Five Presentation Hacks For The Young Professionals
Being a modern working 20 something year old can get a bit tricky, trying to balance how to be passionate but still ‘color within the lines’ of corporate or any working space, in essence learning discipline and working with systems can be a challenge, especially if you’re creative like me. My mind moves from one thing to the next very quickly and I consider it both a blessing and a disadvantage, because as much as I am able to grasp things quickly, I sometimes move on from things a bit too quickly as well. This is something that can result in the small finer details being missed and therefore, negatively affect the quality of my work. Among other things, I have had to learn to slow down a bit, especially in how I communicate all my brilliant ideas. Here are a few tricks that I’ve picked up:
1. Speaking slower than I usually would: Every now and then I consciously have to remind myself to slow down, so I slot in a few breaths and deliberate pause. This helps me ensure that I am clearly getting my point across without losing my audience.
2. Interrupt the interruptor: I’ve recently learned to always take ownership of the meeting and the room when presenting by being clear about my objectives and what I hope to achieve in the session and how I will be conducting it. By leading the conversation I can guide my audience on when to give feedback, politely asking them to wait until you’re done and to note down any questions as they come through so as to allow for you to finish your thought.
3. Explain the bigger picture: Anyone can sell the idea, but it’s how you present it that makes it stand out. Make your audience understand where it is you’re taking them, what is the end goal, and then get down to the details of how and why. This will require you to understand your audience/client and understand the things they care about the most, helping you best capture them.
4. Make statements, not questions: Be bold, and confident in your presentation. Use words such as, in my opinion and from previous experience, or research and analyzing etc. This will show that you know what you are talking about and therefore land the idea.
5. Use storytelling: Paint your audience a picture, tell them a story, use real life examp-les and experiences to bring the vision to life as you talk them through everything. Using references and compelling imagery can also be a great way to do this.
These are not steps that I can say that I have mastered yet, but I can definitely say I have seen a difference in my delivery of ideas and presentation since I have started implementing some of these hacks.