Notes & Slides for ASPA Webinar "Presenting for the Information Age" - Presented July 31, 2013

8/22/2019 Notes & Slides for ASPA Webinar "Presenting for the Information Age" - Presented July 31, 2013

1/28

SkillsWebinar

PresentingfortheInformationAgePresenter

KennethHunter,MPACityofRockyMount,NC

ABFMExecutiveCommittee

Thankyouforattending


2/28

SpecialThanks!ASPA

&

ABFM

AmyOmang

BenClark(ClevelandState)

DanSmith(NYU)

DaleRoenigk (UNCChapelHill)

Specialthankstothefollowingfriendsandcolleaguesfortheir assistance,guidanceand

contributions


3/28

Overview

Whatdo

we

get

wrong?

Howcanweimprove?

Whatelsedoyouwanttoknow?

Thispresentationisgoingtohelpanswerthreeissueswefacewithrespecttoouruseof

presentations:

First,letslookatwherewearegoingwrongwithourcurrentpresentations,andidentify

thosekeypoorpracticesthatoftenleadtopresentationfailure.

Second,welldiscussfivestrategiesforimprovingourpresentationsandenablinggreater

effectiveness.

Third,welltakesometimeforquestionstoseewhatelseyouwouldliketoknowabout

thiscriticaltopic.


4/28

3PsofPresentationFailure

TheimagesyouseeaboveeachassociatewithoneofthethreePs ofpresentation

failure:

PowerPointistheglobalstandardofpracticeforpreparingpresentationvisuals,as

commontodayasthetransparencywas30yearsago. Morethanlikely,though,9outof

10PowerPoint

presentations

fail

to

help

the

presenter,

and

often

serve

to

their

detriment.

Piechartsareaverycommonmethodfordisplayinginformation,andaverypooroneat

that.Ifthereisonethingyoutakeawayfromthispresentation, pleaseavoidusingpie

charts,especiallyinpresentations.

Preparation,oftenthelackthereof,meansthedifferencebetweenagreatpresentation

andapoorone.Thetimeweinvestinwhatwearepresentingaboutfaroutweighsthe

resourcesweactuallybringforthtodevelopandexecuteaengagingandinformative

presentation.Youneedtolearntoswimbeforeyoujumpinthelake.


5/28

IfPowerPointisSOGREAT

LookingcloseratPowerPoint,ifwearesuchproficientexpertsofit,ifouruseconsistently

enhancesourpresentations,thenwhyaretheresomanybooks,workbooks,manuals,

articles,andonlinepostscondemningit?

JustGooglebadpowerpoint slides sometimeandyoullseeforyourself.

PowerPointisheretostay.ThispresentationwasbuiltusingPowerPoint.Thereisnothing

inherentlywrongwithit.TheissueoftenlieswiththewayMicrosoftsetupdefault

settings,subconsciouslyencouragingyoutochooseformatsandstylesthatdonot

complimentyourpresentation.

Asawhole,PowerPointisagreattoolfororganizingandoutlininginformation.Itisnota

presentationtool.You,andyourpersonalknowledgeandpassionforthesubject,arethe

presentation.PowerPointsroleshouldbetoreinforceandaffirmwhatyouwaywithyour

words,inamannerthatenhancesretentionandpositiveresponse.


6/28

Dopiechartsreallysayanything?

AsaGFOABudgetAwardreviewer,IcanassureyouthatmostofthedocumentsIreview

containasubstantialuseofpiecharts.Theyarethedefaultgraphofchoiceforshowing

distributionofdata onthebasisofagivenvariable.

However,theyreallydonttelluswhatweoftenwanttoknow.Wemightthinkwewantto

knowthe

share

of

the

whole

aspecific

variable

has,

but

we

really

want

to

know

how

that

sharecomparestothatofanother.Tobetterdifferentiatethecomparison,weshould

substitutepiechartswithbarcharts.

Ifyoulearnnothingelsetoday,pleaselearnthatyoushouldavoidusingpiechartswhen

comparingsharesformorethanjust2variables.


7/28

Howpreparedareyou,really?

Howmuchtimedoyouaccumulateandengageinlitreview?

preparequantitativeanalysis?writemultipledrafts?

setasidetowriteyourclassnotes?workpreparingtheannualbudget?

Wemightthinkweareprepared topresent,butwhenyouthinkaboutthetimeyou

spendontheworkyouchoosetopresent,comparativelyspeaking, itreallyisntallthat

muchtime.

Litreview,analysis,draftsandeditingcantakehundreds,ifnotthousands,ofmanhours.

