always seems to be lurking around the corner, waiting to pounce on an unsuspecting victim.  That casualty could be you!

Always be prepared for anything and everything you can control.

If the computer crashes, projector dies, or sound system goes silent, you must still present your material!  There are people in the audience who came to learn something.  It’s your presentation and your responsibility they don’t leave disappointed.

Be sure your “trunk” is well equipped for all contingencies.
If I’m using slides, I backup my presentation on a USB flash drive.  Because I use a mac, my slideshows are made with iWork Keynote software.  I export copies to PowerPoint and convert, also, to PDFs.  The PDF conversion is done because they work when versions of PowerPoint and Keynote are not the versions on a backup computer.

I also print a copy of my slideshow in Light Table view, which allows me to see a large number of my slides on one piece of paper.  More about this in a moment!

If you use slides, I recommend you do the same.  If those slides contain bullet points with text, print out a copy with the text large enough you’ll be able to read it.  In stressful moments, that text can get very fuzzy!

Having a spare tire is not enough!  You must know if the tire is inflated, have a working car jack, and a lug wrench.  Even if you have “all that in your trunk” it doesn’t mean you know how to use it and change a tire.

Here’s my real life example:
I was presenting to a local Chamber at their monthly luncheon meeting and was on slide number eight of a thirty-six slide presentation.  Suddenly the screen went BLANK!  My computer was working fine, as, it seemed, was the projector.  Because the schedule was tight, there was no time to reboot and see if that would fix the problem.

As a “Plan B” I always print out my slides in Light Table View.  This allows me to place thirty-plus, very small images of my slides, on one sheet of paper.  Thankfully, I use mostly images in slides rather than text.  (This is something you’ll definitely want to investigate in my book and website!)  I’m able to look at the image, and know my material well enough, that I can continue the presentation.

However, having the “Spare Tire” and needing to switch to it instantly is not always easy.  Luckily, I was able to grab my paper, present the remainder of my presentation, and finish to a thankful round of applause.  (It was almost Big Sweat instead of No Sweat!)

My Lesson Learned is obvious.  Before going into the desert, practice, just in case of a blowout, changing that tire!

I now practice, not only my presentation, but the “Backup Plan.”  Knowing what can happen, and confident I can handle things if Murphy pounces, is a great stress reliever.  Follow my lead, and Practice “Plan B,” also!

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.

They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com
Connect/Follow me:
FaceBook
LinkedIn
Twitter
314-517-8772

Related posts:

1. Have a ‘Plan B’ Because When the Screen Goes. . . There are several lessons here: Murphy’s Law rules! It’s not...
2. Fox News interviews Speaker/Author, Fred E. Miller Audio John Pertzborn, co-anchor of Fox News AM Show in...
3. The Magic Pill that Makes You a Great Presenter! There's no easy way to get rid of the Fear...

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I’ve sometimes heard this from executives, business owners, and other professionals.

It’s all about how you define the word “Presentations,” isn’t it?

Here are some questions for them:

• Does anyone ever talk to a prospect?
• Does anyone ever talk to a client?
• Do you have salespeople?
• Does anyone work in customer service?
• Do co-workers ever discuss the opportunities and challenges of their job?
• Do co-workers ever discuss the opportunities and challenges of the company?
• Does anyone ever attend networking events?
• Does everyone have an elevator speech in case someone asks them what they do and where they work?
• Are there ever company meetings?
• Does anyone ever attend trade shows or conventions?
• Do you ever have a booth at one?
• Do teams ever meet?
• Do you ever have vistors?
• Does anyone ever visit other companies.
• Do you ever have an Open House for clients and prospects?
• Does anyone ever interview job candidates and/or suppliers?

Here are some more questions:

• Do you believe Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities?
• Do you believe Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities?
• Do you believe Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities?
• Do you believe that people who speak/present well are perceived as Experts?
• Do you agree we prefer to work with Experts?
• Do you agree Experts can can command a higher price for their products and services
• If someone delivers a really poor presentation, what’s the perception of the person, their product/service, and company?
• Does your competition give presentations to prospects?
• Are some of their prospects your customers?

