I consider myself very fortunate to have the opportunity to speak to groups on a regular basis. I did a little research and found that last year I did 588 presentations – 22 live, and 566 over the web in 9 different countries. Having done that many presentations I have learned a lot. However, I still felt like there was more to learn, so I started to do a little research that lead me to three very good sources of information:
(1) Goto Meeting Podcast (I didn’t hyperlink Goto Meeting because they have stop producing podcasts).
(2) Steve Jobs
(3) Presentation Zen
Now if you think the previous 1-2-3 are the three things that will makes your presentations awesome… well hold on because that’s not it. All three of those sources are connected (especially the 2nd one) to Steve Jobs.
The Goto Meeting podcasts were about two authors that analyzed Steve Jobs’s presentations. I also watched the recordings of Jobs’s presentation and the book “Presentation Zen” was written by a former Apple employee. Hang on to your seat, the 3 things that will make your presentations awesome are “3 Things!”
Ok, don’t stop reading… let me explain. Recently I did some one on one coaching with an individual that said he didn’t like to present and didn’t at all care about attracting attention to himself, but his company had asked him to create a presentation for new employees about department he manages. We went through his slides and gave me a very rough idea of the content… then he took a class I have been teaching (Presentation 101) and 5 short days later he showed me his re-vamped presentation and it was awesome. Before, the presentation was a complete dump of information… a brain overload without purpose or direction. He got the idea of “3 Things” and re-structured his information around those points. The 3 things forced him to be direct and to the point, but the biggest impact it had was on his confidence. I tell people, in the class, that you have to develop your own content and you have to know that content. Reading slides or scripts is a sure-fired (I am from the south) way to kill any presentation.
Next time you have a presentation to do, find your 3 things and stick to it… I think you will love the results!
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