Months,if

not

years,

are

invested

in

your

work,

whether

its

aresearch

paper,

developing

notesforyournewestclassorpreparingtheannualbudgetforyourtownorcounty.


8/28

Howpreparedareyou,really?

Howmuchtimedoyouthinkabout/researchwhomyouspeakto?

drilldownEXACTLYwhatyouwanttoaccomplish?frameyourworkforquickunderstanding?

rehearsewhatyouwillsay,andshow?expresswhatitmeanstoYOU?

Wealsohaveatendencyto thinkofpreparation onintermsofpractice.

Thereissomuchmoreweneedtoconsider.Doyoureallyknowwho youwillbe

presentingto?Haveyouthoughtaboutwhatyouaregoingtosay? Howareyougoingto

frame yourpresentationsotheaudiencecanrememberwhatyoushare?Howmany

timesdo

you

seriously

rehearse?

Perhapsmostimportantly,doyouknowwhatthispresentation,thetopic,theopportunity,

meanstoyou?Areyoupreparedtosharethatpersonalconnection withthosewhoshow

up?


9/28

5StrategiesforImprovement

Ourlookatthewayswehinderandlimitourabilitytopresentwellleadsustowonder,

howshouldweplanandprepareinordertodeliveraneffectivepresentation?

Hereare5importantstrategiesforaneffectivepresentation.Welldiscusseachofthesein

depth:

1.KnowYourAudience

2.IdentifyandIncorporateGoals

3.VisualizetheInformation

4.Practice

5.PresentwithPassion


10/28

KnowYourAudience

Whileyoushouldknowwhatyouareplanningtopresentandtalkabout,youmightnot

necessarilyknowwhoyouarepresentingto.Evenifyouthinkyouknow,thatdoesnot

meanyourassumptionsareaccurate(aretheyever?).

Itisverydifficult,ifnotimpossible,toplanandpreparetoknow,meetandexceedthe

expectationsof

every

individual

attendee.

What

you

should

do

is

spend

some

time

learningthebasicsaboutwhoyouarepresentingto,inorderto betterplanandprepare

yourmaterialtofittheirgeneralinterests,skilllevel,andprofessionalduties.


11/28

Honestly,goingbacktothe5Ws isagreatwaytodiscoverwhoyouraudienceisgoing

tobe.

Startingoffwiththewho, includingsomeunderstandingofthegroupandits

membership/participants,isagoodidea.Youcanfindoutgoodgeneralcharacteristics

aboutthem

in

most

cases

with

respect

to

backgrounds,

experience levels,

etc.

Itsalsoagoodideatoknowwhat theyaredoingattheeventyouarepresenting.Your

placeinagivenagendacanimpacthowapresentationisinterpretedbytheaudience,

especiallyifittakesplacepriorto,immediatelyafter,orincompetitionwithdesirable

activities.

Goingbacktotheagenda,When isalsoimportant.Thegeneraltimeofyearyouare

presentingisgoodtoknow,asitmightcontributeortakeawayfromtherelevanceofyour

work.

KnowingWhere ismorethanjustthetownorcity.Thespecificlocation,alongwithitsamenities,capabilities(audiovisual,size,etc.)aregoodtoknowwithrespecttohowyou

organizeandpresentyourinformation.

Lastly,itsimportanttoknowWhy theaudienceisthere,forbothyourpresentationand

theevent.Hopefully,eventorganizersarelookingforyoutoprovideaspecifictakeaway,

possiblyrelevanttoageneralthemeormission.Findingoutwhattheyarelookingforisa

goodidea.


12/28

IdentifyGoals

Onceyouknowmoreaboutyouraudience,youhavetheabilitytounderstandthe

expectationsandopportunitiesyoucanusetoevaluatewhatyouwanttoshareand

identifyspecificgoalswithrespecttoyouractualpresentation.

Forpresentationpurposes,itmightbeworthittothinkofyour goalsfromtheperspective

ofboth

yourself

and

your

audience.

In

this

situation,

think

of

yourself

as

the

striker

on

the

soccerpitch,settingupapenaltykick.Yourgoalissimple,to score.

Inotherwords,yourgoalistoconnecttheworkyouaresharing withyouraudience,so

theycanfinduseforitintheirwork.Whatgoodisyourresearch,yourdiscovery,your

monthsandyearsofstudyandanalysis,ifitcannotinfluenceandbenefitthosemostlikely

tolearnandapplyit?

