Presentation links
A range of links, from design oriented to organisational
Presentation Zen
Duarte Blog
Simply Presentation
Presentations.com
Presentation Helper
BusinessBalls
Presentation Skills
Presenters online
A range of links, from design oriented to organisational
Presentation Zen
Duarte Blog
Simply Presentation
Presentations.com
Presentation Helper
BusinessBalls
Presentation Skills
Presenters online
Presentation Success
Running a successful workshop is in some ways like an athlete competing in a race. The key to success in both instances is the work done before the event - success lies in the preparation! Athletes generally break up their preparation into stages, I like to think of three periods, the Preparation Period, the Practice Period and the Delivery Period.
Running a successful workshop is in some ways like an athlete competing in a race. The key to success in both instances is the work done before the event - success lies in the preparation! Athletes generally break up their preparation into stages, I like to think of three periods, the Preparation Period, the Practice Period and the Delivery Period.
Preparation
The most important of these periods is the preparation period. It is here that you assess the audiences needs, who they are, why they are there, what they are needing to get from the session. The length of time needed for preparation varies, but to give you an idea, it should be about as long as the other two periods combined. I look at this period in more detail here, providing a set of tips to help presenters out! Preparation also includes the development of the workshop/training session itself, the learning design. Perhaps you are nervous, inexperienced or just generally unsure about how to present effectively. If so it is worth looking to put some structure behind your presentation, The Decker Grid System is a good start here and combine this with the ideas for the book, Made To Stick and you're going in the right direction! If using slideware such as Powerpoint or Keynote it is always worth refreshing your skills, check out some tips here.
Practice
The idea of the Practice Period is to prepare yourself for the actual delivery. You must become super-familiar with your content. If using slides you must know exactly what is on each slide, when to change slides, when to push the "B" button to blank the screen (without ever reading the slides' content off the screen). You must practice any activities you are including in the workshop. Rope in co-workers, friends or family to help with this, especially if an activity is new to you.
Practice delivering the entire workshop, you need to know how long different sections will take. You can use the timing functions on powerpoint/keynote, however you should practice to the point that you can trust your own inner 'time recorder', you will always appear to be presenting more naturally if you do this.
Consider your body language and how you will interact with the audience. You can practice your gestures, how you will engage with the audience and where you will stand/move within the room. If you are able to use a video recorder, use it to record and review your presentation style. Consider asking for feedback from another person who's presentation skills you respect.
Delivery
Once you begin your delivery of your workshop all your preparation and practice pay off. This is where the audience thinks it all 'looks effortless'. Look up some of my delivery tips, it's always worth polishing up skills in this area! If you are repeating a workshop a number of times you need to watch out for staleness. Signs of staleness are (1) loss of enthusiasm, (2) a feeling of 'here we go again'. The cure for staleness is ideally to take a break from presenting the same workshop for a while, however more realistically it means recharging your enthusiasm for the workshop.
Each of these periods is important. Without sufficient focus on each period the final result will be less than ideal. The question is, will you be satisfied with finishing towards the back of the field? More importantly, how will this impact upon the learning outcomes of learners or attendees at a seminar?
The most important of these periods is the preparation period. It is here that you assess the audiences needs, who they are, why they are there, what they are needing to get from the session. The length of time needed for preparation varies, but to give you an idea, it should be about as long as the other two periods combined. I look at this period in more detail here, providing a set of tips to help presenters out! Preparation also includes the development of the workshop/training session itself, the learning design. Perhaps you are nervous, inexperienced or just generally unsure about how to present effectively. If so it is worth looking to put some structure behind your presentation, The Decker Grid System is a good start here and combine this with the ideas for the book, Made To Stick and you're going in the right direction! If using slideware such as Powerpoint or Keynote it is always worth refreshing your skills, check out some tips here.
Practice
The idea of the Practice Period is to prepare yourself for the actual delivery. You must become super-familiar with your content. If using slides you must know exactly what is on each slide, when to change slides, when to push the "B" button to blank the screen (without ever reading the slides' content off the screen). You must practice any activities you are including in the workshop. Rope in co-workers, friends or family to help with this, especially if an activity is new to you.
Practice delivering the entire workshop, you need to know how long different sections will take. You can use the timing functions on powerpoint/keynote, however you should practice to the point that you can trust your own inner 'time recorder', you will always appear to be presenting more naturally if you do this.
Consider your body language and how you will interact with the audience. You can practice your gestures, how you will engage with the audience and where you will stand/move within the room. If you are able to use a video recorder, use it to record and review your presentation style. Consider asking for feedback from another person who's presentation skills you respect.
Delivery
Once you begin your delivery of your workshop all your preparation and practice pay off. This is where the audience thinks it all 'looks effortless'. Look up some of my delivery tips, it's always worth polishing up skills in this area! If you are repeating a workshop a number of times you need to watch out for staleness. Signs of staleness are (1) loss of enthusiasm, (2) a feeling of 'here we go again'. The cure for staleness is ideally to take a break from presenting the same workshop for a while, however more realistically it means recharging your enthusiasm for the workshop.
Each of these periods is important. Without sufficient focus on each period the final result will be less than ideal. The question is, will you be satisfied with finishing towards the back of the field? More importantly, how will this impact upon the learning outcomes of learners or attendees at a seminar?