Warning – Presentation Danger Ahead

When you speak before an audience you will encounter the ravages of Murphy’s Law. It is not a matter of “if” things go wrong, it is only a matter of “when” they will go wrong. You can’t predict when that will happen. Murphy is always lurking in the room just waiting to attack.

Don’t count on luck to help you avoid these presentation gremlins. Remember that there’s both good luck and bad luck. Some presenters claim that if it wasn’t for bad luck, they’d have no luck at all.

If you speak, you will encounter some of these presentation potholes, detours and accidents. Murphy seems to enjoy messing with presentations. This report is as close as you can get to holding a “Get Out of Jail Free” card.

You can’t always prevent these potholes, detours and accidents from assaulting your presentation. But you can prepare for them so you can minimize the damage and shine through the turbulence.

Luck is the residue of design.

Rickey’s Law

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Warning: Know When to Shut Up

Effective public speaking is not only about speaking. It’s also about knowing when to stop speaking. Some times you need to shut up.

I don’t say that to be offensive, even though some might be offended by those words. If you are offended, perhaps that message is most intended for you.

As public speakers we must accept the reality that no one wants to hear every word that we want to say.

Read that last sentence again. There’s a difference between what you want to say and what your audience wants or needs to hear.

The question is, “How big is that difference and how aware are you of the difference?”

No one cares about what you think you need to say. The audience only cares about what they believe might be important to them. When a speaker says, I need to tell you this – the audience might wonder, “What has that got to do with us and why should we care what you think you need to say?”

When you find that you are saying things that you feel you need to say – it’s time to shut up.

When your audience doesn’t appear to be listening – shut up and wait for them to pay attention.

When you get lost and need to gather your thoughts – shut up, smile and gather your thoughts before proceeding.

When there is a disturbance in the room – shut up, wait for the commotion to die, then continue.

If you want to be a more effective speaker – know when to shut up. Your audience will love you and you’ll be invited to speak again.

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Anyways: What does that really mean?

 
Anyway or Anyways

What does that mean?

When you hear that word from a speaker what happens in your mind?

It might create a disconnection between the speaker and the listener. When I hear either of those words my head snaps back to listen for the change of thought. In other words, what was said before that word was irrelevant to what follows.

That suggests that this is a disjointed presentation or conversation. Perhaps the speaker got lost in thought and took us down the wrong path. Now, he’s trying to get back on track with the expression “anyways”.

Where do these words really belong?

We’ll get there any way we can. We’ll do what ever we need to. That might be reminiscent of Hannibal crossing the Alps with his war elephants.

But the expression, anyway or anyways is a dismissal of previous words.

It implies, “Ignore what was said earlier; what I really mean is…”

The speaker wants you to forget the words that were said earlier.

Does that mean those words were a lie, a lost tangent or a waste of time?



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Worst PowerPoint Slides Contest - Worst of the Worst

Here are the "winners" of the Worst PowerPoint Slides contest sponsored by InFocus.

Laugh at these designs then quickly to look at some of your PowerPoint slides.

If you don't laugh when you see these slides, then you better get help for your PowerPoint slides - fast. Who knows what it could be costing you.

Click this link to view the Worst PowerPoint Slides



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Move from Left to Right

English and other languages originating from Europe read left to right. That means that those people naturally move their eyes from left to right when reading.

They prefer to absorb information in the same manner.

When you speak before an audience you can use that principle to enhance the acceptance of your message.

First you must realize that it’s the audience’s perception of left to right and not your on-stage left to right that counts. It’s not what you thought you said. It’s what they thought you said that is important.

How can you use this principle in your presentation?

Timeline

Ask these folks to draw a timeline of a project and they will likely draw it from left to right. The left represents the beginning while the right represents the end or the future.

Here’s how to move while presenting about your project or proposal. Talk about the past while standing on the extreme left side of the stage (your right). Stand in the middle of the stage when talking about the present and move to the far right of the audience when describing the desired future.

You could also simply gesture to your right when talking about the past and to your left when talking about the future.

Progress

Use the same methods to place problems in the past and solutions in the future.

This is not natural so you will need to rehearse these movements. But the audience will be more willing to accept your ideas when they can SEE progress.

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Words That Suck Energy from Your Presentation

Speakers say the darnedest things.

Here is an assortment of destructive words and phrases that I heard at a meeting. Notice how these words might sabotage a presentation by distracting, boring or annoying your audience.

Stuff

This is vague. It suggests that the speaker doesn't know the subject. Try to picture stuff. There are more descriptive words that could be used; baggage, benefits, lessons, options, programs, products, books, ideas, plans…

You guys

This is too colloquial. It might be okay to use with a group of buddies, but not with a group of business associates. This phrase is just a hair above gangster speak "youse guys". When I hear this phrase I wonder if the speaker knows that the word you is both singular and plural.

