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.

Roadmaps are for roads

Roadmaps are for roads, not presentations. Setting out the plan of the presentation does not engage the audience, it may in fact disengage them. It simply wastes time. Keep roadmaps for roads. This is the second paragraph of the blog…
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Just another presentation

A presentation is an opportunity to change the world. A presentation is an honour, hugely valuable and life changing. The experience of the world though is that a presentation is one of life’s trials, something to be endured. Audiences expect…
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in actual fact

One of my father’s dear friends, John used to say, “in actual fact,” a lot. In actual fact, he would say, in actual fact, probably every other sentence, more in actual fact. He confessed that he felt unable, in actual…
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Mumble mumble

Effective delivery (p3) is essential to an excellent presentation (p cubed). The good presenter will have practised, arrived early and ensured that both slides and the presentation area are ready, before stepping onto the stage. “Mumble, mumble essential to mumble…
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What if…?

It is a privilege to travel the world sharing ideas on improving presentation skills. An encouragement is that many people know and understand that their presentations could be better and they recognise easy steps to improve. Yet they are resistant…
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Memes are time specific

Ideas, music and memes are time-specific in popular culture or presentations. Their use in a presentation may not convey the desired impact to the whole audience. Be aware of such limitations in the construction and delivery of presentations. American President…
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Data download complete

The perception that presentations should deliver large quantities of data downloaded by the audience is deeply ingrained in both lecturers and recipients. This is driven by institutional expectations, (perceived) academic norms, and misconceptions about learning effectiveness. It does not happen….
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JFDI. Do it!

Let’s face it: most presenters already know their approach isn’t working. They recognize the glazed-over looks, the restless shifting in seats, and the distracted scrolling through phones. Deep down, many suspect there’s a better way to deliver presentations, yet feel…
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Freytag’s Pyramid

Freytag’s Pyramid: Transform Your Presentation Into a Story How do you ensure your presentation doesn’t just inform but also engages and inspires your audience? One,effective tools for achieving this is Freytag’s Pyramid, a storytelling framework originally designed to analyze dramatic…
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Total recall

Are Your Medical Presentations Stuck in Recall Mode? Most medical presentations never move beyond the lowest level of learning. They flood audiences with facts, demand memorization, and hope something sticks. Real learning, the kind that transforms practice, happens when information…
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