With the end of the fiscal year approaching, many business professionals are preparing their annual presentations for their companies. While this task might be part of the yearly routine, some professionals dread the idea of delivering a presentation in front to their bosses and coworkers. Some don’t feel excited or motivated to get started. And some simply may not have enough time in their busy schedules to begin thinking about a presentation. These are common barriers to building an effective business presentation, but there are ways to get around them.
Self-Doubt
If you feel more nervous than excited to present in front of others, you are experiencing self-doubt. Research shows that having self-doubt can hold you back from your full potential at work. It’s the little voice in our head that questions whether we are good or deserving enough for a promotion or new job opportunity. One way to combat this is to stop making excuses. Tune out that little voice in your head and instead create a game plan for how you can accomplish your goals.
If that include delivering a presentation, make time in your work week to rehearse in the mirror and in front of friends or family. Make sure you are comfortable with the content you are presenting. This doesn’t mean memorize a script word for word. You should know the ins and outs of your content so well that you don’t have to rely on notecards. Once you are comfortable with the content, you will appear more confident during your presentation.
Lack of Creativity
If you are recycling the same presentation template year after year with updated information, it will be just as boring for your audience to watch as it is for you to create it. If you already know what content is going into your presentation, then focus more on the design. There are many ways to update your design that will turn your boring PowerPoint into an effective business presentation.
Believe it or not, there are many alternatives to charts and graphs. Sure, these designs do well to display a trend over a period of time. But you can also focus on the most important piece of the content, which is the here and now. Show off this year’s revenue by going big with the number and nothing else. This will be more visually captivating for your audience. The simpler the design, the more impact it will have.
Not Enough Time
Perhaps the biggest barrier to creating an effective business presentation is our busy schedules. Between responsibilities at work and home, you may feel overwhelmed at the idea of preparing a presentation. But the more you space out the project to compete sections at a time, the easier it will come together. Don’t wait until the last minute or try to finish it all in one day. Chances are you will forget to include important information, leave an embarrassing typo on a slide, or not have time to develop a creative design.
Plan out time to work on components of your presentation. It may one take you one week! First start with developing an outline for what content your need to provide and how you want the information to be organized. The next day, begin working on the introduction of your presentation. Then apply the content to fill out the rest of your presentation and write a compelling conclusion. Once all your content is finalized and in the presentation, spend a few hours working on the design. The last component is practice, practice, practice!
Your end of the year presentation doesn’t have to be a pain when you plan ahead for it. There are many more resources at your fingertips in the Ethos3 blog to help you overcome the common barriers to building an effective business presentation.
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The Complete Guide to Creating A Captivating Professional Presentation
