The human brain starts working the moment you are born and never stops until you stand up to speak in public - George Jessel
Making Presentations regularly ranks as the number one most common phobia across men and women of every age and demography.
As powerful as a solid presentation is, most people tend to express poorly. This is partly due to fear. We often think of presentations as ‘speeches’, ‘talks’ and ‘lectures’ and so on. A presentation is actually just that! What we are able to demonstrate and exhibit becomes a presentation of the point of view that we wish to put across, to a large audience, a group or to an individual. A good presentation is not just a passage read out to some listeners by a reader. It’s a well-planned expression of ideas that conveys to the observers/audience the point of view/subject being expressed. The essential point is, how much of what he/she put across, persuaded you to accept the issue being presented? A good Presentation is a well-planned demonstration.
A presentation requires you to get a message across to the listeners and must contain a 'persuasive' element. Very broadly speaking, a successful presentation must have the following essentials basics:
« The Objective
« The Subject
« The Audience
« The Place
« Duration
« Time of Day
The Objective
First, ask yourself 'why?' What is the purpose of the presentation & what is the objective? It will be useful to write down the reason you are presenting so you can use this as a constant reminder while you prepare the presentation. Never lose sight of your objective/topic as determined, when you decided to give the presentation.
The Subject
The subject of what you are going to talk about comes from the objective but they are not necessarily one and the same thing. The subject is the ‘information’ while the objective is to ensure the best possible manner of ‘explaining’ this to a group. The best is when you have to speak on a subject that may be entirely of your own choice.
The Audience
Before preparing material for a presentation, it is worth considering your prospective audience. Tailoring your talk to the audience is important and one must bear in mind a few essential points: the size of the group or audience and the age/professional range of the audience. Talking to teenagers and talking to retired people, require different presentations. The same will apply to different gender (Male/Female) compositions in the audience. Does the audience know something about your subject already or will it be totally new to them? Is the subject part of their work? What is to be your role as a presenter – inform; stimulate or teach; Can you use humour and what kind?
The Place
It is important to have as much advance information about the venue of your presentation. Ideally, try to arrange to see the venue before the event, as it is helpful to be familiar with the surroundings. It does much to quell fear if you can visualise the place while you are preparing your talk. Additionally, it would also give you the opportunity to try out your voice. You must try to see the size of the room, seating arrangements, (fixed or alterable) accessorial equipment, (microphone, overhead projector, flip chart, computer), power points/extension leads, whether the room has curtains or blinds to adjust for ambience, (adjustable if you’re using visual aids), possibility of noise/distraction from outside.
Duration
Always find out how long you have to talk and check if this includes or excludes time for questions. Find out if there are other speakers and, if so, where you are placed in the running order. Never elect to go last. Beware of over-running, as this could be disastrous if there are other speakers following you. It is important to remember that people find it difficult to maintain concentration for long periods of time, and this is a good reason for making a presentation succinct & interesting. Aim for 45 minutes as a maximum single-session presentation.
Time of Day
If you do have a choice of when to give your presentation - consider the following points:
Morning: The morning is the best time to speak because people are generally at their most alert. But, late morning may present problems as people begin to feel hungry & think about lunch.
Afternoon: Early afternoon is not an ideal time to make presentations since after lunch people often feel sleepy and lethargic. Mid-afternoon is a good time, whereas at the end of the afternoon people may start to worry about getting home, traffic or picking children from school.
Evening or Weekend: Outside regular office hours, people are more likely to be present because they want to be rather than have to be there. There is a higher likelihood of audience attention in the evening, providing of course that the presentation does not go on for too long
"There are two things that are more difficult than making an after-dinner speech: climbing a wall which is leaning toward you and kissing a girl who is leaning away from you." -