Being able to give a great presentation can enhance your standing and increase your influence. Here are the key things to keep in mind.

• Prepare yourself mentally: remind yourself that you have a good presentation your audience wants to hear.

• Familiarise yourself with the room, if possible: how many will attend the presentation, where will they sit in relation to you, where is the presentation equipment positioned?

• Check your preparations: ensure your notes and visual aids are in order and any equipment is working.

• Introduce yourself and explain your role.

• Ask questions — for example, about your audience’s particular areas of interest — and adjust your presentation in light of the responses.

• Start your presentation with an overview of its structure and the key points you intend to make.

• Encourage questions; explain that you will try to answer them as they arise, but will postpone complex answers till after the presentation.

• Cover the key points in turn; show visual aids only when relevant.

• Speak clearly; concentrate on speaking slowly if you are nervous and use pauses for emphasis.

• Project positive body language with a confident, open posture; smile.

• Talk to the audience, not the images behind you when using a screen or projector: turn equipment off when not in use so the audience is not distracted.

• Continually scan the audience, maintaining eye contact; watch for inattention, fidgeting and other signs of boredom.

• Use questions and names to recapture attention and involve them.

• Respond to the audience; be ready to change your approach in light of their degree of interest.

• Finish the presentation with a summary of the key points; stress the benefits of taking action.

• Provide any handouts after the presentation, when they can no longer distract the audience and may remind them of your message.

• Deal with any remaining questions and ask for feedback.

• Establish the next step, and note any follow-up action required from you.

Cardinal Rules

Do:

• check your preparations
• involve your audience and respond to them
• project confidence and enthusiasm
• maintain eye contact
• deal with questions immediately
• establish the next step.

Don’t:

• worry about being nervous — use it as a source of energy
• read from a script
• speak too quickly
• provide handouts until after the presentation.

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