Ontheotherhand,youraudienceismuchlikethegoal.Theymightnotrealizeit,oradmit

it,buttheyarriveatthepresentationwiththeirownbiases,thoughts,priorities,lackof

focus,etc.Muchlikeagoalie,theirintuitiveresponseistoblock outnewideasor

suggestions.Theywillnaturallyattempttoquestion,criticize andargueagainstwhatyouhavetosay.Thisisespeciallytrueifyouarepresentingyourresearchtoagroupofpeers,

manyofwhomhavetheirownworkstheyseektodefend.

Thegoodnews,andyouknowthisifyouwatchsoccer,isthattheoddsareinyourfavor.

Mostpenaltykicksresultingoals,andyouhaveastrongopportunitytoinfluenceyour

audienceinameaningfulway,especiallyifyouknowwhatyouwanttoachieveandcan

preparefortheirsubconsciousdefenses.


13/28

Knowledge

Skill Attitude

Competence

Yourgoalsshouldbeyourownwithrespecttothespecificitems youwanttoshareand

connectwithyouraudience.

Theywilllikelyaffectaneffortonyourparttoexpresstoyouradvancedskillsand

knowledgeonthegivensubject,alongwithanattitudethatreflectsconfidenceand

humility.

Inotherwords,yourgoalsaremeasuresbywhichyouseektoproveyourcompetence.


14/28

Moreoftenthannot,ourgoalsaretiedtospecificconclusionsderivedfromourstudy,

researchandanalysis.However,simplysharingconclusionsdoesnotnecessarilymeanthey

willberemembered.

Effectivegoalstakeconclusionsandframetheminafashionthatachievesrelevancewith

theaudience.

Once

this

is

accomplished

and

effectively

executives,

your

goals

transition

intotheessentialtakeawaysthatlandinthenet andstaywiththeaudiencebeyondthe

presentationencounter.


15/28

VisualizetheInformationRespect

LimitsTwo

ChannelsGuide

Attention

Transforminggoalsinto takeawaysdependsagreatdealonhowyoupresentyour

information. Presentationisaconversationbetweenyouandthe audience,whetheritbe

justonepersoninaninterview,orhundredsorthousandsataconference.

Inordertopresenteffectively,youmusttakecaretovisualize inadvancewhatyouare

goingto

share

so

you

can

maximize

your

audiences

potential

to

absorb,

understand,

and

commitittomemory..Anaudiencescapacityislimitedwithrespecttowhatyouhavethe

opportunitytosharewiththeminasinglegivenencounter.Therefore,effective

visualizationiscriticaltoasuccessfulpresentation.

Thisfirstmeansrespectingthelimitsofyouraudience.Hopefully,knowingmoreabout

themmakesyouawareoftheircapacityingeneral.Atthesametime,youhavetotakeinto

accounttheavailabletimeframe,agenda,othercommitments,and more.Focusyour

presentationonafewspecifics,reflectingyourgoalsandbesteffortstodevelopnoticeable

takeawaysthatcanintroduced,guidedandreinforcedduringthepresentation.

Next,rememberthatcommunicationisbothvisualandauditory.Theaudienceiswatchingandlisteningtoyou.Bothchannelsneedtocomplimentandreinforceoneanother,butnot

necessarilyreplicate.Readingyourpresentationslideswontcutit.Period.

Ofcourse,noneofthisworksifyouareabletocaptureandguidetheattentionofthe

audience.Youneedthemtofocusonwhatyouaresharingwiththemiftheyaregoingto

beabletounderstandandinterpretitinternallyforlaterapplication.


16/28

Before

Thebattleforattentionisoftenlostinyourvisualaids,especiallywhenitcomesto

PowerPoint.AsIstatedbefore,PowerPointisgoodatorganizing information,butitsbuilt

indefaultsandwizards,nottomentiontraditionaltrainingtechniqueslike6by6,

facilitateratherineffectivepresentationvisuals.

Thisslide

is

one

example.

From

aconventional

perspective,

some might

think

this

is

what

anideaPowerPointslideshouldlooklike,followingseveralcommonconventions.

Unfortunately,itleavesthereaderlessthanimpressed.

Inreality,theslideistoowordy.

Nottomention,thewordsandbulletpointsareabouthowperfectionisNOTsignificant

withrespecttosharingresults.

However,thelevelgraphicatthebottommakesonlyservestoreinforcetheideaof

perfection(bubblesareatexactmiddle).

ThisslidedoesNOTHINGtoreinforcethemessageofthepresenter.Morethanlikely,they

willreaddirectlyfromit.

Whatisthegoalofthisslide?Whatpointisittryingtocommunicatewiththeaudience?

Whatisthepresentertalkingaboutwhiletheslideisonthescreen?


