Things I’ve learned about giving presentations

Tips I’ve learned over the years for presentations:

3 Things! (Matt Brandon) People remember and are probably going to (at the most) take away three things from your presentation. If you’ve got to have more than 3 solid points, then think about your PowerPoint and your audience. Having more than 3 points could be necessary for some, especially if it’s a more in depth analysis. But in general 3 points is just about perfect.

Don’t write so much on a slide, people can read. And beyond peoples ability to read (Garry Briese). IF you were to see this much text on a slide, you’re mind immediately shuts off…you’re no longer interested and often it’s way to much information to digest. I try to think about my PowerPoint's from the audiences perspective. Would I be able to understand my point at the end of the presentation? Is the logic I use (or examples) to get to my point clear and as concise as I can make them?

Print out a copy for yourself (Garry Briese). Some people use the Notes view where it prints out the slide and the notes you’ve typed that go with that slide. My only problem here is that the editing abilities within notes (if you have the slide above the notes section) is it’s a bit difficult to use effectively. I find it easier to type my notes, what I want to say, in a separate word document and then print this out for the presentation.

Double space and increase font size for your notes you will read from (Garry Briese & Chandra Cookson). Man, I tell you what, it’s amazing how small 12pt font gets when you’re in front of an audience. I feel like it shrinks to 8pt and then of course you’ll loose your place.

Don’t carry over on your word document. It’s often much better to be able to complete your point or thought (when referencing your notes) before having to flip a page. If I can fit two complete slides worth of information on my notes then cool. But if the point for the second slide carries over to another page then I move it so that it’s all on one page. It makes it much easier to reference and helps keep you on track as well. Flipping between pages is a distraction and can really add to frustration if someone were to ask you a question and you need to reference a point but can’t find where it is.

Colors and fonts (Experience). Make sure the colors and fonts you use are easily readable and that when you put them up on the slide you can still read them. Grey’s and blacks can be tricky especially when viewed through the projector and when light is coming in the room and washing the screen out.

If you’re really ambitious (Experience), source a projector (don’t steal one) and look to see how your presentation looks when viewed through the projector. If you can go to the exact classroom where you will be presenting. This can help you ensure that the computer can handle the format of the presentation you’re giving, and you’ll be able to see exactly how your presentation is going to look when presenting.