10 Wise Ways: Presentation Skills
10 Wise Ways: Presentation Skills
They say that preparation is the heart of presentation. Here at last are the brain, lungs, and liver.
Good presentation skills are an asset for almost any career. They define your ability to communicate and to inform and influence people.
Today I’ll share ten of my best ideas for how to improve your abilities at the lectern.
But first, I’m going to tell you a story about how and where I got the single best piece of advice I know about public speaking. ChatGPT will not give you this wisdom. You won’t find it with Google. I’m going to share it with you now, for free.
Club Congress
I was standing in a hot, crowded bar watching a band play a riotous set. The venue was the Club Congress, in the beautiful and historic Congress Hotel in Tucson, Arizona.
Something very strange was about to happen. Together with about 400 other people, I was about to learn one of the most important public speaking lessons of my lifetime.
In the middle of the set, without any warning, the drummer jumped up from his kit. Looking distressed, he scurried across the stage and climbed down into the crowd. We all watched, perplexed, as he pushed his way through the throng towards a side exit. The door opened, he went through it, and in an instant he was gone.
The other band members looked at each other with surprise. They seemed amused, confused — as did the rest of us. They were determined to play on like professionals. And that’s what they did.
It was a long number, growing longer without a rhythm section. As the chorus wound down, the side door again flung open. The drummer entered and maneuvered his way back through the crowd. He climbed up on the stage, inserted himself in his kit, and resumed banging out the end of the piece.
We all went absolutely bananas. We cheered insanely at the performance, over his triumphant return, and his victory over… well, we weren’t sure what. Maybe he went to yell at the sound guy? Maybe he rage-quit his job in the middle of the performance, then thought the better of it and abruptly changed his mind? We were all ecstatic but nobody knew why.
As the applause died down, the drummer raised his hand. He was asking for a chance to speak. The room obliged, and it became very quiet. We wanted answers. He leaned into the microphone, took a deep breath, and he told us a story.
Years ago, he said, he had the opportunity to meet his idol, a musical hero who he’d worshipped for his entire career. The men talked and drank for hours about their experiences recording, touring, and working in show business.
As he was talking to the old man, his mind raced with ideas of how to make the most of these moments. The night grew longer, and morning approached. It was becoming urgent to make best use of his few remaining moments of access to the elder.
Here, the drummer paused. He wiped his glistening head and face with a towel. He looked out over the crowd. “I asked him after his long career in the business, did he had any advice for how to give a great performance, to settle the butterflies, how to feel prepared when you’re headed out on stage?”
He paused again. “The old man looked at me, and nodded. He took a deep breath, and then blew it all out. He leaned forward, very close to me, and in a raspy whisper he said just two words.”
“Pee first.”
Practically Magic
It’s wisdom, isn’t it?
Most people already know that your most important presentation skills are put to work as you prepare. Preparation skills are presentation skills. Ask any performer. Meticulous, repetitive training and iterative rehearsals will beat out a more talented, comedic, or dramatic performance given in the moment.
In business, it’s no different. No aspect of your presentation is more important than what you have to say. If your content is interesting, informative, and helpful to your audience, they will forgive almost any performative deficiency. If you have nothing to say, if your facts are wrong, or if your ideas are borrowed, no theatrics, stunts, or performance can save you.
Here are are ten more of the best tips I have for public speaking, performances, and presentations. The first five are free, the rest and the best are paywalled. I guarantee you that it will be worth the few dollars.
1️⃣ The Room is Yours
While working on Wall Street sometime in the 1990s, my manager turned me on to information designer Edward Tufte (whose website may not have been updated since then.) His influential books adorn the coffee tables and Zoom backgrounds of the creative elite.
I was just a pup, but my manager generously sent me off to a full-day in-person seminar led by Tufte in a Battery Park hotel conference room. If you can take Tufte’s trainings, you should. They’re not about presenting, but his ideas are all utterly essential for all forms of effective communication. Buy everything Tufte has written, read everything he’s wrote, and do everything he says.