And, if you now believe people here do give presentations. . .

• Is their Content good?
• Do they have an Opening, Body and Conclusion?
• What kind of Closing do they use?
• Is their Delivery of the Content done in a professional manner?
• How are their Verbal Communication Skills?
• How are their Nonverbal Communication Skills?
• When, and how, do they handle Questions?
• Are they comfortable in front of an audience?
• Do they present themselves well?
• Do they present your company well?
• Do they use PowerPoint in their presentation?
• What’s on the slide?
• Text?
• Graphics?
• Are the slides contributing to the presentation in a positive manner and helping the audience GET IT or. . .?
• When the presentation is over, what’s the audience’s perception of the presenter?
• How does it reflect on their product/service and company?

Do you still believe “No one here gives presentations?”

If you didn’t GET IT! before, I’m sure you GET IT! now.  
You, and most of the people you work with give presentations on a regular basis.
They may not be ‘platform speeches’ in front of hundreds, but they certainly are presentations that can have positive or negative effects.

Speaking to a group or talking to an individual,
the basics apply to most communication.

• Content – the message
• Delivery – presenting the message
• Verbal Communication – the voice and how it is used
• NonVerbal Communication – gestures, facial expressions
  and body language

Keep this in mind the next time someone asks,
“Do you and your people give presentations?”

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.

They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com
Connect/Follow me:
FaceBook
LinkedIn
Twitter
314-517-8772

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2. Have a ‘Plan B’ Because When the Screen Goes. . . There are several lessons here: Murphy’s Law rules! It’s not...
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Read them – Study them – Don’t do them!

DON’T  If you’re a speaker there are certain things you should do, and should not do.  Here are 11 Definite Don’ts!

1. Don’t  ”Wing it.”
1. Your non-effort will show.
2. You’ll embarrass yourself and waste the time of your audience.  They came to learn something from your talk.
3. It is your responsibility they leave the room knowing more about your subject than they did when they entered.
4. Prepare and practice your presentation as if it were very important – because it is!
2. Don’t think the speech is about You.  It’s not.
1. It is, and always should be, about the Audience!
1. Being Audience Centered is one of the
   Laws of Presentation.
2. Focusing on the Audience, and not you, will raise the quality of your presentation and lower your anxiety.
3. Don’t give the same speech to all audiences.
1. Do your homework and get some intel on whom you’ll be speaking with.
2. All audiences are not the same.  Their makeup and knowledge of your subject will vary.  Adjust your speech accordingly.
4. Don’t turn your back to the audience and read text from your slides.
1. Slides are a tool to help the audience GET IT!  They especially appeal to the 65% of the population that are visual learners.
2. You shouldn’t be using much, if any, text.
1. Use high quality, universally understood images, and you supply the text with your voice.
3. Use the ‘B Blank’ button to blank the screen and take the attention of the audience from the screen to you, the presenter –  where their attention should be directed.
5. Don’t leave it up to the emcee to write your Introduction.
1. It is your responsibility, not the emcee’s, and is an integral part of your presentation.
2. It is not your bio.  The Introduction should answer three questions:
1. Why this subject?
2. Why this speaker?
3. Why now?
3. You write it because no one knows what should be on it better than you!
6. Don’t tell a joke to be telling a joke.
1. All presentations don’t need humor.  However, if done well, it can be “icing on the cake.”
2. Humor can be great because it can make an emotional connection to your audience.  But it has to be appropriate to the presentation and your audience.
1. The best humor is self-effacing, but don’t overdo it.
7. Don’t run over your allotted time.
1. There are scheduled events before and after you present.  Respect those events and the audience and contain your talk as scheduled.
2. Fill the time your are allotted with great content and delivery. Finishing a bit early is OK; too early disrupts the agenda.
8. Don’t assume the projector, computer, microphone, etc. will be in place and working as you asked.
1. It is your presentation and your responsibility that everything is in place and working.
2. You, or someone else, may have delegated those duties, but it’s your ultimate job because it’s your presentation.  That’s why. . .
9. Don’t - NOT have a Plan B!
1. Stuff Happens!  You must be prepared to carry on if the projector fails, the computer crashes, the emcee forgets to bring your Introduction, etc.
2. Practice Plan B.  It is different delivering a presentation with all your slides showing well vs. giving the same information with one sheet of paper with the light table view of all your slides.
   (I know this from personal experience.  My “No Sweat!” presentation could easily have gone into “Big Sweat!”)
10. Don’t use buzz words, acronyms, or technical jargon that your audience won’t immediately understand.
1. You won’t impress them – you’ll lose them!
1. No one wants to feel “not OK,” and they’ll quickly turn you off.
11. Don’t have Q&A after you close your presentation.
1. That’s why the Closing is called the Closing!
1. If you’re going to have a Q&A, place if before your Closing.
2. The ‘Law of Primacy and Recency’ says the last thing the audience hears is the first thing they will remember. That’s why it’s imperative to have a Strong Closing.
3. If the Q&A is after your closing, and you are challenged, or don’t know the answer, that is what the audience will remember.  It’s probably not the take-away you want them to leave with.

