Latest Posts

Why does good design work?

I have been struggling with the question of “Why does good design work?” All presentations (p2) are designed in that they didn’t just fall straight from the heavens. Some work and some don’t.  Those with bad design that are cut and paste jobs…
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Good design is about function not decoration.

I recently spent some time discussing all things Presentation with an expert, Nicole Gugger. She had many insights into the nature and problems of presentation; she is an excellent presentation coach. One thing she made clear is that good design of…
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The arc of a story

When my eldest was quite little she said one day that she didn’t want to see a movie. “It starts happy, there will be a sad bit, then the exciting bit and then the end. Why does there have to…
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Hypnotised, like a chicken.

When presented with written data, audiences will read. They can’t help themselves. This is due to complex neural issues of having to make sense of images. Whilst a picture can be examined at the same time as listening, this is…
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On why people defend bulletpoints.

I was lucky enough to attend Garr Reynolds PresentationZen workshop in London last November and met some amazing people from all round the world. What struck me was that  powerpoint (type) presentations are ubiquitous, there isn’t even an Asiatic or…
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The maths of a better presentation

In my original post I proposed that a presentation is the product, rather than the sum of its parts. More than simply a construct of mathematics this is a model that allows a deeper understanding of the nature of presentations,…
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Where’s Wally?

The point of a data slide is a quick, easily interpreted, graphic representation of numerical data. The audience should be able to grasp the meaning themselves within seconds, ideally without guidance or explanation from the speaker.Unfortunately it is more often…
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It’s just NOT academic

As the title of the blog attests, the underlying beliefs supporting the nature of presentations reflect those of Presentation Zen. Garr Reynolds, the Sensei, has much to share and teach on presentation, learning and the future of storytelling. The sadness…
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Be prepared!

One of the skills of a presenter is being prepared. I usually carry a copy of my presentation on a usb. I’d have another copy uploaded to Dropbox and often one on my phone. I usually bring the laptop I…
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