Today we’d say that Tufte’s curriculum is focused more on artifacts (documents) rather than ceremonies (meetings or presentations.) He’s curated hundreds of images, documents, and diagrams that tell a story of how to communicate well, and how not to do it badly. Many of his case studies are unforgettable even 20 years later. I use what I learned in that room almost every day.
Tufte did a brief section on public speaking in the session I attended. I’ll never forget his first and perhaps most memorable piece of advice:
Arrive early. Something good will happen.
It’s good advice given frequently by literally everyone. So let’s look one level deeper. Arriving early is important because it gives you time to conquer unforeseen obstacles, obviously. Less apparent is that your anxiety about being late affects your energy. This effect is visible long after your talk has begun.
There is no way to arrive too early for a presentation. When speaking at a conference, I like to get into the room at least the day before, sometimes two.
I know from experience that being late hurts my performance. And I know that the later I am, the worse off I’ll be. Here’s the surprising insight — the reverse is also true. The earlier I am, the better I do. And I’ve found there’s almost no limit to how early I want to be.
Don’t just scout the room, inhabit it. Occupy the place you’ll be presenting in for as long as you possibly can. In a corporate setting, I’ll book the room many days in advance, and spend chunks of time working in it as often as I can.
An unfamiliar room takes me out of my comfort zone. A room in which I’m comfortable does just the opposite. When the moment comes, I want to be the person who is most comfortable in the space we’re sharing. When the audience arrives, it’s because I’ve invited them to enter my room. I’m the host, they’re the guests.
As a host you are comfortable, calm and at peace in your place. You’ll also use all that extra time to do everything all the other checklists say — sort out the lights, the lectern, arrangement of the chairs, the wifi, the projector, etc.
In a keynote I gave a few years ago, the tech people for the venue didn’t show up until 15 minutes before start time. They weren’t able to get my laptop connected to the project properly, so I had to give the talk without seeing my presenter notes, which visibly showed, ugh. From then on I’ll insist on a technical check the day before, or early on the day of, at the latest.
And while I’m there, I’ll make sure to find out where the bathrooms are.
2️⃣ Silence, fool!
One of my favorite bits of stagecraft is another technique well-known to trained actors and performers.
When it’s time to start a presentation, say a few words like “Okay everybody, it’s time to get started.”
And then don’t.
Stand there silently. Look patiently around the room. Gather your breath, relax, and let your heart rate slow a bit.
As the seconds tick off, here’s what will happen. Half of the people will be looking at you curiously, eyes open and eyebrows raised, expectantly waiting for you to begin. They’re leaning forward because they’re feeling a growing sense of anticipation about what you’re going to say.
The other half of the people in the room? They were looking at their phones or laptops until about one second ago. They are now, in unison, realizing playtime is over and it’s time for school. The silence descends on them gradually, like a falling piano. It causes their phones to be swiftly deposited on the table, and laptop lids to close. Their attention is now directed at you.
It’s almost time to begin. The longer you wait, the more intense the focus and attention grows. At a certain point people will be leaning so far forward they are in danger of tipping over. Their focus is directed on you with laser-like intensity strong enough to remove unwanted hair.
Now draw your breath, and tell them why you’re here.
Silence is used to manipulate the energy and focus of your audience. A pause in the body of your presentation is perfect when you’ve been talking for a while and want to snap everybody back to attention.
Try saying something like this:
Next, I’m going to tell you single most important thing I know about this topic.
And then, once again, don’t.
Stand there and breathe. Wait a few moments. The emptiness will cause everyone to look up. Remote participants will hastily alt-tab back over from fantasy shopping on Zillow. The silence triggers a defense mechanism in the lizard brain which evolution put there in order to prevent our ancestors from getting caught fucking around while they’re supposed to be finding out.
A bit later I’ll repeat the obvious advice that you shouldn’t read out loud the text on your slides verbatim. However, a slide with just a few words on it can be an exception to this rule:
Say what you want them to hear, show what you want them to remember.
