p1

p1 is the basis of the presentation. It is the data, the story, the message that the presenter wishes to deliver to the audience. This section covers blog posts that address any part of the construction of p1; taking the “what” of the data and converting it into a “so what” for the particular audience. In particular, this covers audience needs, the value of a single, identifiable message, an elevator pitch, the arc of the story and development of sparklines.

The cornerstone articles on p1 are below but please surf through the links to gain a deeper understanding of why p1 (the story) is the basis of your presentation and must be the starting point in construction.

1.Hysteron proteron – the place to start with a presentation is the message.

2. It is not acceptable or valuable to just talk, you must have a message.

3. The aim and objective of a presentation are not the same thing.

4. The best presentations are planned analog. Shut the laptop and be creative.

5. Consider principally “why” you are presenting, not what to present.

So, I was wrong.

I’ve got a confession. I was wrong. I don’t think you lot are up to it.The best way to construct a presentation is to construct a story (p1), storyboard that idea and then consider supporting media for that story. Everyone…
Read more

You’ve got 3 seconds…

Nancy Duarte (amongst others) suggests in her meisterwerk “Resonate” that a slide/image needs to be understood in under 3 seconds or the audience will have to turn its attention from the speaker to concentrate and make sense of what you…
Read more

What sort of presenter are you?

One of the tests of a descriptive model such as the p cubed concept (p3) (that a good presentation is a combination (the product) of the story (p1), the supportive media (p2) and the delivery (p3)) is that it bears…
Read more

Changing your slides won’t improve your presentation. (much)

Too often I hear people say, “I really liked your presentation, I’m going to change my slides.” Whilst on one level I rejoice, it is not that bulletpoints themselves offend but there is so much more than just that.Our presentations,…
Read more

Tweet me your presentation @ffolliet

The point of a presentation is not a massive download of fact but transmission of an idea, a hope, a concept, inspiration or purpose. This is the intrinsic flaw in the approach of many to a “presentation.” Facts in themselves…
Read more

Painting with words

She looked into my eyes, begging, imploring me. She had walked in obviously frightened. She was desperate. We both knew the only question she was wanted me to answer: it had all been building up to this, unspoken and yet explicit….
Read more

Read these.

33 blog posts, about 80 page views a day and over 6500 total views suggest that some folk are interested in what is being written about here. It is a huge disappointment that there has been no discussion raised yet and actually…
Read more

“Caught up within a single style of visual presentation.”

The previous post alluded to the fact that the fault for bad presentations does not lie with the presentation software. The master of presenting data and information, Edward Tufte, has erudite thoughts on the matter. “Powerpoint is like being trapped…
Read more

Once upon a time…

…there was a girl, she got married.Not really a page turner, is it? Unlikely to hold the attention for very long, sell many books or be a particularly exciting screenplay. Yet it sums up the story of Cinderella. And so…
Read more

Don’t put the cart before the horse.

To develop presentations, one must move away from the concept of looking at the text on a slide and asking how can this be improved by reduction and illustration. This is putting the horse before the cart. Change will only come…
Read more