17/28

Wouldntitmakemoresense,insteadofcopyingyourpresentationnotes onaslide,to

developavisualthatreinforcesandcomplimentswhatyouaretryingtosay.

Thisalternativeslidetotheonepicturedbeforeisagoodexample.

Theimage

is

well

recognized

by

most

audiences.

Thepointisreinforcedwithminimaluseofwords.

Theslidedrawsattentioninamannerwheretheaudienceismore likely tofocuson

listeningtothepresenter,sinceitdoesnttakemuchtimetounderstandthepointofthe

slide.


18/28

Whatyoureusedto

So,whydoourPowerPointslideslookmorelikethefirstexampleratherthanthesecond?

Herearetwopotentialreasons:

First, PowerPointsdefaultsandwizardsENCOURAGEpoorpresentationdevelopment

Second,we

have

atendency

to

use

slides

to

outline

and

note

our presentations,

rather

thandevelopcomplimentaryvisuals

WhenyouopenanewPowerPointdocument,youarebroughttoasingleslideutilizingthe

Title format.Whenyouaddthesecond,thedefaultsettingtakesyoutotheinfamous

titleandbulletpointsslide. Already,thesoftwareisconditioningyoutooutlineandwrite

notes,notpreparevisuals.


19/28

Whatyoucandoinstead

Thegoodnewsisthattheslideisntlocked,andchangingtoamoreopenlayoutisfairly

easy.

Rightclickontheslideyouwanttochange,thenclickontheLayout option.Multiple

layoutsappear.ClickoneithertheTitleOnly orBlank options.

Theribbonsonthetoolbaraboveprovideyouwiththeabilityto inserttextboxes,images,

andmuchmore.Avoidingmorerestrictivetemplatesandwizardsandstartingfromscratch

ismorelikelytoencourageyourcreativityandfocusonthevisualaspectsofyour

presentation.


20/28

AnotherwaytobetterpreparethevisuallayoutofapresentationistoutilizetheSlide

Sorter view.Thisallowsyoutolookatyourpresentationlikeastoryboard,better

understandinghoweachslidecomplimentsorhinderstheimpactofoneanother,and

makingsureyouachievetheappropriatecohesionnecessarytoachieveyourgoalsand

sharespecificinformation.

ThispresentationwasdevelopedbyDr.BenClarkatClevelandStateforarecent

conference.Youcanseehowmorethanhisfirsthalfofslidesareentirelyvisual,followed

bylimiteduseoftextandsharingofdataandresultsofspecificinterest.


21/28

Practice!

Avoid

Embody

Greatpresentersbelievethepresentationitselfcarriesclosetoorequalvaluetothework

theychoosetopresent..

Greatpresentersknowtheirwork,orthatoftheircolleagues,isonlyworthanythingif

othersaccept,embraceapply,andconsumeit.

HowoftenareyouworkingonthePowerPointthenightbefore,or eventhemorning

before,youpresentation?

Doyouactuallydressrehearse yourpresentations?

ThegoalhereisnottobelikeSteveJobs,orcountlessothergurus,politiciansandmodern

idolsknownfortheirpresentingskills.Ourgoalshouldbe,however,tolearnfromtheir

examplesofconnecting withouraudiencessowecaneffectivelyshareourvast

knowledgeandfindings.

Wewanttofaceouraudiencewithconfidence,notturnourheadawaysowecanreadoffthePowerPoint,asifitwasanotecard.


22/28

Ifyoudesignyourslidestobevisuallyappealing,youstillneedtointegrateyouractual

presentationlanguagetoensurecontinuity.TheNotesViewinPowerPointallowsyouto

scriptyourpresentationnotesandassignthemtoaspecificslide.Thephysicaldocument

alsoholdspotentialasashareabledocument,ifyouareaskedforcopiesofthe

presentation.


23/28

4X

Sometipsyouwanttoconsiderinclude:

Practiceyourpresentationatleastfourtimes,preferablyinfrontofotherswhocan

criticallyevaluateyou.Theydontnecessarilyhavetobepeers.Infact,ithelpswhenyou

canfindpeopletowatchyourrehearsalthatbestreflectyourintendedfinalaudience.

Italwayshelpstoseeyoursel finaction.Ifyoucan,considervideorecording afull

rehearsedpresentation.Makesureyousetitupsoyoucanseeeverythingyoudo(words,

movements,eyedirection,etc.)whenyoureplay.

Practicetimingyourremarks.Rememberhowmuchtimeyouhave,basedonyour

researchoftheevent.