Here’s how that works in practice. Let’s say you have a slide with a list of things that you really want to sink in, like the agenda. It can be quite compelling to read them with pauses inserted for dramatic effect. Here’s an example:
Here’s how I might sound in the room on this slide:
3️⃣ Questions and Answers
Nothing is worse than the awkward, anxious quiet that fills the room as you’ve finished your presentation and say “Any questions?” People defer expectantly to one other. Mouths open and close silently like guppies. It’s a passive competition for the opportunity not to go first. Nobody says anything. Everybody loses a few seconds of their lives.
To the presenter, the first instant of this silence lasts an eternity. Seconds feel like hours. Time twists in on itself. The room begins to slowly rotate as your stomach drops into your shoes. Your parents text to remind you that you can always move back home.
This happens in every presentation, but nobody ever talks about it. Why? There’s a social taboo, I suppose, that holds us back from being the first to break the silence. Sometimes there’s a feeling that the privilege ought to go to the highest-status person in the room, even though the highest-status person would probably rather have the last word than the honor of going first.
Often the first to pipe up will be someone with “more of a comment than a question.” Whatever, bro! It doesn’t matter who goes first, as long as someone does. Once the ice is broken, so is the taboo. Now the Q&A can move forward.
Here are two more tips for smoothing out that transition from the talk to Q&A.
Have an accomplice prepared to ask a question as soon as it’s time. Drop by their desk with one of those macarons from the French place and the question you want them to ask. Pick one for which you have an outstanding answer, and you’ll get the Q&A off with a strong and solid stride.
Any time there is a silence waiting for questions, lean into it. Be patient. Put your most welcoming expression on your fine, fresh face, and count off a few seconds. Don’t interrupt your own Q&A with stammering or a non sequitur to end the quiet. It takes time for people to gather the courage to speak, longer if there are fancy people in the room. Eventually someone will say something. Let a slow ten count pass before declaring the meeting is over.
One last thing, and this may be a personal pet peeve. I try to avoid saying “Good question” or “Interesting question!” When I hear this from the mouth of a presenter, it rings to me a bit smug and self-congratulatory.
What it really means is “I have what I think is a really smart-sounding answer for this.” This sets some weird expectations for the answer you then give. Just say your answer, and let the people decide if it and the question were good or not.
4️⃣ The Fourth Wall
A performer on the stage is surrounded by four walls. There’s one behind them, backstage, and one to their left, and to their right. An performance is conducted as though an invisible “fourth wall” separates the performers from the audience.
The performance “breaks” the fourth wall if it acknowledges the existence of the audience, thereby breaking the illusion that the performance is happening in a fictional setting.
There’s no fourth wall in a business setting. You should speak directly to the audience. It’s nice to sometimes refer to them individually by name:
Monica, I know this is a topic you’ll be interested in.
Make eye contact, if it’s comfortable for you. It can be helpful, but it’s not mandatory. We haven’t had much eye contact during the pandemic but somehow we got along just fine. I had a client CEO who wore pitch black sunglasses to every meeting, and we managed to understand each other. If eye contact is problematic for you, don’t worry about. Neurotypicals make a big deal about it, but what else is new?
There is a different type of fourth wall to avoid, though, for business presentations. It’s inadvisable for a presenter to talk about their presentation or their own performance. It always feels weird when a presenter talks about their talk, their slides, their speech or speaking, or their presentation skills. It is awkward and embarrassing.
Here’s a few more suggestions about how to handle some of the little disasters that happen during a presentation:
Don’t say you wish you had more time to prepare. Every presenter ever wishes this. It sounds like an excuse. Make the most of what you have to work with.
If you had hoped to have content, facts, data, or anything else for your presentation, but didn’t get it in time, do not tell us about it. You can tell us what’s coming later, and tell us when. Then follow through. Competence is confidence.
If something goes wrong, just keep going. Don’t point it out or apologize. If you notice an error, make a mental note, but don’t acknowledge it to the audience. They’ll never know! Did the band in Tucson stop the show? No, and neither will you. Press forward, keep playing, keep going.
