Author Archive: ffolliet

At work I'm a Consultant Paediatric Surgeon. That involves Surgical Oncology, Neonatal Surgery and Trauma. There's also a lot of teaching and mentoring. None of this actually makes me particularly clever. I'm pretty heavily into improving presentations and long for the world to lay down the weapon of bulletpoints and embrace creative and engaging presentations. I lead presentation workshops and am currently working up a book on presentations. I did a wee thing at TEDx Stuttgart in 2014 of which I'm quite proud https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFza3W87eDg Outside all of that I struggle to keep fit, cycle a bit and the odd triathlon. I'm a father, singer, laugher, learner, sharer, blogger, thinker, strummer and much more.

Slideument – obvious or oblivious

As  a medical educator (of sorts) I have been following the #AMEE2016 feed with interest and some sadness. An International Association for Medical Education is meeting in Barcelona to share ideas and inspire educators. There are so many great ideas but…
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Acronyms rarely seem effective.

acronyms rarely seem effective

There are many effective and helpful tricks to maximising the impact of a presentation including the use of memes, themes, aliteration, analogy, allegory, rhetoric and repetition. Acronyms are a regularly used device but for them to be effective they must…
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On memes and themes and analogies

on memes and themes

When choosing to using a meme, theme or image in a presentation make sure that it is appropriate and easily understood for your audience. Improving the engagement and memorability of a presentation can be achieved by various tricks not the…
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No titles

no title just chris hoy

This is one of the greatest British Olympians ever. He is a track cyclist and has won seven Olympic medals, six gold and one silver. His name is Chris Hoy. His official title is Sir Christopher Andrew Hoy MBE, but referring…
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A scientific presentation at BBTS Conference

conference logo

Think of the best scientific presentation you have watched. It captured your interest as soon as it began, asked a question pertinent to your specific needs and proceeded to succinctly answer that question leaving you with a purpose to change…
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Less is more. Or fewer, in fact.

fewer is more

Less is more in design. The same applies to the number of slides in p2; except for the grammar. Restraint increases effect in decoration and so it is with slides. Slides decorate or support the story and its delivery. Fewer…
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Credit where credit is due.

credit where credit is due

In a previous post I recalled my sadness of hearing a colleague say “what he suggests is interesting, but I wouldn’t do it for an important presentation.” He was expressing the difficulty of change, the challenge of stepping out from…
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On QR codes

    QR codes are perfect in certain places for quickly interpreting a complex url.  A presentation is not one of those places. Although a QR code is simply read by any appropriately equipped smart phone the actual mechanics of…
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Feel better, not more

For some presenters, there is a striving after perfection that drives them to constantly tinker with presentations before delivery. No presentation will ever be perfect; there is always space for improvement. The important view is not from the stage but…
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Never, ever, ever, ever

Never, ever, ever, ever overrun. Ever. Aim for 75% of your allotted time, make sure your practise delivers that and ensure you have a means of monitoring your performance on the day. No presentation is made better by going on longer,…
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