Public speaking is an example of a social phobia, and is the most commonly reported social fear.

Unfortunately, fear of public speaking can adversely impact upon one’s career, personal life and academic achievements. For example, sufferers may avoid careers which would entail public speaking or decline promotions which would involve giving lectures or presentations. Social anxiety sufferers may also experience a great deal of distress if required to give a speech at their 21st birthday, wedding etc. University students may choose their courses or subjects so as to avoid having to give presentations.

A Few Tips on Public Speaking For Social Phobia sufferers

Remember that it is normal to experience some degree of anxiety when engaging in public speaking and that a certain amount of arousal actually facilitates performance.

Rehearse your speech or presentation.. Should you be concerned about your mannerisms, eye contact and so forth, practice giving your speech in front of a mirror or get someone to videotape your performance.

Should you be worried that your anxiety will lead to your mind going blank, write down the key points of your talk on palm cards and take them with you, so you will have something to trigger your memory.

Don’t panic and don’t get argumentative or defensive if someone in the audience asks you a question you can’t answer, or makes a critical comment. This situation can be handled smoothly and with minimum disruption to your presentation if you pay the person a genuine compliment.

When someone is attacking what you have presented, tell yourself that it may be that they are insecure and jealous that you are in the spotlight getting the attention that they crave and

1. Make sure you praise them.

This will flatter him and hopefully take the wind out of his sails (Burns,1999).

For example, if someone has asked you a difficult question say, "That’s an excellent question. Thank you for asking it." If you can’t answer it then say, " I’ll have to look into that and get back to you…." Likewise,if someone has made a critical comment thank him for drawing the point to your attention. Refraining from getting defensive and argumentative will help you to come across well to the audience as a friendly person who is open to feedback.

2. Find Some Point of Agreement With Your Challenger

Agree with the person on some level… Again you have to resist your gut instinct to get defensive and argumentative. Finding some point of agreement, however small,

with your challenger, helps you appear to be an open minded person to the audience.(Burns,1999).

Try to anticipate the tricky questions or critical comments that people may make about your presentation and prepare appropriate responses; remembering to compliment the person for their question/comment and to find some point of agreement with them, no matter no minor (Burns,1999).

Remember that public speaking is only one aspect of your: job, personal or university life. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses, so. if public speaking is difficult for you, rest assured that you have other areas where you are talented,. You can’t be good at everything so don’t place unreasonable expectations of perfection on yourself.. You probably wouldn’t expect your best friend to be perfect so how about being you own best friend and giving yourself a break.

Public speaking anxiety may be best tackled via group therapy as you have the opportunity to practice with a supportive audience.

Thinking back over the last few years, what presenter(s) stand out most in your mind?

This question may not be as benign as it may appear.  Stop reading for a second.  Take your hand off your mouse and think about the question for a moment. . .

Sadly, most people can count on just a few fingers the presenters that were truly memorable.  When you think about it, that’s a pretty lousy state of affairs.  Not because so many presenters are really that bad, I think it has more to do with that many presenters not being memorably good.  The majority seem to fall into some ubiquitous neutral grey mist where they become part of the hoard of average presenters presenting average-looking PowerPoint in an average kind of way.  Before you throw yourself off of a bridge, I want to let you know there is hope for us all. Hope that comes in the form of paying attention to just a couple of important principles.

Over the years my psychologist buddy, Dr. Scott Lee, has been a great resource for me to help understand what moves us from the average to the memorable.  It’s not that down deep we didn’t have some sort of an idea, it’s just that he spent a lot of years in school and the equivalent of a moderate sized mortgage to give those things an actual name.  I want to give you five ideas for being more memorable for the long haul.

Participation.It’s the difference between us watching a football game and being handed the football and sent off to the field to run the next play.  Audiences are perfectly willing to be spectators if we allow them to be but deep down in their hearts they really

want to be participants.  They desperately want presenters to take a breath and ask them what they think. They want to be enticed to share their collective experiences with the group – to become a part of the presentation experience, not be simply an observer.  But it entails giving up something most presenters are reluctant to relinquish, even for a moment.  Control.

Participation can be as simple as asking the audience to share their personal stories on a theme. It can also take the form of props.  In one seminar, I wanted to get the point across of how hard it was for audiences to juggle all the points presenters want to throw at them.  To illustrate, I began to hit beach balls into the audience and asked them to keep them up in the air.  Frankly, I didn’t count on the chaos created as water glasses got knocked over but the point seemed to stick.  Two years later, I had someone tell me that he remembered the exercise but more importantly, remembered the point I was making. What are you willing to risk to get your audiences involved? How creative can you be to make a point stick?

Vaccination.I often see good presentation messages get undone because of some underlying understanding that some audience members share.  Maybe it was a promise that was not kept by the presenter in the past, the product launch that was late or a project implementation that was flawed.   Audiences don’t forget these things quickly and occasionally a presenter will stumble into this dangerous minefield.  Whether through ignorance or arrogance, the result is often the same. The presenter thinks the presentation went reasonably well until they get to the Q&A and are bludgeoned by a number of audience members. Even fellow audience members who were unaware of the past, are discounting an otherwise solid message. The answer lies in being aware and “vaccinating” our audiences early on to an underlying issue.

Have you seen the commercial on TV that starts out like this, “How can a bottle of diet pills be worth $139.95?”  Honest, that’s the very first thing they say!  The reason is that they know if they can get that obstacle on the table from the outset, they have 55 more seconds to make their case.  If they played out that little detail at the end, they would never sell a single bottle. 

