Present Rethinking Presentation Design

In this edition of “Present!“, we‘ll talk about looking at presentation design differently than we are used to. In this edition of “Present!“, we‘ll talk about looking at presentation design differently than we are used to. Cool! Do I need special glasses for that? In this edition of “Present!“, we‘ll talk about looking at presentation design differently than we are used to. Cool! Do I need special glasses for that? Nope! Great!! Great!! Hmm... you might still want to talk to someone about those, though! Why? Why? ... uhmm ... ... uhh ... anyways! Moving on! THANK FOR CLICKING THROUGH! Why should you take time to click through the rest? What I can already tell you about this presentation... It‘s... It‘s... HELPFUL It‘s... FUNNY It‘s... SIMPLE ...and when there is critical information... ... there‘s a big button!* * Joke © Douglas Adams Ready? Ready? Let‘s Go! ONE thing you take with you from this presentation... ... it‘s this ... Re-Think Presentation Design! What do I mean by that? I‘ll show you: I‘ll tell you about 3 things today. Old Habits One Message One Story Old Habits FORGET what you know about Powerpoint slides! FORGET what you know about Powerpoint slides! whoops, forgot this Your old habits might stop you from doing GREAT presentations. Your old habits might stop you from doing GREAT presentations. So for now, try to re-evaluate, re-assess them. And if possible, try to stay away from them... ... AND NO CHEATING!! 1 Slide 7 Lines / Slide 7 Words / Line 1 Slide 7 Lines / Slide 7 Words / Line :40 Seconds per Slide :40 Seconds per Slide Start with this? Start with this? Get rid of the technical restraints of PowerPoint ... ... and start with blank sheets of paper! Everything clear? Excellent! Let‘s move on then! One Message What are the things that you think about when starting to create a presentation? Sans Serif? Font size? Where can I get nice pictures? Which colors? # of Slides? Hmm... Instead... ...you should be focusing on your main message. What if you were in this very realistic situation? What‘s the main message, punk? You have 5 seconds to tell me. Okay, maybe it‘s not THAT realistic. Okay, maybe it‘s not THAT realistic. How about this? “Uhm, I didn‘t get that last part, why was that relevant to the presentation?“ “Uhm, I didn‘t get that last part, why was that relevant to the presentation?“ Is this any better? It‘s of little use calculating wind speed, angle, grass height, ball friction... ... when you don‘t even know where the hole is. So, first think: So, first think: What is the point you want to make? If you already have one, that‘s great! If not, don‘t worry, there are many ways to find out. Me, I like to brainstorm. Me, I like to brainstorm. That‘s not me, by the way. Look at things from a different perspective. Think about it for a while. Do you have the one message? Do you have the one message? Boo! Cheap word play!! Do you have the one message? Boo! Cheap word play!! Pshht! Quiet! Yep, I have it - it wasn‘t THAT hard! One Story Your story is the path. Your message is the goal. When you have a great story ... ... bad slides will not ruin the presentation... ... but having great slides cannot improve a bad story! Too fast? Here it is again! Great Slides Great Story Bad Story Excellent! Bad Slides Good! Okay... ish Time Waster This is where you should want to be! Great Slides Great Story Bad Story Excellent! Bad Slides Good! Okay... ish Time Waster How to create a story? You can brainstorm your ideas. You can brainstorm your ideas. Still not me. Throw away the things that don‘t support your main message. Keep the supporting ideas. Connect them into a clear, concise story... ... that talk about your main message. But that‘s just one possibility. Just keep trying and find out what‘s best for you! I mean... ... Paris wasn‘t built in a day! ... Paris wasn‘t built in a day! That‘s Rome you‘re talking about, duh!! ... Paris wasn‘t built in a day! That‘s Rome you‘re talking about, duh!! Well, Paris wasn‘t built in a day either, duh back at you!! Got all that? Awesome!! ... here‘s a quick reminder what we went through today: Old Habits One Message One Story So, next time you start a presentation... Re-Think how you create it! Thank You! This is the first presentation of a possible „Present!“ Series. If enough people find it useful, I will start making more, e.g. on Presentation Delivery, Design Techniques, Preparation Methods, Case Studies... If YOU thought this presentation was useful / cool / nice, vote for me at the “World‘s Best Presentation Contest.“ You can vote here. Thanks for the support! . ReThink! Oliver Adria‘s http://rethink.oliveradria.com/ rethink@oliveradria.com You can vote here. Thanks for the support!