineers on the way forward. Sadly this senior manager had just returned from presentation bootcamp and proceeded to deliver what sounded like a Churchillian speech, rallying the troops into action in the face of great adversary. Sadly it failed miserably, the senior manager lost all credibility and quickly got moved to another division.

So the language of leadership, in a sentance, keep it simple, understand your audience, without followers you cant be a leader no matter how great your presentation is.

Fear of speaking in public

2007-09-12T15:07:00.001+01:00

Greater than death or even the fear of spiders, personally I dont get it, dont get me wrong, when I present I get anxious, scared and all the other traits that go along with the risk of public humiliation, but the drive and thrill of getting it right is far more powerful. I recently heard of a senior manager who would avoid public speaking at all costs, I wonder how much this is limiting her career as presenting and conveying your leadership message is part and parcel of modern day management. What I hope to share with you is my daily experiences of people presenting, good and bad, even include some videos and together, we'll analyse how people present, and how we can learn from other peoples mistakes.