For presenters, it requires an element of humility.  “Last year I stood here at this event and told you we would roll out a product that would change your world.  Frankly, we missed our target, but I’m here today to tell you why it was well worth the wait.”  Defuse major issues early on so you can be heard.  It takes courage but you will be memorable for all the right reasons.

Attribution.Audiences are not typically a very homogenous group.  They come with different expectations, titles and views of the world.  They also come with different ways of “filtering” our messages.  (It’s a wonder sometimes that we get anything through to them.)  Attribution is a way of giving a diverse audience a single, collective identity.  Everyone of them would like to believe they are with others who are like-minded.  And when they find this common ground, it will deepen the level of engagement with your message.

Here’s what that may look like.  “I appreciate the fact that you have taken time out of your busy day today.  I know you had other choices for workshops but I sense that you all have a keen understanding of the stakes related to your presentations today.  You’re aware that your capacity to advance in your company can often hinge on the skills you have to communicate well in your organization.  I suspect this is why most of you are here today.”

Whether that was their motivation or not, heads begin to nod and we see a common identity begin to emerge. By allowing them some “participation” time in the beginning, many will validate for themselves and others in the room the attributes you’ve just given to them. “Yea, our company has been losing some major opportunities but we were the best company for the job. We need to do something differently.” And the stories would go on.

Visualization.You’ve heard some people say that they are visual thinkers. What they mean is that words alone just don’t convey meaningful messages.  They are big picture thinkers and need a bigger context for understanding your solution or idea.  If this were Scott, he may have them sit back in their chairs and close their eyes for a 5-minute visualization experience.  I’ve seen him do this masterfully where he had an audience of 300 visualize the ‘perfect presentation day.’ It was a powerful experience and for many, the first time they had ever “seen” themselves as more than marginal presenters.

In your typical business presentation, having your audience close their eyes could be the kiss of death, but the principle is sound.  Here’s what it might look like for one company.

“Before we start today’s presentation, imagine calling a customer service number and there was no “press this” or “press that” instructions. A real human being greeted you pleasantly and asked you about the problems you were having. After you finished your explanation, you didn’t get passed off a half dozen times but they stayed on the line as they brought other people on to help resolve your issue while troubleshooting resources showed up in your email. That’s the kind of world our software solution creates.”

We don’t go far enough in helping our audiences see past the present.  We stay too much in the land of ‘what is’ and too little time helping them see ‘what could be’.

Repetition.Maybe you’ve heard that for people to remember a message, they need to hear it 8 to 12 times. Psychologists now are telling us that may not be true.  They reference a study where 600 undergraduate students participated in a study where they were asked to draw the face of a penny.  Over a lifetime, they had probably seen one hundreds of thousands of times but less than 5% could draw the basic elements in their correct locations. They surmise that repetitions alone are pointless. (Husbands, how many times have your wives said, I’ve told him a thousand times that…”) The

key is in how those messages are encoded for later retrieval. That is the magic of how we are remembered.

Just data Shallowest learning and recall potential. Near zero recall.

Data + meaning of dataImproved slightly but still stored in left brain, short-term memory typically

Data + meaning + sensory hook Smell, touch or seeing enhances (props, video, tactile, physical interaction)  Learning now also encoded on right side of the brain improving message retention significantly.

Data + meaning + sensory   + emotion Integrating all of the above plus adding an element that connects with the emotion (ie. personal meaningful story)Now, message retention is maximized and recall easily accommodated.

The right kind of repetition during our presentations is a way of creating a well-trodden path to the information so the way is remembered later on. For example, if there are three major topics in your 60-minute presentation, you may want to do a brief summary of key points at the end of each section.  (Psychologists call this “over learning”) Don’t wait until the very end, the path will already be growing cold.  If there was a graphical image that related to those points, place the very same image next to the line of summary text. This gives your audience a sensory hook that is the equivalent of a road sign that points the way back.  Underscore previously made points (adding meaning).  Conclude your presentation and summarize with the same point and with the same images and close with a story to tie in the emotional component.

If your challenge is that there are too many points to frequently summarize…I think you already know the answer to that problem.

The world doesn’t need any more average presenters.  Our audiences are simply too busy and their time too valuable. I started with a question and I’ll conclude with one.

Are we memorable or forgettable?  Can we afford the effort, planning and creativity to be exceptional? 

The truth is we can’t afford not to be exceptional these days.  So, what are you doing to be different?

All three examples are true. All put the presenter on the spot. All inconvenienced the audience. All were avoidable. In this article, I hope to help you outsmart the sprites by examining the extensive preparations show biz professionals practice. In fact the acronym for those preparations is P.R.E.P.A.R.E. We will discuss each of the steps in the acronym sequentially, beginning with Plan.

