How to Answer the Question: “What Do You Do?”
By Penelope Trunk | July 21, 2011
So what do you do?
It’s the question that people are often asked. Some instinctively know how to answer it well. But most don’t. The fact is, the question is so open-ended that it’s almost like a trick question. Any answer is right, technically, but most answers are boring and so therefore, probably detrimental to your career.
The problem for most of us is that our lives are long and complicated, and it’s hard to know what’s most important.
Here are some tips:
1.Talk fast.
When someone says to you, “What do you do?” it’s an invitation to you to give your elevator pitch about you. And elevator pitch, it should be noted, is called that because you should be able to start and finish the answer to the question in the time it takes to ride in an elevator.
Entrepreneurs have to be ready at all times to catch someone in an elevator who can fund their company, and then pitch that person, on the spot, to convince them to hear more about the company later.
So the answer to the question should be only a few sentences. If they are good sentences, the person will ask for more info. If you can’t give a good answer in less than a minute, then you have no idea how to talk about yourself when someone wants to talk longer.
2. Convey self-respect.
It’s hard to cover up self-doubt when you feel it. But talking about yourself in a framework of self-doubt does not make you honest - it makes you boring. Because we all have self-doubt. It’s natural to have self-doubt. It’s an accomplishment to figure out how to work around it and still get things done. What it interesting about each of us is how to get around the self-doubt. Talk about that.
When I was married to my ex-husband, and people would ask me what he does, I’d say, “I don’t know.” I think my answer revealed the inevitable demise of our marriage. Because having an answer to the question is a sign of self-respect - for ones spouse or for oneself.
3. Know your audience.
There is no one, single, right way to describe “what you do.” The key is to tailor your answer to your audience. And the way to know which answer is best for which audience is knowing your list of possibilities. Then, you can choose your one-sentence summary from the list you have in your head. For example, if you paint at home and you are a sales person, your summary of your life includes painting AND sales if you’re interviewing for a sales position at an art company. But if you’re interviewing at a software company? Your summary does not include painting.
4. Leave out boring stuff.
When people ask you what do you do, they are really asking, “what is interesting about you?” So you don’t need to confess that you stay in bed until noon and then watch movies for five hours. Retail may be a great way to support yourself when you are trying to figure out what’s next. And moving back into your parents house is a smart, conservative step in a wacky economy. But you don’t need to tell people this stuff. It’s not going to reveal interesting things about you.
Talk about that one hour, toward the end of the day, when you finally motivate yourself to do something. What if your most interesting work occurs outside of your day job? That’s okay. You should talk about what excites you and what you’re passionate about, even if this is something you don’t get paid for. People are not asking about money when they “what do you do?” they are asking about passion.
5. Show off your expertise.
Trying lots of jobs on for size is a great way to figure out what you want to do next. In fact, dilletantism might be the best career change tool around. But it should be a path to specializing. Because ultimately, specialists are the people who are most successful in the work world.
So you might be tempted to tell people how you do a little bit of this and a little bit of that. Don’t. But instead, force yourself to talk about your career like you’re a specialist.
6. Hire a career coach to help you tell stories.
I think everyone needs a career counselor at some point in their life, and the reason is that they need help shaping their story. We should each make choices that feel right at a given time and not worry about our story, but then we should be great at crafting our story to make sense of our lives after the fact.
Most people have coherent stories, but they don’t see it. Their resumes are a mess and their elevator pitch is a bore. Hire a professional to help you make a story that makes sense for where you want to go.
And, in the end, the only way we get where we want to be is to tell ourselves stories of what we look like on that path. So if you want to chase your dreams, first chase that elusively enchanting elevator pitch.
MY THOUGHTS
That's something that's worth learning-the elevator pitch. What can be more concise than that? Brief. To the point. Hitting the right spot. At the right time. With nothing else but the most crucial of details.
