So now what should we do once we have recognised that there is glitch in The Matrix? Change. Having seen that we fall into the trap of using the slidewear to construct a powerpoint rather than a message, what should we do? Understanding the Presentation Paradox that we do what we hate in the construction and delivery of a presentation, what should we do? Seeing that science describes the problem, even if we see the problem all around us so now what should we do? Change.
A presentation is actually made up of three components; a presentation p₁ that is the message, a presentation p₂ that is the supportive media and a presentation p₃ that is the delivery. These three together are the value of the presentation in the eyes and mind of the audience. That is the product of the three presentations, the p³ value.
This model applies to any presentation, whether it is research, pitching a business plan, or delivering a keynote. It reflects how best to construct a presentation, how people actually learn and offers a valuable structure for feedback and improvement. This is the p³ approach to presentations.
We need to change the content of presentations. This begins with p₁ the message. This is not just what you want to say, not everything you know or think everyone should know but just what matters. It must be specific for this audience, memorable and constructed for the purpose the audience require at that moment in time. You aim is to share knowledge and insight leading your audience through Bloom’s Taxonomy. Your objective is what the audience will do with that message. The two are never the same.
The supportive media p₂ needs to change. It is not constructed to stand alone; that is a document. It is not designed to be read aloud; that is a script. It is cannot be full of text, references, footnotes, data tables and complex images; that is a handout. Each of those has value and can and should exist separately. None of them belong on a screen. Effectively, the presentation should be able to exist without being projected. It exists only to add to the message, not be the whole.
The delivery p₃ needs to change. Previously, it has simply been about using the script on the screen as a script or key points to allow talking. What is required is a performance beyond this crafted from preparation, practice and clarity. It is a responsibility beyond simple recitation that respects the audience, that respects the topic and respects learning more than simply delivering information.
These changes are not arbitrary preferences. They are principles grounded in educational and psychological science. This science describes why you dislike the things you do in presentations. You can chose to ignore them if you wish, that does not change the science. Neither should you confuse repetition of bad practice nor its ubiquity with evidence of function. Most presentations fail not through laziness but through misunderstanding. Science does not care what you consider academic, serious, or effective. This blog exists to explain the science, to expose the habits formed by copying, to show that presentations should be more than tolerated and actually can be transformational. That change is both possible and simple.