PlanThe Plan is the most critical part of any performance but the least noticed by the audience. To gain insight into the length Hollywood goes when planning a movie, consider the current movie phenomenon The Lord of the Rings. The extended DVD version of The Fellowship of the Ring features hours of material showcasing the years of planning that went into that production including concept development, scripting, storyboarding, scenic selection, character development, music creation and actor casting. All these details added to the success of the film. Any one of them handled poorly could have ruined it.Presentations, although not as involved, still require planning. That planning often starts with a concept that is developed into a script. I realize that some presenters prefer an outline. Outlines do offer spontaneity. But what they lack is specificity. A show biz production contains a myriad of details not readily apparent in an outline. The very act of scripting places a discipline on the performance that cannot be obtained in any other way.For an example where the stakes can literally be life or death, consider the legal profession. Lawyers script their opening and closing arguments, witnesses script their testimony, and judges script the explanations of their rulings. They plan what they will say in the courtroom so that it will be factually correct and logically thought through.Scripting forces you to determine exactly what you mean, how what you mean connects with what you’ve already said, and how what you will say leads inevitably to a grand finale where every detail of the performance connects. So therefore, the first step in foiling the sprites is to capture it all on paper.

RehearseIn entertainment you can spot the true professionals. They Rehearse so much that they look unrehearsed. They “flow.” Flow occurs when you know something so completely that concentration is no longer required (much like our daily commutes: we’ve rehearsed that drive for months).Constant, repetitious, mind-numbing rehearsal beyond endurance is the price performers pay to achieve flow. They examine the script line by line to plot the logistics of the performance. They determine where the props should be placed, how each item and person will get from point “A” to point “B” and correct disconnects in the script. These run-throughs, although tedious and time consuming, eliminate many of the flaws that attract sprites. As a result the performer becomes one with the presentation.

ExploreWith practice and repetition behind you and flow in front of you, the sprites must seek another opening. They look for the unexpected. Accordingly, you should take time to Explore all the potential unplanned challenges. Some people accuse me of being an “Eeyore” on this subject because I over-think potential calamities.It is true that I spend a great deal of time exploring what could go wrong. I ask myself a number of questions:

What technology issues could pop up?What questions might the audience ask?What would a heckler say?Are there any electrical wires to trip over?What health problems could someone in the audience have during presentation?

I explore these potential dangers not because I am a pessimist, but because the more emergencies I envision, the less likely the sprites are to surprise me.

ProtectOnce you have identified a potential challenge, you should Protect yourself from it by devising a solution. You

should then protect yourself again by devising a solution for the solution. You should ask yourself, “What’s the backup plan?” Then ask yourself, “What’s the backup plan for the backup plan?” Finally, ask yourself, “What’s the backup plan for the backup backup plan?”For example, consider technology issues and ask yourself, “What if the laptop crashed?” Then determine to bring backup overhead slides just in case. Next ask yourself, “What if the overhead projector light bulb blows?” Then resolve to bring an extra light bulb with you. Finally ask yourself, “What if that light doesn’t work?” Then learn to present without your slides just in case.Here’s an example from my own experience. In My Training With A Beat presentation, I demonstrate the various uses for music in learning environments. Without music there can be no presentation. I have protected my clients (and myself) by integrating the music into the PowerPoint presentation. I then travel with the music on a backup CD-ROM and a back-up audiocassette. As an extra precaution, I have recorded the music onto a VHS tape so that, even if all the usual audio channels are unavailable to me, I can play the music on a TV. On the remote chance that all these mediums should become demagnetized, I also carry several emergency musical CDs.

AcceptIn improv training, comedians are taught to welcome the unexpected, to treat sprite surprises as gifts. These gifts lead to new discoveries. I will never forget the time, as a magician performing the linking rings (eight rings link and unlink at will), a mike stand got in the way. Much to my surprise, the sprites linked a ring to the mike stand! Even more surprising was the audience reaction. They applauded! That bit immediately became a part of my act.It is an axiom among magicians that the magician has greater power because the audience never knows what is coming. Chances are that when something unexpected happens, the audience will, as they did with my link to the mike stand, regard the occurrence as planned. This fact gives the performer a decided advantage. If you Accept whatever happens as a gift, the audience will likely never know the sprites struck.

ReactAccepting is not the same as compliance. Even when something unexpected occurs, you should still take charge. React with an aura of confidence knowing that you are prepared. Ironically, the amount of preparation you have engaged in will rebound to your advantage. Your client will be impressed by the amount of preparation you went to the deliver for them. In this perverse sense you should welcome the sprites. Your reaction to their mischief will only make you look more professional.

EnjoyYou’ve planned, rehearsed, explored, protected, accepted and reacted. The final step is to simply Enjoy whatever happens. You control the dynamic so relax and place your focus where it belongs, on your audience. This focus will drive the sprites crazy.

A Show Biz TraditionSo, remember to P.R.E.P.A.R.E. And as a wish for luck (and in case the sprites are listening), break a leg!

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5 Fail-Safe Tips When You Forget or Get Flustered During a Presentation

Some goofs turn out to be funny—later, at least to the audience. Before a gathering of gregarious sales reps, I was trying to make the point that business communications are much less formal now than in past decades. “For example,” I elaborated, “when you are introduced to someone, you rarely respond, ‘How do you do?’ Instead, you say something like, ‘Hello’ or ‘Nice to meet you.’” Continuing this line of reasoning, I asked the group, “And when was the last time your family dressed formally to sit down at the dinner table together? Our family doesn’t dress for dinner.” One rep raised his hand and asked excitedly, “May we come?”

The audience roared with laughter; leaving me dumbfounded until someone in the front row pointed out to me what I’d said versus what I’d meant. Needlessly to say, after turning ten shades of red, I forgot where I was going with the next point.

Just wait until it’s your turn. If you haven’t yet experienced your point of embarrassment or memory lapse, you will. When it happens, consider these fail-safe ways to regain your memory and retain your poise.