Showing posts with label presentation tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label presentation tips. Show all posts
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
TELL A STORY WHEN GIVING A PRESENTATION
TELL A STORY WHEN GIVING A PRESENTATION
from the article 'Every Presentation Should Tell a Story'
By Geoffrey James | February 8, 2011
"According to the latest neuroscience, the normal, non-autistic, human brain organizes EVERYTHING into stories, because that’s how we understand the meaning and context of everything around us. Because of this, the best sales presentations ALWAYS tell a story.
But how do you do that? One way is to borrow some story telling from Hollywood and start each story with something interesting, introduce characters with whom the audience can relate, and then make sure you have a satisfying ending.
For sales presentations, that means following these three rules:
1. RULE #1: Starts with an “heart-stopper.” Every movie, TV show, or novel starts with something that captures your attention (i.e. captures your emotions) and holds your interest while you “get into” the story. Without a “heart stopper,” the audience’s mind will wander. Trust me.
2. RULE #2: Talk about the audience… not about you. The story connects emotions to the audience’s current situation so that that a decision becomes inevitable. You (or your firm) can play a “best supporting actor” role, but the main role is always the audience and what happens (or might happen) to them.
3. RULE #3: Ends with a “risk-remover” and a “close.” The risk-remover eliminates any remaining reluctance to make a decision. The “close” pushes the audience over the edge and essentially forces them to make the decision, right now."
"Needless to say, you’ll need to have plenty of data and reality behind the various points in the story. And, for this to work in a sales situation, you’d have to meet one-on-one with many of the participants to get your ducks in a row, as they say.
Even so, this is the kind of presentation that’s going to create emotion and persuade the audience to make a decision. And it’s certainly going to work better than the dull stuff that most people throw up on the screen."
MY THOUGHTS
If you've listened to a really excellent sales presentation then you know what this article is talking about. However, I don't think these presentation tips is for sales alone. It would do us good to follow these presentation tips no matter what kind of presentation we're giving. After all, every presentation is supposed to be selling something. If not an item, then the principles or the ideas and points you want your audience to buy into.
from the article 'Every Presentation Should Tell a Story'
By Geoffrey James | February 8, 2011
"According to the latest neuroscience, the normal, non-autistic, human brain organizes EVERYTHING into stories, because that’s how we understand the meaning and context of everything around us. Because of this, the best sales presentations ALWAYS tell a story.
But how do you do that? One way is to borrow some story telling from Hollywood and start each story with something interesting, introduce characters with whom the audience can relate, and then make sure you have a satisfying ending.
For sales presentations, that means following these three rules:
1. RULE #1: Starts with an “heart-stopper.” Every movie, TV show, or novel starts with something that captures your attention (i.e. captures your emotions) and holds your interest while you “get into” the story. Without a “heart stopper,” the audience’s mind will wander. Trust me.
2. RULE #2: Talk about the audience… not about you. The story connects emotions to the audience’s current situation so that that a decision becomes inevitable. You (or your firm) can play a “best supporting actor” role, but the main role is always the audience and what happens (or might happen) to them.
3. RULE #3: Ends with a “risk-remover” and a “close.” The risk-remover eliminates any remaining reluctance to make a decision. The “close” pushes the audience over the edge and essentially forces them to make the decision, right now."
"Needless to say, you’ll need to have plenty of data and reality behind the various points in the story. And, for this to work in a sales situation, you’d have to meet one-on-one with many of the participants to get your ducks in a row, as they say.
Even so, this is the kind of presentation that’s going to create emotion and persuade the audience to make a decision. And it’s certainly going to work better than the dull stuff that most people throw up on the screen."
MY THOUGHTS
If you've listened to a really excellent sales presentation then you know what this article is talking about. However, I don't think these presentation tips is for sales alone. It would do us good to follow these presentation tips no matter what kind of presentation we're giving. After all, every presentation is supposed to be selling something. If not an item, then the principles or the ideas and points you want your audience to buy into.
Monday, February 21, 2011
BEGIN YOUR SPEECH IN THE MIDDLE
Begin Your Speech in the Middle
By Sean Silverthorne | February 8, 2011
How many times have you sat down anxiously to hear a talk, only to be stultified with blah-blah-blah. “Thanks for coming. I’m honored to be here today. Thanks specifically to Dennis and his team for bringing me to Acme Anvil to talk about developing marketing strategies in a global world. First, let me tell you a little bit about myself.”