Now that you’ve read these Don’ts – Study them and Don’t do them!

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com
314-517-8772

Related posts:

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2. Slides: USE TEXT – as little as possible! PLEASE! Instead of placing lots and lots of Text on a...
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Speaker If so,
We should have a conversation!

The Fear of Public Speaking holds many back from reaching their potential.  75% of the population, to one degree or another, has this fear.

One of my Presentations addresses:
• Why we have this fear and
• Gives specific nuggets for lessening it.

Another Talk adds:
• The Components, Parts and Elements of a Presentation.
• I Name them, Explain them, and Give Examples.

Bonus Tips:
• Subtle little differences that make all the difference can be added to either        presentation.

PowerPoint/Keynote Presentations are widely used today.
• They are usually not done very well.
• Many detract, rather than add, to helping convey the presenter’s message.
• I show how to reverse this!

The Research Shows:
     • Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
     • Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
     • Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.

My presentations can be customized to meet your specific needs.  Programs can be expanded to include Workshops and/or Individual Executive Coaching.

Fees are individually negotiated.

It all starts with a conversation.
Call 314-517-8772 or Email and let me know what you want to accomplish.

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1. Fox News interviews Speaker/Author, Fred E. Miller Audio John Pertzborn, co-anchor of Fox News AM Show in...
2. Attention, Audience! Be SPEAKER CENTERED – Please! In most cases, the audience came to learn something, not...
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In most cases, the audience came to learn something, not to see or hear the speaker.

We speakers are the messengers.  It’s incumbent upon us to deliver information in a manner that educates, entertains and simply explains it.

However, it’s a Two-Way Street.  We speakers need things from the audience to do our job to the best of our ability.  We need the Audience to be Speaker Centered.  They should be focusing on the Speaker!

Here are some of those things that will help us Deliver Better to You:

• Give us your undivided attention – Please!
• It’s discourteous to the speaker and others in the audience not to.
• Turn OFF! your cell phones and beepers.
• Don’t talk to your neighbor.
• Don’t read anything.
• Unless it’s an address delivered during a meal, Don’t eat anything.
• Do look at us, our slides and props.
• This is how we measure if we’re getting our message across – or not.
• We may be doing all the talking, but the best of us constantly “take your temperature.”
• We look for eye contact because if you’re looking at us, you’re probably paying attention.
• We look at your facial expressions and body language.
• Those voluntary and involuntary movements let us know if your’e GETTING IT!  If not, shame on us.  But it’s only by knowing we’re missing the mark that we can restate, repeat or make more clear our message.
• If we’re making our points, we’ll know it via those signs.  That knowledge energizes us! We thrive on knowing we’re communicating well and that improves our delivery.
• Positive feedback from you also lessens our Fear of Public Speaking.  (Yes, many of us do have that fear.)
• Be an active listener and learn something!
• Even if you’re not in the audience by choice, as long as you’re there you can learn something.  Open up your mind to that and you’ll benefit.
• Acknowledge our efforts.
• Sure, not all of us are very good at this.  Many speakers are terrible communicators.  Some didn’t want the role, but were either assigned the job or “stepped up” when no one else volunteered.
• Remember, please, that public speaking is a very real fear to lots and lots of people.  Give those at the lectern credit for “just being up there.”  (Most of the audience would not trade places with them.)
• Applaud when the speaker closes their presentation.
• It’s polite and acknowledges the time and effort put into the presentation.  Even if you disagree with the speaker – applaud.
• Thank them personally!
• It’s not always possible, but it will mean a lot to the speaker.
• Stick around after the presentation, shake their hand, and thank them for their message, even if you didn’t agree with it.  (Put yourself in their shoes.  Don’t you like to be appreciated?)
• If you learned something, tell them!
• In person is best, but an email or sending a hand written note would be great, also.
• Too many people, even if they enjoyed the speaker and benefited from their message, just pick themselves up and leave when the presentation closes.  Many speakers are not getting paid for their presentation.  Even if they are compensated, the renumeration is not consistent with the time and effort the presenter spent prior to speaking.
• Often, their only payback is knowing they made a difference to someone.  They won’t know if you don’t tell them!
• Even if the talk was less than stellar, acknowledge the effort.  (Remember Teddy Roosevelt’s famous “The Man in the Arena Speech.”  The point he made was that credit goes to the person in the arena, even if you’re “getting your butt kicked” rather than ‘those poor timid souls who know neither the thrill of victory nor the agony of defeat!’“)
• If you have suggestions for improving our presentation, let us know – please!
• Perhaps you believe we have a fact wrong, could have added information or done something that would have made the presentation better and helped the audience GET IT!
• I want to know, and people have told me.
• I once finished a presentation and was given a better way to ask for questions from the audience.  It works much better than what I’d been doing, and I have always appreciated that person taking time to advise me.
• Some of you make our day, and we’re thrilled you are in the audience!
• I’ll usually thank several participants for the attention and great feedback they provided during my presentation.  I kiddingly ask them to “sit in the first, second, and third rows” the next time I speak!
• We speakers love these folks!  They really help us do a better job. – Thank you!

The next time you’re in the audience, please take the above advice, pass it on to others, and be Speaker Centered!

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com

PHoto Credit: Phillip Stearns

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2. Have a ‘Plan B’ Because When the Screen Goes. . . There are several lessons here: Murphy’s Law rules! It’s not...
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MDo you have a spare tire in your trunk?  If you do, and I hope so, do you know if it’s properly inflated?  Do you have a jack to lift the car so the tire can be changed?  How about a lug wrench to remove the bad wheel and install the good one?

Have you ever changed a tire? (I don’t mean calling the Auto Club and waiting for the service truck to arrive!)  I know many of you haven’t.  So if you had the misfortune of getting a flat in the middle of nowhere and had a properly inflated tire in your trunk, and all the tools to make that change, you might have to grab your manual and figure how to change that tire – correct?

Having a ‘Plan B’ doesn’t mean implementing it is going to be easy!

Murphy’s Law, if something can go wrong it will go wrong, applies to the world of Public Speaking and Presentations, also.

I always have a ‘Plan B’, and often a ‘Plan C’.  But, like having that spare tire, I never really expect to need it.

I often use Apple’s Keynote software to develop and present slides in my presentations.  My backup plans (spare tire and tools) include:

• Copying the presentation to the ‘Cloud’.
• Copying the presentation to a thumb drive.
• Converting the presentation to PowerPoint in case there is not another mac available should mine not work and copying that file to the ‘Cloud’ and a thumb drive.
• Checking that someone will have a PC or mac available as a backup should mine fail.
• Checking that they have either PowerPoint or Keynote on that backup computer.
• Hopefully, checking that my version of those programs will work on their version.
• As I write this, I probably should have the software program on a backup drive, also, and hope their operating system will be able to load and run my software version.
• Printed copies (yes, plural) of the Light Table View of the slideshow.
• Light Table View allows the printing of several sizes of thumbnails of all slides.  I’m able to place up to 35 slides on one piece of paper.  Because my slides are mostly images, with very little text, I can look at the slide and know what words I should be speaking.  If you use lots of text, and you should not, those thumbnails would have to be larger than ones with just images on them.
• Navigator View can also be printed.
• This shows the slides and any relevant notes.