Tip #1: Build a Mnemonic Device to Help You Recall Chunks

Memory experts tell us that our brains can hold only about seven chunks of information at once. For this reason, trying to remember 18 key points, six anecdotes, and three charts of data can be setting yourself up for disaster—unless you devise a better system of recall. Teachers have understood the value of mnemonic devices for ages. For example, piano teachers teach the scales EGBDF as every good boy does fine. Think of almost any discipline, and you will find technical concepts conveyed in models, mnemonics, and metaphors meant for easy recall. Create the same for yourself as a prevention tool.

Tip #2: Jump Ahead to a Key Anecdote that Serves as a Springboard

Stories stick better than an elaboration—even with the storyteller. In telling the story, you often will recall the point you typically make with the story by the time you get to the end of the story. And with that key point, the whole section of content will return to the forefront of your mind.

Tip #3: Fiddle with Fodder

Your fodder can be anything that fills a 10-second gap to provide you with thinking time to collect your thoughts. You may decide to take off or put on your eyeglasses so that you can “verify something.” You may pause to take out your pen and jot a note while you regain your memory. You may stop speaking while you suddenly decide to move the flipchart back out of your walking space or erase a whiteboard of irrelevant information and then turn back again to face the group. You might stop to ask the group about the temperature—whether it is too warm or cool—and then ask someone in the back to adjust the thermostat.

Any of these breaks allow you 10 to 15 seconds—often all the time you need to recover your thoughts and continue. And often after such a movement it seems perfectly natural to ask the group, “Now where was I?” and they will help you out.

Tip #4: Change Locations in the Room

A location change to a speaker is like paragraphing to a writer. So it will seem quite natural to your audience that you would pause reflectively and stroll to another spot in the room to move to your next point. In the time it takes you to get there, you likely will have recovered from your memory lapse.

Tip #5: Code Your Visuals to Cue You

Use key words or subtitles to group sections of your visuals to keep you oriented by reminding you of the bigger context for an individual slide. When you are projecting from a laptop, a subtle color bar or icon in the corner or across the side or bottom will cue you about which segment of the presentation your visual belongs to. This highlighted color or icon, then, should trigger a complete chunk of information to the forefront of your mind. When you go out on a tangent with a detail and cannot find your way back, all you need to do is glance at the blue triangle to remind you that you are tracking the marketing goals for the second quarter. The orange triangle signals you that you are into third-quarter goals.

Your Voice: The Most Powerful Personal Tool In Making Presentations

By Marlena Reigh ,Voice Image Specialist and Owner of Radiant Communications 

You have impressive visuals, the latest technology - you look great and your topic is hot, but have you invested time and energy in the most important of all personal tools -your voice? 

I know you have seen it. A presenter has all the "bells and whistles," something goes wrong and the presentation falls apart. Did you know that if that happened to you, you could use your voice skills to save the day? That is how powerful the voice is. 

Why is the voice so important? How can we use our voices to make a greater impact in our presentations? What are some ways to enhance our voice image in presentations? What voice facts are important to know? 

First of all be aware that:

A presentation is an event that we see, hear and feel. And what we hear, the presenter's voice, not only enhances all visuals, but brings the entire presentation to the feeling level: the level where listeners make the decision to believe and buy into your message. 

Just having a pleasant sounding voice is not enough. Using personality, or character in the voice through variety in dynamics can turn an ordinary presentation extraordinary and will grab and keep the attention of listeners from beginning to end.

The body entrains, or physically reacts to the voice. The body responds not to the words, but the sound quality and musicality of the voice. If your voice is dull, lifeless or boring, listener's bodies will entrain with dull, lifeless, and boring body responses. Within seconds they are mentally checked out.

 

Ways of making a dynamic vocal impact:

Always-always warm up your voice before speaking. Practice your presentation out loud and connect with your voice energy, an energy that involves your whole body. Humming, singing in the shower, along with physical stretches ten to fifteen minutes each day at least a week before presentation day is ideal. Take time to feel the energy radiate to the tips of your fingers and toes.

Learn to use your voice as your instrument. The most interesting and dynamic speakers use their voices as instruments. As in a piece of music, variety in speed, volume and range is essential in charming the listeners so that they are engaged in the presentation. Speed adds energy, volume adds emotional intensity, and range adds color and the human quality (see detailed article "6 Keys To A More Dynamic Speaking Voice" at http://www.myvoicespeakssuccess.com/).

When preparing let your voice reflect the energy state you want to exude, for your presentation. Ask: " What do I need to do to make a dynamic and interesting presentation with my voice? What do I want them to feel?" Practice with that energy. Find an object or thought that will immediately put you in that energy state.

 

Tips on improving your voice for presentation personality:

Talk to yourself. It may sound strange, but this will keep your voice, body and mind connected in a physical sense.

Create a daily and presentation day warm-up routine. Experiment: You have your voice with you all the time and there are hundreds of

opportunities each day both professionally and personally to use it differently. What kinds of voice personalities are in your repertoire? Tap into those various

situations where you use variety in your voice and identify how your body entrains to them.

Rather than guiding your voice by the sound, guide your voice by how it feels. Think of yourself as an athlete in training. Be mentally, physically and vocally in

shape.

 

Important voice facts for presenters:

Better speakers change volume levels more frequently.

The situation and/or topic influences volume range.

The nature of the material will determine the speed.