The audience is already reaching for its collective Blackberries.
That’s why speech expert Nick Morgan advises executives to begin their speech in the middle. Here’s a great opener.
“Many people watching tonight can probably remember a time when finding a good job meant showing up at a nearby factory or a business downtown … That world has changed … The rules have changed. In a single generation, revolutions in technology have transformed the way we live, work and do business. Steel mills that once needed 1,000 workers can now do the same work with 100. Today, just about any company can set up shop, hire workers, and sell their products wherever there’s an Internet connection.”
Unfortunately for President Obama, who delivered those words at the State of the Union last month, they didn’t open the speech. They came after minutes of greetings to people in the audience and platitudes about democracy and jobs. He should have started his speech in the middle.
How can you tell what needs to be cut? Morgan advises:
“You can tell when rhetoric is empty — and therefore should be cut — because it would never be possible to say the alternative. Could a president begin by insulting the Speaker, ‘dissing’ a tragically ailing representative, trashing the democratic process, or coming out against jobs? Of course not. Therefore, nothing is being said. Speeches are much more interesting for the audience when they dispense with the polite nothings and get right to the meat.”
For more valuable advice, read his HBR.org blog post, How CEOs Can Improve Speeches.
I agree completely with Nick. If you want to capture the audience from the starting line, don’t begin with the obvious, the expected, the empty words. My BNET colleague Geoffrey James, who writes the terrific Sales Machine blog, takes up this theme as well. He says sales presentations should start with a “heart stopper,” such as telling a company they’ve just lost $100 million, and here is what can be done about it.
How do you begin your speeches? Do you futz around or get down to business?
MY THOUGHTS
the message is clear - if you're going to deliver a presentation or a speech, strive to be unique. start with a bang that makes your audience sitting on the edge of their seats. and wanting to hear more. tall order but possible. do away with the welcome remarks. jump right in to what people came for.
By Sean Silverthorne | February 8, 2011
How many times have you sat down anxiously to hear a talk, only to be stultified with blah-blah-blah. “Thanks for coming. I’m honored to be here today. Thanks specifically to Dennis and his team for bringing me to Acme Anvil to talk about developing marketing strategies in a global world. First, let me tell you a little bit about myself.”
The audience is already reaching for its collective Blackberries.
That’s why speech expert Nick Morgan advises executives to begin their speech in the middle. Here’s a great opener.
“Many people watching tonight can probably remember a time when finding a good job meant showing up at a nearby factory or a business downtown … That world has changed … The rules have changed. In a single generation, revolutions in technology have transformed the way we live, work and do business. Steel mills that once needed 1,000 workers can now do the same work with 100. Today, just about any company can set up shop, hire workers, and sell their products wherever there’s an Internet connection.”
Unfortunately for President Obama, who delivered those words at the State of the Union last month, they didn’t open the speech. They came after minutes of greetings to people in the audience and platitudes about democracy and jobs. He should have started his speech in the middle.
How can you tell what needs to be cut? Morgan advises:
“You can tell when rhetoric is empty — and therefore should be cut — because it would never be possible to say the alternative. Could a president begin by insulting the Speaker, ‘dissing’ a tragically ailing representative, trashing the democratic process, or coming out against jobs? Of course not. Therefore, nothing is being said. Speeches are much more interesting for the audience when they dispense with the polite nothings and get right to the meat.”
For more valuable advice, read his HBR.org blog post, How CEOs Can Improve Speeches.
I agree completely with Nick. If you want to capture the audience from the starting line, don’t begin with the obvious, the expected, the empty words. My BNET colleague Geoffrey James, who writes the terrific Sales Machine blog, takes up this theme as well. He says sales presentations should start with a “heart stopper,” such as telling a company they’ve just lost $100 million, and here is what can be done about it.
How do you begin your speeches? Do you futz around or get down to business?