The next item is the most important one that I’ve learned in the last five years, and I only learned it a few months ago. It’s a new “must” rule for me in every important meeting.
5️⃣ Stand Up For Yourself
If you can, stand up when presenting. If you wouldn't give an in-room presentation sitting down, you should be standing up even when you present remotely.
An upright stance improves your posture, it exaggerates your presence, and helps your energy to show through the camera. This isn’t about your physical appearance. Standing is effective even on a voice call.
You will sound more engaged, awake, and alive when you're standing up. Your energy is somehow just greater. Try it! A colleague standing for any meeting gives the signal that they’re alert, active, and engaged.
If you’re not able to stand for a meeting, you’re still going to be a great presenter. All kinds of amazing people and spectacularly compelling presenters do it sitting down. These include my pals with chronic illness, disabilities, and wheelchair users. For those folks, put the energy into your message, and the audience will meet you where you are. I'd love to hear from you your tips on boosting your energy during a meeting.
Here are a couple of suggestions that should work for anyone. Consider changing your location for the meeting to one with better natural lighting, or a more interesting background -- even if it's in the same room.
The pictures below show me seated at my adjustable desk, which is about 33 inches tall. In the next image, I'm standing in my kitchen with my laptop on top of the coffee maker.
Your microwave oven is also about the right height, and perhaps more stable if you need to type during the meeting. Or, stack all 3 of Marty Cagan's books on a kitchen counter and use that.
Again, it’s really not about your personal appearance. You can plainly see that I look ridiculous in both images. In one the image is a little more appealing, and I seem a little better composed. Knowing that affects my performance from the inside.
6️⃣ Do Not Read Your Slides
There are few things worse than a presenter who has put every word they’re going to say on the slides, and then says those same words to you as you read them on the screen. It’s not a presentation if we’re reading the same words and one of us is saying them out loud. That’s called story time!
This is a difficult habit to break for people who learned to present in an academic setting. It might be that ensuring the information is complete was more important than the experience of the people in the room. Today our goal is to get our point across while providing the group with an experience they enjoy.
You’ve probably heard this:
People will forget what you say, but they’ll remember how you made them feel.
This is often attributed to Maya Angelou, but the story is a bit more complicated. If she did say it, I hope she was talking about something more meaningful than our Powerpoints.
There is certainly truth to the idea. We want the people in the room to have a good experience, which they’ll be more likely to remember. Even more important, though, is what you have to say. If your material is solid, the information relevant and compelling, and it’s delivered in a thoughtful way, people will enjoy it.
A presentation that fills the room with heady emotions can be a great experience, or a deeply disconcerting one. People mostly want to hear from someone who cares about what they’re talking about, and is organized, credible, and concise.
7️⃣ Presenter’s Notes
The “Presenter Notes” capability of Keynote and Powerpoint contains text that’s seen by you when presenting, but not by the audience. We’ve established that you’re not going to read your slides aloud. It’s very difficult to memorize a presentation of any meaningful length, so this is a crucial tool for helping you remember what to say.
I usually place in this field a few words or phrases to remind me of what I want to say on each slide. If you write your talk verbatim in the notes, you may feel better prepared. You also run the risk of sounding like you’re reading rather than talking, which can be tiresome for the audience.
If you’re new to presenting, I suggest you go ahead and write out your entire talk word for word in the notes fields. Practice giving the talk by reading from the notes as you advance the slides.
Most important: Revise and edit the notes as you iterate on the delivery. If you practice this way, editing the talk as you go, you’ll eventually automatically memorize the script.
Then you won’t need to read from the notes anymore. You can just use them as a reminder. Having every word written out in the notes is like having a parachute handy when you’re jumping out of a plane. Experienced presenters can glide effortlessly and safely home on their beautiful gossamer wings. For the rest of us, let’s use the cheat sheet.
If I see a presentation from someone who is obviously reading every word from their script, I’m a little disappointed but it’s not the end of the worlds. Someone reading their talk is not necessarily deficient in presentation skills. It’s probably someone who didn’t take enough time to rehearse.
