Good Presentations: Do The Diagnostic

Think about the number of presentations you experience in the course of a business week.

How many are genuinely useful? How many are good? How many could have accomplished the goal in some way other than a "presentation."

I recall Seth Godin making some provocative statements in his Listen to This post some time ago. Here's one excerpt:

"In our scan and skip world, in a world where technology makes it obvious that we can treat different people differently, how can we possibly justify teaching via a speech?

Speech is both linear and unpaceable. You can’t skip around and you can’t speed it up. When the speaker covers something you know, you are bored. When he quickly covers something you don’t understand, you are lost."

I get what he's saying. And I think that one of the real issues lies in the fact that speakers need to do their homework. When they begin to believe that what they have to say is actually what their audience needs to hear, they get into trouble.

Most of the success of a presentation happens before the speaker ever stands up.

Do the diagnostic

• Is a presentation really the best way to communicate?
• If so, what does my "audience" want and need to hear? (call some of them on the phone and ask them. They'll give you your content).
• How can I connect the dots instead of provide facts alone?
• Do I still need a presentation?
• If I do, is it better to sit around a table and connect rather than stand up and create a classroom/teacher atmosphere?
• If it's a stand-up, what media can I use to keep people engaged? (Bullet points probably aren't the right answer).
• If it's a stand-up, why use media at all? If my message is crafted with word images and created to incite action, then I should be able to do that in 20 minutes or less. That's about the attention span before people start squirming in their seats.

Remember this: You are the presentation. It's your passion, credibility, and language that will engage the group. And how 'real' you are will determine the depth of your connection.

Comments

[Raj Menon]

Hey Steve, your tips are really very valid. Presenting is one area where we can all make continous improvements. I have written about this topic, about what I have learnt to make good presentation - some specific tops - in my "Effective Presentation Techniques" post and "Powerpoint Presentations - my 3 rules". Would like to get your thoughts on it.

Link to post: http://lap31.com/flyer/tag/presenting/

[Steve Roesler]

Hi there, Raj,

Good to see you here and I appreciate your encouragement. Am looking forward to reading your material and seeing how you are helping people in this area.

[Raj Menon]

Thank You, Steve. I also saw your comment on my post. Thank you for your advice and the encouragement. I read your posts regularly and they inspire me to continue writing.

Btw - do you twitter? If you do, please follow me at http://twitter.com/lap31

[Chris - Manager's Sandbox]

Steve - I can always count on you for some great, practical advice. Thanks for the post today. I hope you don't me doing a shameless plug (feel free to delete it if you feel its intrusive), but... on Monday, part 3 of my "Build a Better Training Program" series will be covering "knowing your audience." Specifically, I'll be addressing the five stages an audience can be in when you're trying to teach them something or motivate their behavior.

They include:
- Precontemplation: Haven't even thought about it
- Contemplation: Considering what you're saying, but haven't taken action yet
** Make a decision to take action **
- Preparation
- Action
- Maintain the new behaviors or actions

Seth's comments really fit into this model. If you prepare a presentation for people in the precontemplation stage (they know nothing about the product), but your audience is really people who are in the preparation stage and want some tips on how to take action, your presentation is going to fail.

Anywho, again, great post, and if I've overstepped with my comment, feel free to delete it!

Cheers,

Chris

[Ellen Weber]

Great post Steve and thanks?

Would another question be: What could be dynamically different one week from now?

Thoughts?

[Steve Roesler]

Chris,

Well, I figure that anyone willing to fall on his sword while shamelessly self-promoting deserves some shameless self-promotion...especially if it's someone who takes time to contribute substance, which you always do.

We'll be sure to check out your tips on Monday. . .

[Steve Roesler]

Hi, Ellen,

That's a question that could lead one to explore more options, eh?

[Olivia Mitchell]

Hi Steve,

Really enjoyed this post and nodded in recognition all the way through until I got to the bit about "You are the presentation". I think the message is the presentation. But what's special about a presentation compared to all the other methods we could use for communicating information, is that the message is carried by you. And the way you are - level of passion, enthusiasm etc will make a great difference to the way the message is received.

Olivia

[Steve Roesler]

Hello, Olivia,

As I read your comment I realized that you stated more accurately what I was really trying to get across regarding presentations: that how you present yourself greatly determines whether or not the message will be heard.

Thanks for taking time to weigh in!

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