MY THOUGHTS
the message is clear - if you're going to deliver a presentation or a speech, strive to be unique. start with a bang that makes your audience sitting on the edge of their seats. and wanting to hear more. tall order but possible. do away with the welcome remarks. jump right in to what people came for.
Friday, February 11, 2011
HOW TO FIX LONG PRESENTATIONS
HOW TO FIX TOO LONG PRESENTATIONS
from the articleTop 20 Reasons Presentations Suck and How To Fix Them
By Geoffrey James
www.bnet.com
Most business presentations suck. They're boring. They're confusing. They're out of touch. This gallery explains exactly why most presentations are so dreadful, and what to do make your own presentations better.
Too Freakin' Long
* Diagnosis: It presents way more than anybody wants to know.
* Why It Happens: The speaker is “spraying and praying” in hope that something works.
* What Results: Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…
* How to Fix It: Always make your presentation less than half as long as you think it should be.
MY THOUGHTS
in other words, don't get carried away.know how much time you have for the presentation. if the presentation is short simply tell the audience the "must-know". if you have more time, include the "should-know". if there are no other speakers and you have all the time, then you can share the "nice-to-know". whatever you've prepared,long or short, be very sensitive to your audience. when you see them getting restless or already snoring,it's time to change gears or put a break.
from the articleTop 20 Reasons Presentations Suck and How To Fix Them
By Geoffrey James
www.bnet.com
Most business presentations suck. They're boring. They're confusing. They're out of touch. This gallery explains exactly why most presentations are so dreadful, and what to do make your own presentations better.
Too Freakin' Long
* Diagnosis: It presents way more than anybody wants to know.
* Why It Happens: The speaker is “spraying and praying” in hope that something works.
* What Results: Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…
* How to Fix It: Always make your presentation less than half as long as you think it should be.
MY THOUGHTS
in other words, don't get carried away.know how much time you have for the presentation. if the presentation is short simply tell the audience the "must-know". if you have more time, include the "should-know". if there are no other speakers and you have all the time, then you can share the "nice-to-know". whatever you've prepared,long or short, be very sensitive to your audience. when you see them getting restless or already snoring,it's time to change gears or put a break.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Presentation Remote for Keynote, PowerPoint
Kensington Debuts Presentation Remote for Keynote, PowerPoint
* By Dan Thompson
* 01/10/11
Kensington has unveiled a new wireless presentation remote that controls both PowerPoint and Keynote presentations from distances up to 150 feet. In addition to the remote, Kensington has also rolled out multiple iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch accessories, including a 20-hour battery pack.
The presentation remote, dubbed the Presenter Pro Remote, controls presentations via a wireless link to a USB drive. With the USB drive plugged into a laptop, the remote has the ability TO move the presentation slides forward and backward or turn the screen blank.
The USB plug includes a 2 GB Micro SD card and supports a maximum memory capacity of 32 GB. When not plugged into a laptop, the USB drive can be stored in the handle of the remote.
Other features include a green laser pointer that is up to 10 times brighter than a traditional red laser pointer and an ergonomic design.
The iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch accessories include the PowerLift back-up battery and dock, the BlackBelt protection band, the Virtuoso touch screen stylus and pen, and a dual USB wall charger.
The dual USB wall charger can charge up to two devices. It features detachable USB cables that offer the ability to connect an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to a computer.
With the help of a 12 mAh battery, the Power Lift back-up battery and dock charges the iPhone in hand or hands-free. The device adds power for up to 20 hours of music or five hours of video and offers an LED that indicates battery strength.
The BlackBelt protection band is a rubberized band the raps around the iPod and leaves access to all ports, while the Virtuoso touch screen stylus and pen is a combination stylus and pen that was designed to be used with applications similar to iAnnotate and SketchBook. The Virtuoso ships in black or gunmetal.
Expected to ship March 1, The Presenter Pro Remote will be available for $99.99. Kensington will cover the device with a limited five-year warranty.
The BlackBelt, PowerLift, Virtuoso, and dual USB wall charger are currently available for pre-order from Kensington. They will ship for $39.99, $49.99, $24.99, and $34.99, respectively.
