Myth Of The Month

Introduction

The increasing use of software such as PowerPoint™ as an integral part of a presentation makes speakers lazy and listeners indifferent. The idea that you can present 'perfectly and convincingly' using a beamer and a screen full of text and pictures is fiction of the highest order created by salespeople of high-tech equipment. It's fiction kept alive by individuals who are apparently more interested in having contact with the screen and the factual information than with their audience and its needs.

In this new series of entertaining articles, presentation specialist David Bloch explores the truth behind what he calls 'presentation myths'. When you follow his critical advice, you'll get more fun out of presenting, your listeners will enjoy themselves more, you'll drastically reduce your preparation time, you'll be far more effective in reaching the goals of your presentation ... and you'll benefit from your enhanced image as a skilled presenter.

Myth: Use two projection screens simultaneously and you can put across even more information

Have you ever experienced this? The speaker uses two projectors and two screens at the same time. On the one screen he keeps his 'list of contents' so that his audience can be sure of where he is in his lecture and to prove that he misses nothing. A similar situation occurs frequently in the medical world where the slides show different details of – for example – the X-ray along with statistics concerning the disease. There are some 'motivators' in the business world who used to use two overhead projectors, running between the two while telling their inspiring tale, until they made the switch to a single computer + beamer.

Just information … or something more?

Do you remember everything you hear and see during a presentation? Very few people can truly remember everything, yet there are many who claim they can. Let's look at this point in the context of the business presentation. When you really want to study a subject, you'll usually do that in your own time, at your own speed, with your own inner voice and in your own optimum circumstances. From paper or a computer screen. Consider this reality: if it were only about the transmission of information, then it would be unnecessary to get so many individuals to meet in the same place at the same time ... with all the expenses involved.

The value of effective presenting is to be found in the whys and wherefores of motivating the listeners to undertake specific actions. Although a certain degree of specific information is required, more important is how you as a presenter respond to the needs of the listeners to – in some way or another – become 'better'. Better in the broadest sense: to be able to work faster or more efficiently, to earn more money, to be more self-confident, to become more successful ... Your task as a speaker is to show how your 'solution' makes this result possible.

Who or what does the presenting?

Do you do business with people or with organisations? If you answer 'organisations', consider for a moment whether you have ever been given a job by a company; and have you ever seen the signature of a company on a contract? No, the essential fact is that you always do business with people.

More specifically: it's to benefit while presenting to realise that your listeners 'buy' you as a person first before they consider buying your solution to their problem.

In other words, when your credibility is less than optimal, the credibility of your company automatically suffers. The listener goes on to doubt the value of the service, product or message that is central to the presentation.

When you present and project on the screen, where does the audience's attention go? To the screen. When you use two screens, where does the attention go? To two screens. Consequently there's twice as much distraction to divert the attention away from you, the speaker and the representative of the solution the listeners are looking for. If you get so little attention, you could ask yourself what your true function is apart from pressing buttons on the presentation equipment.

Multimedia show

'All right, but how come there are all these amazing presentations with pictures and text and animation and all sorts of hi-tech special effects?'

True, but that's a different sort of presentation. That sort of show is usually announced and is frequently accompanied by a voice-over. The show is designed to be the centre of attention. When a speaker introduces the multimedia show or appears afterwards to continue the presentation, that's the important moment when the speaker is again the centre of attention.

Focus the attention

It is your task as speaker to help the listeners gain insight into specific issues. These are insights that help them towards their goals (not your goals). When you project a slide, the attention goes first to the screen. This is the perfect moment for you to be silent in word and relaxed in body movement. You continue your presentation after this short pause, adding the nuances and emphasis to what you project in order to support the one ultimate message that your listeners need to know.

Conclusion

The less you project on the screen, the more attention you get. The more attention you get, the greater your chance of getting across the desired message and of achieving the goal of your presentation. You present, not what you project! But whether you dare to allow yourself to receive so much attention is a challenge that only you can decide upon!