Audiences differentiate professional from non-professional speakers by the length and variety of pauses.

Spend more time talking quickly.

How you use your range will determine your feelings on the subject and influences audience response

Dealing With Presentation Disasters

By Marya Holcombe, Strategic Communications

Most presentation disasters are not fatal; they can be resolved comfortably if you

Keep smiling Know exactly what you want the decision maker to do (your main point)

What do you do if...

The decision maker is forced to leave before you have gotten to your key points. If you follow the old rule "Tell 'em what you are going to tell 'em, tell 'em, tell 'em what you told 'em," you won't get caught this way. Always mention your main point and major supporting points within the first few minutes of any presentation. If you are using visuals, you always have a visual that has the main point and the key points. If, however, you have made the fatal error of trying to save the "zinger" for last, and the decision maker must leave, ask for a moment to summarize. (Anyone will give you a moment if you ask with a smile.) State in one sentence the one point you want the decision maker to remember and, if you have a chance, the two concepts that best support that point.

You arrive and are told the decision maker can't attend. Even if the decision maker can't make it, someone in the room will be responsible for reporting to him or her. Ask yourself, "what, in one sentence, do I want the reporter to say?" (What do I want the decision maker to do?). (It will not be, "He told us about ...." It will be a message, "we should use _____ because it is within our budget and meets our engineering requirements" for example) Then be sure you state that sentence, as you want it repeated, at the beginning and at the end of your presentation.

You find you have 15 minutes instead of the 45 you planned on.Talking fast won't work. Decide quickly what percentage of 15 minutes each part of your presentation should take. Keep your eye on your watch and limit yourself to the

key concept in each portion. Next time, be prepared. Think about what you'll leave out if your time is halved, if you are given 5 minutes.

Someone asks a question about an issue you plan to discuss in detail later.Answer the question briefly, and say you plan to go into detail later. If the person asking the question is the decision maker, ask if the short answer is sufficient for now. Do not ask people to wait until you reach the point at which you originally planned to cover the material. If you do, everyone will focus on the unanswered question instead of listening. And, in a meeting setting, do not ask people to hold their questions until the end. Making that request suggests you are not confident enough to deal with interruptions.

You lose your train of thought mid-sentence.Smile, say "excuse me" and start again. Keep in mind that everyone in the room has lost track of an idea at least once. People want you to succeed and are sympathetic. Keep smiling.

You plan to work through a handout page by page; people are moving ahead at their own pace.The risk in giving people printed material is that they will read it at their own pace. If at all possible, don't provide handouts until after the presentation is over. If you must walk through a printed booklet, tell people what it contains and give them a rough idea of where different parts are located before you begin. If possible, hold your copy up as an easel and point to parts of charts or graphs. People are also more likely to stay with you if you occasionally say, "And you can see on page ___ that..." If the decision maker insists on moving ahead quickly, you'll do best to pick up the pace, perhaps skip pages, and, if necessary, focus on the pages that are important to her. (If you are going to hand out materials, don't try to bury anything at the end— like cost or fees. If people don't find what they want at the beginning, they go immediately to the end.)

You are competing for a deal and realize that the decision maker has confused you with the competition (he is taking notes on a page with the competition's name on the top).Use the name of your firm as often as you can. Say, for example, "As we at _____ believe," and try not to focus on what he is writing.

You expect to speak to 3 people and arrive to find 20.If you were planning to work from one set of handouts, forget it. Ask for a flipchart and pens; decide quickly how much you can rough sketch as you talk (key points, if nothing else). Stand; it is easier to maintain control. Remember that you are the expert. Keep smiling.

You walk into the decision maker's office and are offered a seat in a deep sofa.This is the moment to develop a bad back; ask for a hard chair. It is virtually impossible to sound confident and in control from a cushion 6 inches off the floor.

Your throat dries out.Do what the theater folk do. Roll a tiny piece of paper into a small ball and place it between your gum and your facial tissue in the back of your mouth. It will stimulate the flow of saliva just like the wad of cotton the dentist uses. Try this in private first, however, so you are sure you are comfortable.

Several people start a side conversation while you are speaking.In the following order: Ask if there are questions. Ask if you can do anything to clarify. If they will not stop and you are standing, continue your presentation but try to move nearer to them. Lower your voice or pause. Hope that someone else will stop them. When all else fails, try to acknowledge that things are out of control and ask the group whether a new meeting should be scheduled.

You drop your notes on the floor.Make a joke about your clumsiness, pick them up and take a few moments to put them in order. (Now is the time to be grateful you have numbered them.)

Secrets of A Dynamic Presenter

By Anne Miller, President, Chiron Associates

Here are ten tips guaranteed to give you winning delivery skills.

At home1. Prepare and practice. No professional worth his/her salt, from Michael Jordan to Madonna, ever went before a group without careful preparation and practice.

2. Stay positive! See yourself being successful. Think of the value your listeners will gain from your ideas.

3. Keep your perspective. Remember, no one ever died of a presentation!

On Your Way to the Presentation 4. Review your opening line several times. Even if you ultimately change the wording, remember that your audience does not know what you prepared.

5. You can't avoid the adrenaline rush you get before a presentation. It's normal, like the feelings before a competitive sports event. Instead, manage them. Breathe in deeply and exhale slowly 2-3 times. Hum to warm your vocal cords. Yawn a big disgusting yawn to open up any tense muscles in your throat. Raise your arms above your head, break in the elbows and shake your hands to loosen up. (These last two to be done only in the nearest restroom or empty elevator.)

