How NOT to Use PowerPoint

•  Put as much stuff on one slide as possible.

•  Make sure it all appears at once.

•  Use a hard to read font type and size.

•  Make sure the text doesn't stand out from the background.

•  Don't include any pictures or other media.

•  Make sure you read each line off of your slide to your audience.

•  Don't worry about content; just impress your audience with special effects.

Suggestions

· Use large font – bold – 36 point for headlines – 28 for other text

· Don’t get too wild on the color scheme – it can be distracting

· Provide an outline of the talk that you return to periodically

· Cite your sources on the bottom of the slide in small print (author date is fine)

· Put the take-home message across the top of the slide

· NEVER write whole sentences out – bullet key words

· Write over small print of scanned graphs and tables, or recreate them!

· Explain your axes

· Add photos for interest

· Practice, practice, practice – especially the first few slides because you will be nervous

· Practice, practice, practice – timing is important

· Make sure to have a few concluding remarks that summarize your key message

· Make eye contact with audience members throughout your talk – this will make sure they are not sleeping!

Presentation Tips:
1) Pay Attention to Timing – Typically, a good strategy is to plan, prepare and practice for 75% of the allotted time. If you end early, no one complains. However, in this class, people usually talk faster than they expect – so, plan for 100% of your time. Ending late is poor planning.

2) All presentation material is not created equal. When preparing your speech, consider the must know, should know, could know. Limit material based on time or audience interest.

3) Hitting the emotional buttons will create more impact and action than pure data. Include stories, analogies, metaphors to reinforce the key points.

4) Create user friendly notes. Use bulleted points instead of sentences. Make the type easy to read (use felt tip pen or minimum 18 point type, boldface, if typed), only use the top 2/3 of the page to avoid looking down, use highlight pens to indicate the must/should/could know information. Be comfortable enough with your note cards that you do not read directly off of them.

6) Practice out loud. Doesn't Tiger Woods still practice?

7) Stage fright is a negative term for excitement. No coach tells the team to be calm. Channel the adrenaline into enthusiasm. You can control the physical symptoms by breathing from the diaphragm, positive visualization and self talk, plus by being prepared and practiced.

8) Deliver with passion, it's amazing how catchy enthusiasm is. If your voice is expressive and your gestures animated you will appear to be confident and passionate.

9) Remember -- speaking is an audience-centered sport. Avoid speaking out of ego, appearing too cocky or unprepared. As long as you stay focused on teaching the audience -- in preparation, delivery and during the Q and A, you should be successful as a presenter.

Modified from L. Shannon and J. Etterson