As a conference organiser, you are responsible for what happens on your stage. Your stage, your rules. This starts with the backdrop, the IT system and the lighting. You are also responsible if a speaker puts up unacceptable images, expresses…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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.…
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…
The reason the majority of data-driven presentations fail is ignorance of effective presentation structure. Freytag’s Pyramid describes a storytelling framework originally designed to analyse dramatic works. it offers an effective, organisational structure that takes the audience on a logical, journey…