During the Presentation 6. Focus on your listener(s) getting your message rather than on what you look like or how you feel. Sincerity, conviction and enthusiasm will automatically follow.

7. Think "conversation," rather than "presentation."

8. Do not try to look at everybody in a group at the same time. You'll get a headache, become even more nervous and start to babble. Better to look at and talk to one person at a time for about the length of a phrase or sentence or until you pause to breathe. Then, do the same with the next person, and the next.

9. Pause for emphasis after key thoughts or numbers. BREATHE (generally a good idea).

10. Pepper your information with examples, stories and analogies. The audience loves them and they make you come alive in the voice, in your body language and in your expression.

Last, but not least, enjoy the meeting

Are You Aware of What You Wear? A Subtle Yet Powerful Presentation Tool

By Dawn E. Waldrop

Audiences connect with presenters with whom they feel most comfortable. But where does this comfort come from? It comes from the energy you give off.

As humans we get different energies from our attire, which affects our communication. Just as you feel the difference when you wear certain clothing, so does your audience. What creates these subtle yet powerful differences? An authentic image empowers you to be your best.

Think about those days when you get dressed and feel great in your clothes. You feel confident, and people interact with you in a positive manner. Some people refer to these days as wearing a "lucky outfit." When you feel most comfortable in your clothes you are at your presentation best.

Now think about those days when you put on an article of clothing or accessory and only feel okay. You feel uncomfortable or out of sync. The truth is, you don't present well when you're uncomfortable. Your audience can sense your discomfort and they react accordingly.

As you speak your audience is studying every detail about you. When your attire and accessories enhance your appearance the human eye goes directly to the face. That is exactly where you the presenter want them. Even if one item does not enhance you, that is what the audience remembers instead of your message.

Here are the Six S's of subtle, yet powerful, ways to guarantee that your attire is working for you and not against you.

Sleeves

In every presentation situation wear long sleeves. Long sleeves communicate respect, authority and a higher level of professionalism. Observe how people interact with you when you wear short sleeves and then on days when you wear long sleeves. The difference is subtle yet powerful.

Surroundings

Don't be a wallflower. Call the facility and ask what color is the wall behind you where you will be speaking. Then make sure the color you choose to wear stands out and does not blend. If the walls are beige, do not wear beige.

Skirts

Women beware, the higher the stage, the shorter your skirt or dress will appear. The best length is mid-knee for short or medium height women. Tall women opt for hemline a couple of inches below the mid-knee.

Shoes

Your most important accessories are your shoes, yet people pay little attention to them. Make sure shoe color is the same color or a darker color than hemline of your pants or skirt. The audience eyes will remain on your feet when shoes are lighter than your hemline.

Style

Pay attention to how your clothes fit. Have them tailored to fit your unique body structure. Everyone is born with one arm and leg longer than the other. Without tailoring your audience will notice if your sleeves do not fit properly.

Silk Ties

100% silk is the best tie for a man. Men beware your ties come in varying lengths for different height men. Make sure the tip of the tie hits the middle of the belt buckle.

As a presenter, be aware that your attire does not shout distraction. This silent power speaks loud and clear. It is important to learn what does work best for you in color, style, texture and pattern. Then develop your attire around the industry you speak to and position level of the audience. This attire needs to project who you are. For example, if you present to businesses that deal with people on a personal level, such as finance, accounting, insurance, banking or real estate, then your attire will be more conservative compared to that of interior design or advertising.

Your presentation image is based on perception. Perception is reality. By avoiding clothing distractions and wearing attire that complement you and your professional

credentials, you will ensure your audience remembers your message and not what you wore

MAP Your Way to Effective Presentations

By Michael Grepo

One of the biggest fears that I think anyone has is to get in front of a group and give a less than perfect presentation. Introverts like myself feel especially vulnerable in such situations. To help myself (and others), I’ve come up with an easy-to-remember way to cover the steps needed to prepare effective presentations: MAP.

The first and most important thing is the Message:

You must have it clearly in your head what the message is that you want to give to your audience. This applies whether your audience is one person, ten people, fifty, or more. You can’t expect your intended audience to come to your conclusion if you aren’t clear on it yourself. Ask yourself what do you want your prospects to take away with them after you are done? It should be easy to see why this is the first thing to think about: How else can you come up with a logical, well thought-out presentation unless the ultimate message is clear in your head?

The next step is to develop your Action Plan:

Once you have figured out your message, you should think about how you want to convey what you have to say to your audience. Some factors to consider include:

How much time will you have? Will you have 20 minutes, 45 minutes, 1 hour, or more?

Where are you going to make this presentation? Will it be around a table, in front of a classroom, a large auditorium, or some other setting?

How much time do you have to prepare for your presentation? Do you have a day, a week, or a month to develop your presentation?

What tools would help you make your presentation most effective, given your time and environmental considerations? Should you use handouts, a slide presentation, other visual aids, or even other presenters to assist you?

How well do you know the information that you will present? How much research must be done?

Who will be your audience? Will it be just your immediate supervisor, a group of students learning something new, or a room full of experts?

How complication or elaborate does your presentation need to be? Is the path to your ultimate message or conclusion relatively straightforward, or do you need to weave a storyline together, presenting a fair amount of information and analysis?

