I believe there are multiple techniques needed in order to become a more effective presenter. They include preparation, knowledge of our material, practice, confidence, clarity, use of technology, knowing our audience and the ability to answer questions effectively. With these techniques, anyone will be able to build a more effective presentation.
It all starts with preparation, anyone who is prepared has an excellent chance to succeed. The more prepared we are, the better we know our material; making our presentations more effective. Preparation and knowledge of our material also limits the chances of a curve ball being tossed at us during the presentation. Going over and practicing our material goes hand-in-hand with preparation. The more times we go over something, the better we become at delivering it, which in turn, leads to more effective results. The quote "practice makes perfect" can be applied to any presentation.
Being prepared and ready builds up our confidence. In football terms- offences that go over film during the week and find defensive tendencies (man coverage vs zone, when teams like to blitz, etc.) are more prepared for when they see these coverages in a game. This makes them more confident that they can execute their plays, yielding better results on the field. Presentations are the same (prep + confidence = success.)
The ultimate goal is to give a presentation that everyone can understand, therefore clarity is key. Speaking clearly, keeping a focused message, implementing technology that highlights our key points and using terms and phrases that everyone can understand are all crucial. As is knowing your audience, because we need to know who we are delivering our message to. Different audiences require different techniques; so understanding who is receiving our message is an important aspect. We must be able to answer any questions that arise during or after our presentations as well. Often times the audience will ask questions; if we anticipate them, we can answer them better. If all of these techniques are followed and preformed successfully, I feel that any presentation will be more effective.
Hey Colin! Love the football analogy. It could be useful to explain to my sports majors how to effectively prepare. Football teams need to keep to their strong points, find their style, practice in front of their coaches, plan a strategy (write a script), think ahead and practice play by play (section by section).
ReplyDeleteFor different audiences the same idea could be applied. If your playing against a stubborn defensive side or a pacey attacking team. Is your presentation audience a collection of stuffy execs or is it a bunch of excitable high school students. You would approach it completely differently.
I agree that being prepared is key to building confidence for any presentation and will in turn make you a more effective presenter. I really enjoyed your sports analogy, it simplified and put things into perspective. Pointing out that your audience will always have questions is something that presenters need to anticipate, a certainty everyone needs to remember.
ReplyDeleteHey ESL in Korea,
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I like your football analogy. It gave me the idea of videoing my presentations or classes, so that I can review them and find where to improve.
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