Becomecomfortableenoughthatyoucanpresentwithoutnotes.Evenwritingonyour

handnowadaysisconsideredunprofessional.

TestALLaudiovisualequipmentyouareusing.Makesuretheprojectorworks,andthatthecomputerthatwillbeusedfortheactualfinalpreparationwill runthepresentationyou

areusing.


24/28

IpresentedthissetofslideslastfallattheABFMConference. IthoughtIhadfounda

balancebetweenmodernizingmytechniqueandprovidinginformation.INEVERtooka

lookatitonaprojectorscreenbeforeIpresentedit,andtheaudiencecouldbarelyreadit!


25/28

PresentwithPassion

Thefinalkeyisperhapsthehardestforustocommittoasrational,datadriven

professionals.Arentwesupposedtobeunbiasedinourpresentationoffactandtheory?

Yes,butthatdoesntmeanwecantbepassionate,andexpressthatpassionina

measured,professionalmannerthatencouragestheaudiencetopayattentionwithwhat

wehave

to

say.

First,passionis notanotherwordforselfimportance.Yourinterestinthetopicathandis

whatisimportantrightnow,notwhatyouhavedoneorwhatothersnecessarilythink

aboutyou.

Second,engagingtheaudienceiscritical.Avoidthepodiumandstandingnexttothe

computer.GoonAmazonandbuyaremoteclicker youcanusetogofromslidetoslide.

Movearound,andletthemseehowmuchyouactuallycareaboutwhatyouare

presenting.

Third,involvetheaudiencebyaskingthemquestions.Ifyouveresearchedtheaudiencewellenough,youshouldknowatleastoneortwowaystoinvolve theminthe

presentation.

Finally,humorisdelicate,butitcertainlyhelpstohaveawelltimedjoke.


26/28

Reminders&OtherSuggestions

Dontreadfromslides!Dontusetemplates!

Rehearsewithanaudience!

Dontreadfromslides!Limitresultstablestokeyfindings/variables!

Picturesaremorevaluablesthanwords!

Dontreadfromslides!Investinaclicker!

Summarizeyour

lit

review!

DONTREADFROMSLIDES!

Strategiesaside,thereareofcoursemanyothertipsyoucanfindoutthere.Alongwith

thoselistedontheslide,youcangoogle BadPowerpoint orAvoidBadPowerpoint or

similarphrasesandseewhatisoutthere.

SomehavementionedapplyingotherpresentationsolutionslikePrezi.Dependingonthe

sophisitication ofyour

audience

and

the

nature

of

the

content

you

are

sharing, this

is

an

availableoption.

Anotherconsiderationwithrespecttopracticeisfindingwaystosimplypracticeyour

presentationandpublicspeakingtechniques.Groupslikealocal chapterofToastmasters

Internationalgiveyouagreatopportunitytopractice,gainfeedbackandbecomemore

accustomedtothepresentationenvironment.


27/28

Questions?KennethHunter

[email protected]

@kwhunter

Presentationw/notesavailableat

Thankyouverymuchforyourtimeandparticipation.Pleaseletmeknowifyouhaveany

questions.


28/28

References

http://www.edwardtufte.com/bboard/qandafetchmsg?msg_id=0001yB&topic_id=1

http://www.juliasilvers.com/embok/Design/Needs_Assessment_files/image001.jpg

http://nclgba.org/wordpress/wpcontent/uploads/2012/07/PowerPoint_Skills_Notes_nclgba.pdf

http://www.slideshare.net/PublicFinanceTV/graphinginexcel24032189

http://www.presentationmagazine.com/presentationskills2rehearsal7374.htm

http://www.charliehawkins.com/articles/PassionatePresentations.html

http://www.sethgodin.com/freeprize/reallybad1.pdf

Ifyouwanttolearnmore,youcancertainlydoyourownresearch.HerearesomelinksI

stronglyrecommendyoutakealookat.

EdwardTuftes shortmonographonPowerpoint isworthalookat,asarebooksby

StephenFew:

TheCognitiveStyleofPowerpoint:Pitchingoutcorruptswithin,byEdwardTufte

http://www.edwardtufte.com/tufte/powerpoint

ShowMetheNumbers:DesigningTablesandGraphstoEnlighten,byStephenFew

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0970601999

InformationDashboardDesign:TheEffectiveVisualCommunication ofData,byStephen

Few

http://www.amazon.com/InformationDashboardDesignEffective

Communication/dp/0596100167/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1375986593&sr=14

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Notes & Slides for ASPA Webinar "Presenting for the Information Age" - Presented July 31, 2013

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