Once you answer these questions, you will be well on your way to having an Action Plan that defines your strategy for creating your presentation. Now you can plan out

the process you will use to create your presentation, e.g., research, meetings, story outline, draft and review, how you might want to use presentation tools such Microsoft PowerPoint to help convey information and tell the story. 

In you Action Plan, you should include the time you will need to practice giving your presentation. Why practice?

Timing, to know how long your presentation will run Familiarity, to be acquainted with the material in the order you are going to

discuss it Efficiency, so you don’t read it and you are able to focus more on the

audience and the moment

Rehearing is especially important if you are not creating the presentation by yourself. To be an effective presenter, you should be very familiar with the material and how it should be communicated to your audience. Practicing is the only way to become comfortable with the content and flow of your presentation. And the confidence that you feel from really knowing what it is you’re going to say and how you are going to say it will be evident to your audience.

Finally, you should have a Punch line:

Come up with a distinctive way for your audience to remember what it is you are trying to tell them. You don’t have to have a true “punch line” or witty saying. You can help your audience create an image in their head. You can create an acronym (e.g., “MAP”). You can even restate your major point or message in a way that is different or surprising. Your goal is to give your audience something that hooks them or gives them something they relate to, so that they easily remember the point of what you said after you conclude your presentation.

So, make sure to MAP your presentations to help ensure you have successful ones:

Message Action Plan Punch line

First Steps First

By Gail Zack Anderson, President of Applause, Inc.

First the good news—you have been asked to give a presentation. Now the bad news—where do you begin? If you are like most people, you’ll immediately begin to think about what you are going to say, what your visuals will look like, or what you can use

for a powerful opening. This strategy can take a lot of time and lead to major frustration, unless you take the time to first create solid content. Here’s how:

1. Be sure you can answer these questions: Who is your audience? What is the purpose of the presentation? What does your audience want (or not want) to hear? How can you make your message appealing or acceptable to them? What do you want them to do, think, feel, or remember at the end of your presentation? If you cannot answer these questions, keep thinking, talk to a colleague, or do research until you know the answers.

2. Develop and write down a one-sentence message that captures the idea you want to express, in a way the audience can relate to. You will use this sentence as a theme in your presentation, and you should state it at the beginning and the end of your presentation. Here is an example of such a message: “Today’s presentation will show you the innovative ideas our department has developed, and how you might be able to use them to improve productivity in your department.”

3. Brainstorm to determine key topics you will discuss. For example, in the presentation above, key topics might include what those ideas were, how they were implemented, costs or risks associated with them, and the benefits your department has derived. Be sure that each main idea or topic relates directly to your main message.

4. Now you are ready to create that snappy opening! In it, talk about your audience’s concerns, and how what you have to say might benefit them. Then link your opening to your main message. Keep your opening short, to the point, and make sure it reinforces your main message.

5. Devote some time for a dress rehearsal, preferably in the actual presentation room if possible. Gather a small audience who can ask pertinent questions and give you feedback. Practicing with your visual aids helps reduce the need to look at or read from your visuals.

The Golden Triangle: Presenter, Audience and Slides

By Rick Altman

We have seen it countless times before, but this latest one was particularly poignant. The intelligent presenter, with something important to say, who got lost in her slides.

She started out beautifully, introducing herself and her ideas, standing before a well-designed title slide. She knew what she wanted to say and she said it—a surprisingly complete strategy for delivering a good presentation.

She should have stuck to that strategy, because as soon as her first bullet slide appeared, things began to go south. She found herself no longer saying what she

wanted to say; she was saying what the slide wanted her to say. Soon, it was as if she was speaking to the slide, and soon after that, it was clear to everyone in the room: She had lost her connection with the audience.

During her introduction, she was not paying attention to the screen behind her, concentrating only on her ideas and the people listening to them. But as the bullet slides appeared, her priorities shifted. She stopped paying attention to the audience. She became a drone. She stopped connecting with her audience, and instead only connected with her slides. That, dear readers, is a recipe for failure.

The theme for this month is on presentation content, not delivery, so why are we talking about this? Because, really, there is no way to separate the two. How you prepare your content has a profound impact on how you deliver it, and thinking first about how you want to deliver your talk influences your preparation.

Triangulating

In an ideal circumstance, you create a triangle of interdependence between yourself, your audience, and your slides. Without your slides, your ideas are not as effective; without you, your slides lack context; and without your audience, well, your presentation is pointless. And the sides of this triangle are not equal: you will be forgiven for paying more attention to your audience than your slides, but you deserve no such forgiveness if you do the opposite.

And again, these are not wholly presentation issues—you need to address them when you build your content. Let’s look at two of the classic errors that PowerPoint presenters make:

Obnoxious animations: This one is obvious, and alarmingly easy to fix during content creation: Remove all local animation from your bullets, head to the master slide, and apply a fade or a wipe.

There is no action that would be more crucial to audience rapport than this. Think about it. You want your audience to have the sense that you know what you are talking about and that you know what is important and what is not. You could argue that the most important first impression to make is that you understand what is important and relevant and what is not. So what does it say about you if your bullets feature frivolous animation? It says that you can’t identify what is truly important about an idea. And if you give that impression, thank your hosts and leave now—you’re done.

In the history of PowerPoint, nobody has ever been offended by bullets that wipe or fade, at medium speed or faster. You cannot go wrong with them.

