Relational Presentation Blog – Flexible PowerPoint

I’ll bet a few of you have seen some really good PowerPoint performances in your day. Yes, I know. Such phenomena are rare indeed, but good PowerPoint can happen. You just need to know what you’re doing. The process certainly does not happen by accident.

Here’s one of the most important factors that tends to distinguish an excellent presenter from the average slide flipper—smoooooooooth flow.

Watch a seasoned professional who has truly mastered the art of visual expression and you will notice that they do not allow presentation software to break the continuity of their message. They don’t stop to wait for slides to display.

In fact, master presenters often transition slides in mid-sentence without looking back at the screen, as though the visuals are additional words coming out of their mouths. They only turn and draw attention to slides when pointing out specific details of interest, and THEY ABSOLUTELY NEVER read bullet points or paragraphs of text on slides.

Said another way, these expert presenters force PowerPoint, Keynote, or whatever they are using, to take a distant back seat. The software merely provides a supporting role to embellish the ongoing verbal connection with an audience. Now, that’s not to say their visual content is unimportant. Well crafted visual support is an extremely important part of a good presentation. However, experienced speakers weave this visual display seamlessly into the fabric of their verbal dialogue. Visuals seem to appear magically when needed, just at the right moment, to reinforce what is being said. Viewers see and absorb that content but are not distracted by it. That’s the key.

Always remember that YOU are the primary focus, not your presentation software. If slide display disrupts the normal speaking rhythm, limits what you want to say, forces you to address topics that are better skipped, or otherwise affects your natural freedom of expression while on stage—you have a problem. You are not in control of the situation.

Certainly becoming a master presenter takes practice. It involves work and preparation. Such a person must be intimately familiar with the content in advance and be comfortable smoothly integrating visual and verbal information. Is the extra effort worth it? Well, do you want to be a powerful communicator who influence peoples and changes human destiny … or just the average Bessie with a cow bell hung around your neck? It comes down to that. People’s time is valuable. If you are not willing to put in the effort to produce a smooth-flowing professional performance, then why are you up there in the first place?

Borrow a lesson from the experts and buck the typical Death by PowerPoint mentality. Take control of your presentation software and invest the effort to be an excellent visual communicator. Your audiences will notice.

 

Filed under: Delivery on January 26th, 2008