Think for a moment – why do you use powerpoint?
- As your notes or crutch so that you don’t get lost or forget stuff? Wrong tool
- To organise your thoughts? Wrong tool
- Because everyone else does? Wrong thinking
- To show photos and videos? Good – but be ruthless on what you include
Most people start preparing a presentation by creating a slide deck. A few then think afterwards about how they’re going to talk through them. Mostly not. As Australians would say, its “arse about face”….the wrong way round.
Do this instead:
- Decide your message, your aim. What’s the purpose? What do you want them to do or think differently?
- Once you’ve done that, divide the content into 3 chunks or parts
- Then- and only then- create a good start. How will you seduce them into listening to you. How will you set the scene for the first 30 seconds. This will be the first thing you say, after “Hello”.
- Make your notes pictorial and visual. So that the briefest glance at them will remind you of what to say. The rest of the time you’ll be looking at your client/ team/ board/ audience.
These 4 actions will reduce your need for slides as a crutch.
As Steve Jobs observed, “Those who know what they’re talking about don’t use PowerPoint.”
It’s time to stop ruining your presentations, and have people enjoying them instead.
To find out how to do without slides entirely, read the book Blow Your Own Horn. You can get it below.
