How to Give Great Presentations

I’ve heard a ton of people give advice about presentations, and most of it, in my humble opinion, is bad advice.
Tips such as “gesture with your hands” are not bad tips, per se, but they aren’t geared to the needs of people who actually have to learn to give better presentations. If you’re at the level of learning how to use your hands better, you’re an advanced presenter. And most of the people I see are so far from advanced it’s not funny. They need fundamental recommendations for giving great presentations.
That’s why I developed my list of the Top 10 Tips for Giving Great Presentations. These are designed to be fail-safe tips that, if followed, will surely improve the quality of any presentation.
Here are the first five (second half tomorrow):
Familiarize yourself with the venue: Check out the room: the configuration, speaker location, microphones, seating. This will increase your comfort level and decrease uncertainty while speaking
Know your audience:Who’s in the audience? What is their knowledge level of your subject? Will there be competitors in the room?
Know the context:When will you speak? How long? Who else is speaking? How will Q&A be handled?
Establish rapport: You don’t have to start with a joke, but it’s helpful to have a brief icebreaker at the beginning to show your humanity. Example: “I’m really glad to be speaking to you today and I’m honored to be on the same panel as the distinguished Dr. Smith.”
Look at individuals in the audience: Don’t stare into space, don’t watch your own slides, or look down at your shoes. Look into the faces of the people listening, one at a time. Speak to one, then casually turn your attention to another.
And here’s the uber-message: it’s all about the content and the storytelling. If your story makes sense because it has a beginning, middle and end, if you organize your speech to take the audience from Point A to Point B in a reasonable amount of time, then everything else will fall into place. If your presentation is an organizational mess, no amount of coaching or tips will save it.

Yesterday, I shared the first five of my Top 10 Tips for Giving Great Presentations. Today’s post continues with the second half of the list:
Simplify your presentation: No matter how technical your audience is, they aren’t as versed in your subject matter as you. Simplify difficult concepts, explain jargon, give examples, use anecdotes.
Start by giving the audience a roadmap to follow: Different than simply stating your “agenda” – the roadmap tells them the 3 or 4 key concepts you want them to take away.
Flag the concepts you want to make sure they don’t miss: Flags direct the audience’s attention to the most important material and bring wandering minds back to your presentation. Examples of flags: “Here’s the most important point…” “Here’s what I really want to get across…”
Repeat your points at the end: Don’t assume the audience was following your presentation to the letter. Include a brief summary slide that re-emphasizes your key points.
Relax: It’s not as stressful a situation as you think. The audience is rooting for you to do a good job and will happily forgive small gaffes or lapses. Give yourself permission to make small mistakes – everyone does. Don’t panic if you make a more serious mistake – stay calm, take your time and resolve the problem carefully.
And here’s a repeat of my “uber-message” from yesterday — it’s all about the content and the storytelling. If your story makes sense because it has a beginning, middle and end, if you organize your speech to take the audience from Point A to Point B in a reasonable amount of time, then everything else will fall into place. If your presentation is an organizational mess, no amount of coaching or tips will save it.