Bucks

Bucks are male deer. The person meant dollars. The word bucks is too colloquial and low class.

Second to none

This is a cliché which suggests unoriginal thought. It’s not visual. Try to picture “second to none”. It’s also the combination of two negative words. Instead say the best or first.

At the end of the day

An overused cliché – thus unoriginal thought. Clichés tend to be boring – because we heard it before. When the audience hears clichés they tend to tune out and might miss what you say next.

Without further ado

This is cliché, vague and negative. What does ado look like? What does the lack of ado look like? And why was the audience subjected to some ado already? Instead, pause and continue.

Pretty unique

Ha, Ha. Is the opposite of this "ugly unique"? If you mean unique, say unique. If it’s pretty then call it unique and pretty.

Very, very unique

This might win the prize for the dumbest phrase in this rotten bunch. Is very unique more unique than unique? When you stack your verys, does that mean twice or ten times?

Truth be told

Cliché. Naturally one might wonder why the speaker feels he needed to point out that he was now about to tell the truth. Was everything up to this point a lie?

Moving on

Cliché. This phase adds no value. If the speaker talks about the next topic the audience will know that he moved on – for what that’s worth. Simply move on.

Going forward

Cliché. This one suggests that there is an alternative to going forward and that must be going backward. Instead say “The next step is”.

To be honest

Cliché. Whenever a speaker says this the audience would be justified in questioning the speaker’s honesty. Should we put the speaker on a polygraph? Why does the speaker need to qualify the next words with this curious phrase?

Okay

The speaker made a statement and then tacked on “Okay” at the end in a questioning way. This speaker did this several times. Was the speaker questioning whether the audience understood the statement? Was the speaker questioning whether the audience agreed with the statement? Was the speaker chastising the audience for being so dense? Was the speaker simply validating himself by saying that he was doing Okay?

Whole bunch

We have a whole bunch of products for you. It just sounds vague and low class. It doesn't place those products in a positive light.

Your audience doesn't listen to every word you say. They also react more to certain words than others. Certain phrases might detour their thoughts onto a tangent. If you want to hold the attention and credibility of your audience avoid using these self-destructive phrases.

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Presentation Details: Remove the Distractions

What does the audience see when they look at the front of the room? Look at the mess that this presenter ignored.  I wonder how many people in the audience missed something important because they were distracted by the mess on the table.

Presentation Distraction: Pay Attention to Details from George Torok

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Speak to everyone in your audience as individuals

Each person in your audience sees themselves as an individual. They might be part of a company, association or community but they still think and act as individuals. If you want to influence them you must address each person individually.

What does that mean?

First, look directly at people. Focus your eyes on an individual while you deliver a phrase, then move your eyes to another person and talk to her. Make your presentation a series of individual conversations. See a face, then another. Don’t gloss over a sea of faces.

Second, use language that you would when speaking to one person.

Don’t say “Hello everybody” or “How is everybody?” Who is everybody? If you use the word everybody this way – you might as well say “nobody”. When you say “everybody” you are not talking to individuals. You are treating your audience as a crowd – not as individuals. Crowds are dehumanizing and devoid of responsibility.

Third, use the word “you” when speaking to the audience. The beauty of the pronoun “you” is that it is both singular and plural. Avoid “you guys” or “you all” which are both colloquialisms and only plural.

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Don’t End Your Presentation on “Thank You”

There’s nothing wrong about saying “thank you” to your audience. But don’t end on those words because “thank you” is a weak close.

The purpose of the close to your presentation is to reinforce the key message. People tend to remember the last thing they heard. You might believe that they heard your entire presentation word-for-word – but they didn’t. They also forget most of what they heard. There is a good chance that they’ll remember your close if you deliver it well.

Think of your presentation as real estate. To succeed in real estate, you will need to remember the rule “Location, location, location”.

When delivering a presentation, the prime real estate is in your opening and in your close.

If you set up your close well, most people will listen better because it’s almost over. They might feel obligated to at least listen to your close.

Just imagine that your close is the only thing that your audience heard. What important words do you want them to remember? It’s probably not “thank you”.

You probably want them to act. End strong and use words that motivate them in the direction that you want.

Vote for me

Invest in your future

Join the team

Many speakers end on “thank you” because they didn’t prepare a strong close and “thank you” is the only way they can convey to the audience that they have finished.

If you believe that ending on “thank you” is polite, consider this. Your speech or presentation has value for your audience – otherwise there’s no point in speaking. You give the gift of your value to the audience. If they are polite, they will thank you with their applause. Then you can say “thank you” for the gift of their applause.

You don’t need to thank them for listening because they will only listen if it’s in their best interest. They will never listen as a favor to you.

Consider this. The silliest way to end this post is with a “thank you for reading”. I won’t do that, and now you know why.

Close your presentation strong.

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