Bottom Line:
Are you prepared for something that usually doesn’t, but could go wrong, in an instant? As I stated, I’ve always had that ‘spare tire’ but never expected to use it.

I’ve got a presentation this week and, if you’ll forgive me, I need to print out that ‘Plan B’ Light Table View and put it in my ‘trunk!’

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com

Related posts:

1. Fox News interviews Speaker/Author, Fred E. Miller Audio John Pertzborn, co-anchor of Fox News AM Show in...
2. The Magic Pill that Makes You a Great Presenter! There's no easy way to get rid of the Fear...
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SlideThere are three styles of learning.

1. Auditory – Learn by hearing.
2. Visual – Learn by seeing.
3. Kinesthetic - Learn by doing.

For speakers, if more than one of these styles can be addressed to convey your message, the odds they’ll GET IT are dramatically increased.  Combining high quality, universally understood images on a screen with you, the speaker providing the “text” is an excellent way to do this.

Unfortunately, the majority of slide shows are designed with lots of text, bullet points, corporate templates and logos.  If they include any images, they are often cheap clip art or graphics that have the audience scratching their heads wondering what they are.

Sometimes you wonder why the presenter even showed up!  They are standing at the lectern, with their back to the audience, and are reading each and every bit of text to the attendees.  Yech!  They could just have well emailed their powerpoint presentation to everyone!

So your audience GETS IT! here are better ways to use slides in your presentation:

Use very little text and as few bullet points as possible.

Here’s why:
Text and bullet points do not reinforce the presenter’s message.
They confuse, compete and complicate it.  The audience will be reading at a different speed than the presenter is speaking the words.  They will be ahead or behind the point the speaker is making so the words they “hear” will not coincide with the sentences they are “seeing.”  The result is a lesser understanding than the speaker desires.

Use high quality graphics, eliminate the clutter, and deliver your message in a conversational manner.
Your slides, like the words you use, should be clean and simple.
Here’s why:
Our minds work by associations and we think in terms of pictures.
Example: If I say, “Apple.” you probably don’t see the letters a-p-p-l-e. My experience tells me you see something round, probably red, and there is a stem coming out of the top – Correct?

The images on a slide are used to supplement your words and help the visual learners (65% of the population) GET IT!  The slideshow is not the presentation!

When using a slide, as your talk goes forward and before the next slide, many times it is helpful for your delivery to press the “B” Button on your keyboard or remote control.  This will blank the slide.  The eyes of the audience will immediately move from the screen to you, the presenter – where they should be!

Allowing a slide to stay “on” for an extended period makes it a distraction.  Because our eyes are drawn to the light and the image(s) you’re projecting, while you are speaking, the audience is looking at the screen .  Since our nonverbal communication (gestures, facial expressions, posture, and body movement) is 55% of our communication pyramid (tonality being 38% and the words we speak only 7% ), the audience could potentially miss a great part of your message!

Do not use fancy transitions, build-ins, build-outs, special effects, fancy templates or any of the other “cool” things available to PowerPoint and Keynote users.
Here’s why:
It’s clutter!  All those things distract from your message.  Keep things Zen-like: Clean and Simple – Less is More!

Follow this suggestion the next time you use slides in your presentation.
Do that, and my prediction is this:
That speech will be absolutely, positively – No Sweat!

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book,
“No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know:
Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Leadership Opportunities.
He shows them how to
Develop, Practice, and Deliver ‘Knock Your Socks Off Presentations!’ with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com

Related posts:

1. Your Master Slide Deck: “Know when to
   Show Them and when to Fold Them! All presentations don't need PowerPoint or Keynote. However, there are...
2. Fox News interviews Speaker/Author, Fred E. Miller Audio John Pertzborn, co-anchor of Fox News AM Show in...
3. The Magic Pill that Makes You a Great Presenter! There's no easy way to get rid of the Fear...