Reciting your slides: If bad animation is the most inhibitive to connecting with your audience, this one is a close second. This creates any or all of the following impressions: 1) You did not prepare; 2) You are incapable of communicating an

original thought; and 3) You have doubts that your audience members are smart enough to be able to read the slide on their own.

These are not exactly the things you meant to convey when you found yourself reciting each bullet, word for word, in front of a room full of people. But the problem is that it’s quite hard to avoid it. When something appears on screen, it’s all-too-easy to treat it like a script. Your mission as you prepare your bullet points is to make it practically impossible to do that.

Let’s say that you are creating a presentation on this very topic. Here are the points you want to make:

Bullets are at their best when they…

Give the audience more substance than if they are just listening to you Help guide the audience through your topics Show them the logical progression of your ideas

If you display this verbose slide and then read it aloud, you do nothing to engender confidence with your audience. And you will sound like a drone. So instead, create bullets that do not compel you to commit droneage. What if you displayed this instead:

The three reasons to use bullets:

1 + 1 = 3 I need a map and I need it now! Breadcrumbs are an audience’s best friend

These bullets are imaginative, effectively vague, and coy. Moreover, they will not compel you to recite them word for word, although if you did, it wouldn’t be as bad as with the verbose slide, because you would obviously elaborate about each point. With the coy bullets, you have no choice but to turn to the audience and state your case.

And when you’re done stating your case, then you can replace the coy slide with the verbose one (using a nice fade, of course!), so that you give them the visual of your idea. In fact, how bad would it be if, before displaying the verbose slide, you recited it word for word? Not too bad, actually—reciting bullets before they appear is not nearly as bad as doing it afterward. You tell your audience that you have given thought to an effective way to present the idea, you don’t drone, and you don’t risk insult to their intelligence.

Everyone knows that it is not wise to recite bullets aloud, but not as many realize that it’s hard not to. It’s worth the extra effort to create bullets that don’t turn you into a drone.

Don’t Overstage

One of the decisions that presentation builders regularly face is whether to display their elements one at a time or all at once. No article can evaluate for you the various constraints and factors of preparing a presentation, but in general, a presenter’s life is made much easier by slides whose elements appear automatically as opposed to each by its own mouse click.

Three potentially hazardous things arise when you set your elements to appear On Click instead of After Previous:

1. You do not provide context for the bullets, showing your audience only the trees, not the forest.

2. You risk losing the context yourself. You might have to refer to your notes in a situation where you otherwise wouldn’t have to.

3. You might forget which element is the last one on the slide and advance to the next one, thinking that there was one more element left. Not disastrous, but not exactly polished, either.

The other problem with staging bullets and other elements one by one is that it is very tempting to employ the Dim on Next Click command. Let’s make this really simple: DON’T DO THAT!

Ninety-five out of 100 times that the Dim option is used, it is used because the creator thought that it would be cool or because he just learned about it. It is incredibly rare to see it used when there is a good reason for it. But here’s a good reason not to: it is one more time when you could insult your audience.

Dimming bullets as you go could imply to your audience members that you don’t trust them to keep pace with the material or to be able to follow the logic in your thread. Do they have Attention Deficit Disorder? Are they not capable of following your ideas without your resorting to grade-school measures? Is it not a bit like the little ball that bounces above the words on Sesame Street? How would your audience members react if they were to feel as if you were treating them like Sesame Street viewers?

Bullets don’t warrant this type of complication. Just throw them out there and then talk about them. Life is too short to fret about how you display them, and when you realize that fact, you communicate it. When you communicate it, you tell your audience that (here we go again) you know what is important and what is not. That’s a good thing.

If you find yourself in a situation where you truly need to stage elements on click, do yourself a favor and stash an inconspicuous object at the end of the animation order. Make it a thin rule along the bottom or side of the slide, or maybe one right below the title. Set it to Appear automatically after the last element. Nobody will notice it (and if they do, big deal), but it tells you when you’re done with the elements, so you can

proceed to the next slide gracefully instead of accidentally. Here is an example (http://www.altman.com/bullets.ppt)

The Fabulous B Key

What’s the most valuable key on a presenter’s keyboard? The one that blanks the screen. Pressing B turns a screen black (usually the better choice) and W turns it white. It is the simplest way to direct an audience’s attention away from an obsolete slide and toward you.

If your thoughts and ideas have outpaced the content of the current slide, you risk a disconnect with your audience if you leave that slide up too long. The best practice is to design a blank slide, with just the background and maybe your branding logo sunk into the background with soft contrast. During content preparation, try to anticipate the points in your talk where you want the audience to look only at you, not the screen. Those would be the times to insert one of these blanks.

We know that it’s not always possible to predict that. General Q&A time is obvious; other situations are not so obvious. And for those times, remember the B key, which will toggle the screen both on and off. Many of the wireless remote slide advancers offer a screen blanking button; we now consider that a requirement for a remote.

And by the way, those remotes help you connect with your audience, too, simply by untethering you to the computer. If your slides include hyperlinks and other objects that you need to click, you should look at the remotes that offer cursor movement and mouse clicks.

So you tell us: are these issues relating to content creation or presentation delivery? We think they’re both. We think that by addressing them as you build your slides, you will build better slides. You will build slides that help you strengthen the most important side of the triangle, the one between you and your audience.

This is one of over 40 topics that will be presented at this year’s PowerPoint Live User Conference, October 10-13 in San Diego, CA. www.pptlive.com

Learn more about Rick Altman in our Contributors section.