Back in grade school, we were taught that there are two forms of communication – written and spoken. For this reason, we have spent countless of hours from preschool to college in honing our skills in writing and speaking. But while most of us may have mastered these forms already, making presentations don’t exactly fall on either category. Although there’s writing involve, you don’t write paragraphs but rather short, memorable phrases. And you don’t just let these presentations speak for themselves; you use them for your speech. Since making presentations fall on a gray area, what does an effective presentation look like?
Get Organized
You cannot afford to place paragraphs in your presentations unless you want to bore your audience to sleep. At the same time, the last thing you want to do is to place just three phrases and leave your listeners puzzling all these pieces together throughout your speech. So before you even make your slide presentation, think about all the information you have on hand and highlight the important points. Use bullets to present these points of information to make it easier for your audience to follow. And don’t just read out what you have on your slides; instead, give your own explanations. Your slides should just serve as the guide.
Practice
Unless you have been making presentations all your life – and even teachers need to practice every now and then – don’t attempt to make impromptu presentations. You were selected to give the presentation for a reason and you do not want to disappoint your audience by stammering every five words or so. At the same time, you wouldn’t want to waste your listeners’ time by merely reiterating things they already know or things that do not make sense just because you failed to make a run through the night before.
Presence
Part of what makes your talk enticing and motivating is your presence. Try to maintain an upbeat disposition. One thing which bugs listeners is when they have to listen to a person who seems to be devoid of spirit from the way he talks. Stand straight, use gestures, establish eye contact with your audience, and encourage questions and input. Also, make it a point to look presentable for your audience. Nothing can be more distracting to some people than strands of hair that keep on falling on your face or glasses that you constantly have to push up.
About The Author
Anthony Roberts provides the best tips on how to make your presentations great. Click to learn more about business presentation software.