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Fred's Master Deck: 9 of 138 Slides

Audiences have different wants and needs. Most presentations have time restraints.  Not recognizing either of these can result in a less than stellar performance.

A properly customized presentation connects better with audiences than a one-size-fits-all one. Connecting with an audience increases the odds they’ll GET IT!

A large Master Deck of slides makes this customization easy.

All presentations don’t need PowerPoint or Keynote.  However, there are some benefits to using great slides.  The audience looks and listens to a presentation.  Utilizing slides with great visuals, combined with you providing the text, increases the understanding of your message.  (Presenting visual learning style + auditory learning style = Better Presenting!)

If you’re like me, you’re constantly adding to, and refining your Master Slide Deck. I’m regularly incorporating new slides with images, video clips and occasionally, text. (Text slides should be limited and used for very specific purposes.) I’m also repositioning some slides to better “tell the story” and eliminating ones that needed to be upgraded or refined.

My Master Deck has three “Modules”.

1. The Components, Parts, and Elements of a Presentation.
2. The Fear of Public Speaking and how to lessen it.
3. Bonus Tips to Improve Presentations.

Additional Tips:
Stuff Happens so be prepared!
Once I presented to a company that wouldn’t let me use my mac.  I had to use their PC. While I had converted my Keynote presentation to PowerPoint, some of the “Action Moves” didn’t transfer.  I also found the two video clips I wanted to show didn’t work on their system.  It wasn’t that big of a deal because I had practiced and was ready for “anything and everything,” but I would have made minor adjustments sooner if I had known the incompatibilities.

Don’t forget correct utilization of the “B” button that blanks the screen.
Remember, you are the presenter – not your deck!  Blanking the screen will take the attention of the audience’s eyes from the screen to you - where it should be!  (It’s the equivalent of removing a prop from view once it’s been used for its intended effect.  If left in view of the audience, it becomes a distraction.)

Continually work on that Master Deck!  Upgrade your graphics, add new slides as you expand your expertise on your subject, and delete those that no longer help “tell the story.”

Do the above, and your next presentation will be absolutely, positively – No Sweat!

This stuff works!

Thanks for visiting my Post!
For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book, “No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know: Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
He shows them how to Develop, Practice and Deliver Knock Your Socks Off Presentations! with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com

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Text 

Have you ever sat through a presentation where the speaker read, word for word, the bullet pointed text that was on the screen?  Terrible, wasn’t it?

Why do speakers do this?

If they want to use notes for their presentation, those details should be placed in the ‘Notes Section’ of the slides, visible only to the presenter using Keynote or PowerPoint in ‘Presenter Mode.’

Placing Text on the screen does not reinforce the presenter’s message with the audience and help them GET IT!

On the contrary, Text and Bullet Points:

• Complicate the message.
• Conflict with the speaker’s delivery.
• Confuse the audience.

The audience is reading at a different speed than the presenter is speaking.  They are ahead or behind the speaker.  The result is worse than just seeing text or merely listening to the speaker!  (This also happens if you distribute handouts to an audience before presenting.)

The Answer:
Instead of placing lots and lots of Text on slides, use Images to help the audience GET IT!

There are three main styles of learning.

1. Visual – Seeing something.
2. Auditory – Hearing something.
3. Kinesthetic – Doing something.

A good slideshow presentation will combine two of these learning styles:
1. Visual -  high quality Images.
2. Auditory – ‘Text’ provided by the speaker’s voice.
The audience’s understanding of the presenter’s message is greatly increased.

Images should be:

• High quality.
• Universally recognized.  No – “What is that?”
• High enough resolution to not be blurred.
• Large!
• One per slide, or several that express the same main point.
• Example: I use images of a blackboard, clown’s feet, and a person writing on a chart on the same slide to deliver the point:
  “For the audience to GET IT!, a presenter needs to
  Educate, Entertain, and Explain.

Free images, when giving attribution, are available at Flckr’s Creative Commons.  Use Compfight to make that search easier.