8️⃣ Simple, Beautiful Slides
Good slides are simple. But simple is really hard.
Each slide should be about a single idea. If you find yourself making a slide with a list of four things, instead make 5 slides. One with a few words about what the list is about, and one for each item with a few words about it. The rest goes in the script.
For me, the ideal slide contains the following things:
An image, illustration, or diagram that illuminates the idea.
A concise typographic composition that summarize or reinforce the points made in the script for this page.
That's it! This is so much more easily said than done. It's actually much easier to make a single giant slide with a complicated diagram. It’s counter-intuitive that it should be harder to make something simpler, unless you have any experience making anything. As the saying goes, “I’d have written a shorter letter if I’d had more time.”1
A couple of more ideas about slide composition: It’s been many years since I saw a presentation with builds or animations that I felt improved it rather than made it worse. Lately I will make it in exception for embedded videos, which can be very effective if they’re 10-20 seconds long, but not longer.
Whatever image or diagram you’re using, consider either making it the full size of the slide (so that it bleeds to the edge of the screen) or making it small enough that it creates high visual contrast with the background (as in the Steve Jobs image above.) Our instinct is to make them mid-sized so we have room to write lots of words around them, but this is often the least impactful alternative.
9️⃣ Record Yourself
Lots of folks will suggest that you should record your presentation so you can play it back and critique it later. It’s good advice for a beginner to gain self awareness, but I have a couple of caveats to add.
I’m not convinced this is the greatest advice in the world. I’d much rather have feedback from someone I trust than listen to my inner critic tear down my latest performance. I don’t need to watch the video of my talk to find out what I think of my own performance. I hardly need reminding that I think I suck!
Don’t ask people how you did or if they liked your talk. They’ll say you did great, and that they loved it. Ask them this instead:
What could I do to improve the next time I give (this/another) presentation?
This signals that you’re open to receiving criticism. Ask this question of as many people as you can. If you hear something surprising more than once, that’s a clear sign of where you need to pay attention.
I also advise you to record audio rather than video of your talk. If you’re not accustomed to seeing yourself on video, it can be very distracting and prevent you from hearing what you’re supposed to. Also, your visual appearance during the talk only accounts for 15% of our impact (source: made it up) so this helps you keep your attention in the right place.
Finally, in addition to listening to the audio, run it through a transcription service and read through the text. Your speech patterns and verbal habits are much easier to detect in writing. This is an effectively (though quite painful, sorry!) way to confront your “ums” and “ahs.” You can eliminate these with practice if you focus on it.
🔟 Reading the Room
Experts often talk about the importance of a presenter being able to “read the room” — meaning that you should try to gauge the reaction of the people in the room as you go. They usually don’t tell you what you’re supposed to do with what you learn. Thanks a lot, advice people!
I think it’s a bit much to coach people who are new to presenting to try to make in-the-moment adjustments. The skill will come with time. For now, put that energy into the content of your presentation.
When you do get a bit more experience and you end up giving a talk in a theatre or auditorium, half the time you cannot see the audience anyway! That’s because of the stage lighting, because they’re seated far away, or because nobody showed up. Kidding! They always show up. Usually.
If you work with me on planet Earth, you may also have meetings via videoconferencing where people have their cameras turned off. Good luck reading them!
When you are in the room with people, take a moment to look around the room and get a read on the experience of your audience. One of the dramatic pauses I mentioned above is a great place to do that.
If you’re not able to inspect the faces of the viewers, depending on the setting and the audience, you might stop and ask out loud “How am I doing? Am I moving too fast or too slow for anybody?”
For me, sometimes a kind of tunnel vision can occur when I’m presenting. I can get fixated on my own slides or on presenter notes. Maybe I start making eye contact with one person and then lose track of the other people in the room. If you’re absent minded like me, or if eye contact does not come naturally to you, it might be helpful to put a reminder to yourself in the presenter notes to check in with the room.
Those are my ten best ideas for today, everybody. Please share with me your tips and, especially, any challenges or experiences you’ve had that we can learn from together.
Probably also apocryphal. :(