I have no taste for victory--as much as defeat-- without a fight.
[Sun and Steel]

:: Killer Presentations

Connecting with an audience, communicating your vision and passion for a subject, can be
a beautiful experience. It’s also a rare opportunity to make an impression that might impact
your future. It can either be a gateway or a roadblock to professional growth. Which one is
entirely up to you.

Ten Rules For Delivering a Great Presentation by Steve Tobak
1. Developing the pitch. Start with your main point of view and a handful of take-aways.
Then build a storyboard around that, one slide per thought. Keep the number of slides
down and allow a few minutes per slide.


2. The icebreaker. Start with something to break the tension (yours and theirs): a welcome
gesture, engaging or humorous anecdote, graphic or video, or some combination. Keep it
relevant and appropriate. Don’t tell a joke.

3. The old axiom. Old advice, but it works: First tell the audience what you’re going to tell
them, then tell them, then tell them what you told them.

4. Don’t read what’s on the slide. Know the pitch cold (without having to look except for
a brief cue) and speak in your own words. If you (rarely) want the audience to read what’s on
a slide, look at it and read silently along with them.

5. Engage the audience. Ask questions. If they don’t respond, try offering an answer and
asking for a show of hands or ask easier questions. Make the audience part of the
experience.

6. Be accessible. Get close to the audience and move from place to place while
maintaining eye contact, but only from time to time. Do not bounce around like a pingpong
ball.

7. Pause for effect and emphasis. Practice being comfortable with silence for two or
three seconds. It’s the most dramatic way to make a point. Avoid ahs, uhs, and other
fillers of uncomfortable silence; they’re annoying and detract from your presence.

8. Make eye contact. But only for a few seconds per person. Too short and you’ll fail to
engage; too long and it becomes uncomfortable. Don’t bounce your eyes around
constantly.

9. Use hand gestures. They’re engaging and interesting. But when you’re not, keep your
hands at your sides. Don’t fidget, hold onto things, or put your hands in front of you,
behind you, or in your pockets. Avoid nervous habits.

10. Don’t block the audience’s view. Don’t step in front of the screen or block it from
view, except for the occasional walk-across. Gesture with your hand, but don’t touch the
screen.

::

{13:30 - Defeated on my own will}