Great, high quality images can be purchased from a number of on-line sites.  My favorite is iStockphoto.com.  Be certain to search for a Coupon Code before buying your credits.

Also important in this discussion is timely use of the ‘B’ Button in PowerPoint and Keynote that ‘blanks’ the screen.  When used, the attention of the audience immediately goes from the screen to the presenter – where it should be!

YOU are the presenter; not the slides!  The slides should have the image that reinforces the message you are delivering.  Once you have finished that message, and continue to elaborate or tell a supporting story, ‘blank’ the screen to have the audience focus on you!

This stuff works!  Try it and make your next presentation – No Sweat!

For reading, and/or listening, this far I’d like to give you a FREE Gift.
Go to: http://www.nosweatpublicspeaking.com/freegift to receive it!

About the Author
Fred E. Miller is a speaker, a coach, and author of the book, “No Sweat Public Speaking!”
Businesses and individuals hire him because they want to improve their
Public Speaking and Presentation Skills.
They do this because we perceive really great speakers to be Experts.
Perception is reality and we rather deal with Experts.
They also know: Speaking Opportunities are Business Opportunities.
Speaking Opportunities are Career Opportunities.
He shows them how to Develop, Practice and Deliver Knock Your Socks Off Presentations! with -
No Sweat!

Fred E. Miller
Fred@NoSweatPublicSpeaking.com
nosweatpublicspeaking.com

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Many companies unwittingly hinder the effectiveness of their employees’ presentations because of policies that mandate the use of corporate templates on every PowerPoint
or Keynote slide.

Without question, a well-designed template can make a slide presentation look
professional and polished. And, it is understandable that companies want to display
their brand name and logo as often as they can. However, the focus on brand promotion can have unintended negative consequences.

Consider the slide below.

It is typical of many corporate slides that I have seen. There is a bar across the top (usually in the company’s colours) with a logo justified to the right. There are, of course, variations, with bars (or other designs) across the bottom or along the side.

At first blush, it seems fine, but there is a problem: The black bar in the slide above takes up approximately 21% of the entire slide surface. That leaves just 79% in which to fit text, pictures, charts, etc. The result is predictable: smaller text that is harder to read; smaller photographs that make less of an impact; smaller charts and graphs that are more difficult to understand.

Is it really necessary to have a corporate logo on every slide? Do you really need to remind your audiences 10, 20, 30 or more times that you work for ABC Company? Chances are, the audience knows where you work.

In my view, creating a compelling presentation that uses the entire slide surface to make an impact will benefit your company more than having a logo on every slide. Indeed, the logo is often a distraction from the main message on the slide.

I recognize that many presenters do not have a say in the matter. They must use the company template. In such cases, here are some ideas to keep in mind:

• Keep the text on any one slide to a minimum (which you should be doing in any event) in order to be able to use the largest font possible (30 point minimum).
• Seek permission to abandon the template for charts and graphs. Use the entire slide surface. The objective is to make the data easier for the audience to understand. Bigger = Clearer = Easier to Understand.
• If possible, use the entire slide surface for compelling images. If you must display a logo, see if you can so by superimposing the logo on the image in a discrete location.
• If you must use a reduced slide surface for an image, be sure to use a high quality image, the resolution of which will not be diminished.
• For the longer term, work to change either the corporate policy or the template. For example, the policy could be that the logo must appear on the first and last slides only. Or, perhaps the logo could be reduced in size or confined to a corner in order to yield more working space. Clearly, this last idea will be easier to achieve in a smaller company than a multinational, but every great innovation begins as an idea. Why can’t it begin with you?

About John Zimmer

A Canadian now living Switzerland, I am married with two terrific teenage daughters. I am passionate about public speaking and helping others improve their public speaking and presentation skills.

I am always very happy to hear from readers and welcome comments on my posts.

If you wish to communicate privately, you can reach me in the following ways:

Email: john.s.zimmer@gmail.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/ZimmerJohn

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/0johnzimmer0

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ZimmerJohn

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/jjak2000

I look forward to hearing from you.

John

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