In the previous post on data slides it was highlighted that “Data slides must be easily interpreted, memorable and clear. Few are. Most could be improved.” A data slide in a presentation cannot merely a representation of a table from the scientific…
Hysteron proteron is a figure of speech, probably inherited from the Greeks, where the object that should come second is put in first place; “to put the horse before the cart.” Another example would be preparing the supportive media (p2) for a…
Data slides fail in a good scientific presentation if simply copied directly from the scientific paper. A graphic representation is more easy to interpret and remember than many words either spoken or written. Or more succinctly, “Use a picture. It’s…
The purpose of a presentation is effective communication. Effective communication is not recitation of a list of facts. Effective communication is about a message. That message is only effective from the perspective of the audience. Effective communication is about converting…
The screen is for the audience, not for the presenter. A presenter staring at the screen will cause the audience to do the same, their speech is potentially muted and in combination this will lose the engagement of the audience. The reasons a…
Recently I suffered a truly execrable presentation: there was absolutely no direction or purpose in the p1, the supportive media p2 was disastrous in chaos and complexity and the delivery p3 was entirely turned towards to the screen, reading out…
It is humbling to see the p cubed ideas being taken up and shared by others. A recent blogpost by a twitter friend Shane Gryzko reiterates a valuable point: there is more to a practise than simply repetition. Practise needs to be…
“I’m sorry, I don’t know. John usually sorts that. He’s not here today.” And that was where the trouble really began… At most presentations the speaker arrives, checks in with John in IT and everything works beautifully from there. (Pro…
Some presenters expect to turn up for their big presentation, plug and go. Many are disappointed. Being prepared for plug and go problems will cut your tension at a time when you need it the least. Always arrive early, meet…
I am always happy to try to give an answer to questions from twitter such as this from Rachel Roberts on case based teaching. @ffolliet any tips for crafting the media for case based teaching when you want to convey history, exam,…