Death by PowerPoint

Perhaps it’s pointless to point out that many of us have suffered Death By PowerPoint many times over. Sometimes as presenters of information; sometimes as participants. This condition has become, sadly, a commonality in business life. What are the symptoms?

Learn How

To speak in public, that is. One of the best ways to learn this skill is to join—and be active in—a local Toastmasters International club. If you cannot speak well in front of an audience, no presentation software will help you. Or your audience. Active membership in Toastmasters gives you the experience you need to stand up and speak to a group. You will learn how best to organize as well as present your information, and software such as PowerPoint will become a tool for you to use, rather than the crutch you clutch to get you through an otherwise distasteful (or scary) task.

KISS

This well-worn acronym means, of course, Keep It Simple, Stupid. Lots of writers write about the tendency we have to cram “data” into our presentations. By this, I mean the ubiquitous charts and graphs that you can insert into a presentation. On the other hand, our managers love these things, don’t they? Nothing perks up an otherwise dull presentation than a pie chart, yes?

No. The point to any presentation is to:

• Identify an issue
• Posit a resolution
• Briefly discuss the situation

Charts and graphs are, really, supporting data that can be provided in handouts to those who need, or wish to have, those data.

Organize

If you have a hard time organizing your shed or sock drawer, you will have a difficult time organizing information to present before a group. (Toastmasters will help you!) It’s critical to keep in mind the “why” of the meeting, as in:

Why Are We Meeting?

Meetings usually occur because:

• The project, or some element of it, must be reviewed (scheduled meeting)
• New personnel have been assigned to the project
• The project teams need to come together and learn what each is doing or has done
• Someone felt that a meeting is necessary (I’ll not discuss the last option…)

Remember the organizing points of a presentation:

• Issue/Subject
• Resolution/Conclusion
• Discussion

Keep your discussion of each point brief and focused. Use your presentation slides sparingly to reinforce the points you make. How?

• Use a picture, not a chart, with a simple lead or title to illustrate a point
• Do not put your speech into your presentation—people read faster than you can speak, so what’s the point of that?
• Resist the siren’s lure of animations—these are gimmicks and they will clutter your presentation
• Limit each presentation slide to one subject
• Ask yourself: Do I Really Need This? over and over and over—justify each slide

Practice

One of the first things I learned as a prospective member, and then as a member, of the Demosthenian Literary Society was that I had but a scant few minutes to present my topic. Two, maybe three minutes at most. So, I thought out my proposal, even in the meeting, and organized it accordingly. The time limit forced me to bring the points I thought most important out first; the rest I could use in defense of my motion.

Years later, when I volunteered to train adult leaders in the Boy Scouts of America, I learned to practice each topic presentation in front of the staff. Over and over; each was timed and critiqued. (Toastmasters will help you with this, too!)

So, practice your presentation at home, in the garage, in front of no one, or in front of your family (they will still love you, anyway…hopefully).

Handouts

Not everyone who attends your presentation will need or want all the facts, figures, and charts that support your subject. Have these materials available, or have a sign-up sheet so that you can e-mail PDF copies of these to those who want them.

Paradigm Shifts & Such

So, that which I present here breaks the paradigm at your company? We will probably survive; I survived each time my brother accidentally broke a treasured model of mine, one I’d spent hours building and painting to historic perfection. (Oops! Wrong paradigm…)