Last week, I had to give a presentation at work. And I work for a presentation design and training company, so no pressure right? It’s been a few years since I’ve been out of school, and I have never had to give a presentation for any of my previous jobs since then. So this project felt like the very first time I had to give a presentation all over again. If you are in a similar situation as me, here’s some advice from one first-time presenter to another.
First off, do your research. Not just on the topic you have to present, but on presentations as well. The Ethos3 blog and website are filled with great resources that inspired me to try different approaches when I got started on my presentation. I wasn’t really sure what the very first thing I wanted to say would be. No matter what I wrote, I couldn’t seem to get the first sentence just right. So I looked up “what’s the best way to open a presentation?” and found this video which gave me the idea to start with a question.
As I was fleshing out the content for my presentation, I did go through a few moments of second guessing myself. I rearranged my slides, redesigned them, took information out and then put it back in. I needed to find some grounding advice to keep me focused on getting the presentation done. That’s when I stumbled across 4 Presentation Tips Worth Sharing. This blog helped me hone in on creating a message the drives the entire presentation.
My next area of concern was what to with my body during the presentation. I had done a few run-throughs where I stood completely still the whole time, but I knew I had to get comfortable with movement. Of course, Ethos3 had that covered; The 3 Best Body Language Tips for Presentations has a lot of good pointers for what to do with your hands, and the importance of a smile.
Once I had my presentation written and designed, I needed to rehearse. But I wondered what the magic number was for how often a presenter should rehearse. The answer is the more, the better. According to How to Rehearse for a Presentation, the more you practice your presentation, the more authentic you will look and sound. Don’t assume having your information memorized will help. It’s actually about understanding your material that will help you with hitting your main points and remembering what to say.
The days leading up to my presentation were pretty anxiety inducing. But by the time it came to the morning of the presentation, I felt a sense of relief knowing it would be done with soon. And I could not have been more happy with my performance. All the blogs I read really made a difference in my presentation. My audience gave me positive feedback on my content, message and body language. I recommend reading the blogs I mentioned above as well as doing your own research into how you can improve your own presentation.
Additional Resources:
Reading Your Presentation: When, Why and How
