What is presenting? It’s nothing more than salesmanship. You’re selling an idea, a concept, course of action, or a design/plan to others to gain their concurrence, support, financing, or guidance. There are multiple factors that work and others that, if left to chance, will result in failure. From sitting through hundreds of presentations in the past two decades, here are the essentials “do and don’ts” for presenting for success:
DO know your audience. Is the audience’s role active (deciding, giving guidance) or passive (receiving info and asking questions)? Are they well-informed on the topic? Experts or novices? The answer to each of these questions will determine how much time/effort you’ll be investing.
DO review and know your material. Seems obvious, but I’ve seen a lot of presentations that were HORRIBLE because the presenter clearly had little to no grasp of the material. If the subject is something you don’t have depth on, spend time to get smart….then bring the people that know the material with you. And use them.
DO have confidence. You’re the presenter. If you know you’re material, then you have nothing to fear...but fear itself.
DO practice your delivery. I’ve given a lot of presentations. I never do so without rehearsing the material beforehand. That’s right; rehearse, like a musical performance. Presenting is like performing music on stage...you have to practice to really nail the delivery.
DO keep it simple. Keep your Powerpoint skills in check. Keep the content simple, to the point and relevant. If you’re showing graphs, data, etc., highlight the relevant points with simple builds/animation or colored font.
DO proof your slides/hand-outs and use proper grammer. Typo’s and bad grammar attract attention like honey attracts bees. Have either of them in your presentation, and you’re drawing your audience’s attention away from your message to minutia they don’t need to be focused on. (Unless that’s your goal?)
DON’T read your slides. This is the single largest mistake I see all the time...the presenter reading the slide content. Don’t. Your audience can read, so let them read the slide. You’re the presenter, so present the material. Your slide doesn’t need to contain every element of information you’ll be verbalizing. Remember: you’re giving a presentation, not reciting lines in a play.
DON’T mask you nervousness with “dancing” or playing with the laser pointer. Depending on your audience, you might be nervous. If you know you’re going to be nervous: (1) rehearse, rehearse, rehearse; (2) do a manuscript brief and fix yourself behind a podium if necessary, and (3) don’t hold on to anything in your hand. If you’re nervous, OK...accept it, but don’t call unnecessary attention to it.
DON’T assume the technology will work. If you’re delivering an important presentation, be prepared. That means hardcopies, or a back up hard-drive or thumb drive, or CD with the material. Don’t let technology torpedo your presentation.
DON’T skirt around questions or make-up answers. If you’re asked a question and you don’t know the answer....say so. Then tell the requestor you’ll get the answer and report back to them. Then report back to them, and the other attendees, that day or by close of business the next day. You’re the “expert” because you’re presenting, but that doesn’t mean you have to have every detail locked in your cranium. Just don’t make-up answers...you’ll lose credibility and the confidence of those you’re attempting to influence.
Presentations are delivered to secure approval, secure guidance, or inform. In any case, you’ve invested countless hours in design, planning, coordination and research to develop the content and material behind the content. Don’t flush these efforts because you didn’t prepare yourself to deliver quality content to an audience. Practice, keep it simple, and have confidence.
“If your words or images are not on point, making them dance in color won’t make them relevant.” - Edward Tufte
Christian Knutson, P.E., PMP is a leader, civil engineer, and author. He’s an accomplished professional specializing in A/E/C work internationally and author of The Engineer Leader, a recognized blog on leadership and life success for engineers and professionals.