Posts Tagged ‘presentation’

5 Key Questions When Planning Your Presentation (Presentation Masterclass - Part 2)

Let’s just reiterate our starting position here:
MOST PRESENTATIONS SUUUUUUUUUCK!
This happens at all stages of the life-cycle of a presentation, but if your base preparation is below par, then no amount of shiny graphics and animation will save you – sucky foundation, sucky presentation.

To rise above the background noise of a zillion average-to-bad presentations, here are a handful of key questions to… » Continue

April 14 2008 | By Rowan | Tagged: howto, powerpoint, presentation, public_speaking, tutorial | 5 comments»

How to Be an Expert (and Find One if You’re Not)

I’ve been thinking lately, what makes someone an "expert" in his or her field? Apparently Lorelle VanFossen has been thinking the same thing, because she recently wrote a post called What Gives You the Right to Tell Me? at The Blog Herald that explores the issue of expertise in some depth.

For me, the question started to percolate through my mind when I was invited to… » Continue

April 4 2008 | By Dustin | Tagged: experience, expert, knowledge, learning, presentation | 21 comments»

Presentation Masterclass - Part 1: Introduction

I have been observing, delivering and training people in presentation techniques for over 20 years now and my considered, professional, opinion on the subject is this:

MOST PRESENTATIONS SUUUUUUUUCK!

In almost every sphere of human endeavour, the outcome can be plotted on a bell-curve – a few really skilled people over on the right, a few really hopeless people over on the left and a whole bunch or just-above or just-below average… » Continue

April 3 2008 | By Rowan | Tagged: howto, powerpoint, presentation, public_speaking, tutorial | 15 comments»

I Won Science Fair with A Failed Project: The Skill of Presenting Failures

For my first three science fairs, I received a participation ribbon — no prizes, no other acknowledgment. For my fourth, I walked away with $600, a first place award from AFCEA, a Discovery Science award and the Yale Science & Engineering Association Award.

My science fair project that year wasn’t any different from my past projects: I failed to prove anything, learned nothing about science, and did the project in… » Continue

February 5 2008 | By Thursday | Tagged: failure, presentation, Projects | 31 comments»

13 Tips to Zap Your Butterflies When Speaking in Public

Everyone gets nervous before giving a speech. Unfortunately, the more people in the audience, the more important the speech usually is, making any butterflies in your stomach multiply before you begin. Knowing how to keep yourself calm can make a big difference when giving a speech.

I’m not a world-famous speaker. I’m just an introvert who has managed to train himself to stay calm on stage… » Continue

December 18 2007 | By Scott H | Tagged: courage, fear, nervousness, notes, powerpoint, presentation, speaking, student | 14 comments»

How to Cut Crutch Words When Giving a Speech

“…um…” “…you know…” “…like…” “…ah…”

You’ve all seen it before. What would otherwise be a great presentation becomes one interrupted jumble of syllables. Instead of taking those key pauses to let the audience digest, every moment of hesitation is filled with a crutch word. Maybe it happens to you.

Eliminating crutch words is one of the fastest ways to improve yourself as a speaker. Not only… » Continue

November 8 2007 | By Scott H | Tagged: Communication, crutch-words, presentation, public-speaking, speaking | 42 comments»

What Are Your Talking Points?

When I started doing my own research after completing my graduate coursework, I was advised by a mentor to have three descriptions of my work ready to recite at a moment’s notice: a three-minute overview, a 12-minute presentation, and a half-hour discussion. The three-minute version is what you tell someone when you’re sharing an elevator at an academic conference; the 12-minute version is suitable for giving a conference… » Continue

October 29 2007 | By Dustin | Tagged: Communication, presentation, project, speech, talkingpoint | 5 comments»

10 Deep: Presentations by Lifehack.org

Working on a big presentation for work or uni? They say you can never stop learning, so here is a quick round up of 10 of our favorite presentation articles from yours truly: Lifehack.org

Ten Presentation Tips from Professional Trainer

Presentation Hack: Flickr Backup

Four Tips to Effective Presentation

Smallest Presentation Hack Ever

My Best Presentation Tricks

18 Tips for Killer Presentations

Use Your Audience

Should we use any notes

» Continue

September 21 2007 | By Craig | Tagged: presentation | 13 comments»

18 Tips for Killer Presentations

Jerry Seinfeld has a skit where he points out that studies show public speaking is a bigger fear than death. That means, he claims, that if you are going to a funeral you are better off in the casket than doing the eulogy. While there isn’t a lot you can do to melt away your anxiety, a the best start is simply to make a better presentation.

Becoming… » Continue

August 23 2007 | By Scott H | Tagged: Communication, powerpoint, presentation, speaking | 36 comments»

Present Like a Rockstar

At Video on the Net in San Jose this past March, I was standing beside Brian Conley, the man behind the popular internet TV show, Alive in Baghdad. Brian’s a slender man, with glasses, and comes off as quiet until you know him. Just before going onstage, he turns to me and says, “Do you think they’ll get mad at me if I kick over the podium?”

Presenting can be… » Continue

May 10 2007 | By Chris | Tagged: Communication, conference, events, planning, powerpoint, presentation | 13 comments»

Delivering Under Pressure

Going into a presentation, pitching your idea or work, facing criticism and judgment; it’s not easy. You should be prepared.

A List Apart writes about three things you should do before pitching your designs. In the case of this article, don’t be afraid to replace the words design with your job and designs with your lifeblood.

Got a clock handy? Good. Now watch that second hand and keep the following guideline… » Continue

May 8 2007 | By Craig | Tagged: business, presentation | 2 comments»

Smallest Presentation Hack Ever

Ready? Here you go:

Don’t. Read. Your. Dumb. Slides.

Long version:

I’m at a pitchfest of an event, and people have come up one after another doing this basic performance over and over again:

“Hello, my name is _____. I’m the CEO and founder of ShinyNewSite.tv. At ShinyNewSite.tv, we believe in maximizing your efficiency through enhancing your brand and building your… Our mission is…”

What? Hello? Where am I? Oh wait. I… » Continue

May 3 2007 | By Chris | Tagged: Communication, conversation, hacks, Lifehack, powerpoint, presentation | 24 comments»

How to Give a Killer Evaluation

Ever gone into a performance review, had to deliver a speech or make a sales pitch and become more concerned about what the reviewer was going to say or write than what was in the presentation? It can be like going to the dentist for a root canal. This is a tough area, but it can be even more difficult for whoever is doing the evaluation.

A badly… » Continue

April 27 2007 | By Tatsuya | Tagged: Communication, evaluation, Management, performance, presentation, review | 11 comments»

What Not To Say in a Presentation

Avoiding certain phrases during a talk or presentation means you’re not making particular mistakes. Preparation and staying on track during a talk allows you to engage the audience. A bad presentation makes people bored and restless. So don’t say…

1. MAKE SOME NOISE!!! Unless you’re at the MTV Music Awards this isn’t much of a crowd pleaser. The key point is this: Know Thy Audience. Your audience should dictate your

» Continue

March 9 2007 | By Craig | Tagged: presentation | 8 comments»

Training the Trainer: 5 Basics

At Say Leadership Coaching (SLC) we concentrate our efforts on just that which our name implies; coaching the leadership in companies to reach their greater potential. Executives are but one group we work with; there are leaders at every level of a company’s official org chart, and we find that titles can be irrelevant when it comes to discovering leadership talent.

Once we discover leadership talent, one of our objectives… » Continue

February 1 2007 | By Rosa | Tagged: leadership, Management, meetings, presentation, process, teaching, technique, trainers, training | 2 comments»