MY THOUGHTS
this is good news to anyone who delivers presentation. i, for one, prefer to have the freedom to move around during a session. instead of getting fixed somewhere near the laptop to navigate the slides. i've seen some people having assistants to do that for them. but i'm more comfortable controlling the slides myself. timing is important. and no matter how you practice for a presentation, you decide on timing during the presentation itself. i love fluid presentations. and being able to control my slides from anywhere up to 150 feet is certainly a welcome improvement.
* By Dan Thompson
* 01/10/11
Kensington has unveiled a new wireless presentation remote that controls both PowerPoint and Keynote presentations from distances up to 150 feet. In addition to the remote, Kensington has also rolled out multiple iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch accessories, including a 20-hour battery pack.
The presentation remote, dubbed the Presenter Pro Remote, controls presentations via a wireless link to a USB drive. With the USB drive plugged into a laptop, the remote has the ability TO move the presentation slides forward and backward or turn the screen blank.
The USB plug includes a 2 GB Micro SD card and supports a maximum memory capacity of 32 GB. When not plugged into a laptop, the USB drive can be stored in the handle of the remote.
Other features include a green laser pointer that is up to 10 times brighter than a traditional red laser pointer and an ergonomic design.
The iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch accessories include the PowerLift back-up battery and dock, the BlackBelt protection band, the Virtuoso touch screen stylus and pen, and a dual USB wall charger.
The dual USB wall charger can charge up to two devices. It features detachable USB cables that offer the ability to connect an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to a computer.
With the help of a 12 mAh battery, the Power Lift back-up battery and dock charges the iPhone in hand or hands-free. The device adds power for up to 20 hours of music or five hours of video and offers an LED that indicates battery strength.
The BlackBelt protection band is a rubberized band the raps around the iPod and leaves access to all ports, while the Virtuoso touch screen stylus and pen is a combination stylus and pen that was designed to be used with applications similar to iAnnotate and SketchBook. The Virtuoso ships in black or gunmetal.
Expected to ship March 1, The Presenter Pro Remote will be available for $99.99. Kensington will cover the device with a limited five-year warranty.
The BlackBelt, PowerLift, Virtuoso, and dual USB wall charger are currently available for pre-order from Kensington. They will ship for $39.99, $49.99, $24.99, and $34.99, respectively.
MY THOUGHTS
this is good news to anyone who delivers presentation. i, for one, prefer to have the freedom to move around during a session. instead of getting fixed somewhere near the laptop to navigate the slides. i've seen some people having assistants to do that for them. but i'm more comfortable controlling the slides myself. timing is important. and no matter how you practice for a presentation, you decide on timing during the presentation itself. i love fluid presentations. and being able to control my slides from anywhere up to 150 feet is certainly a welcome improvement.
Friday, March 5, 2010
19 things you should never do in a powerpoint presentation
And Now, a Powerpoint Presentation, Redux
Category: Academia
Posted on: August 17, 2009 1:05 AM, by Scicurious
Sci was at a conference last week. It was a REALLY good time. As Sci advances in grad school, I feel I am beginning to come into my own, and it's a good feeling, esp when you can walk around feeling like you have a posse of fellow grad students and post-docs who all want to collaborate.
It's an exciting time, learning the latest stuff, seeing the newest methods, and meeting famous people. It's the craziest thing running into some of these professors. I've read all of their papers, I desperately try to meet all their grad students and postdocs, and my only goal is to see the famous person and say something GENIUS, something that will make them remember me and think that I've got promise. And then I meet them, and I say...I say...oh CRAP. Once in a while, though, the genius does come out, and then I feel that verily, Sci has BLINDED YOU WITH SCIENCE this day.
Last year at a similar conference, I ended up compiling a list of things that one should REALLY try to avoid if at all possible when giving a conference talk. There are more to add, every single time. Behold, the bad, the ugly, and the presentations guaranteed to give your eager listeners a headache:
The 19 things (and counting) you should NEVER do in a powerpoint presentation.
1) Do NOT spend your entire presentation with your back to the audience (I cannot tell you how many times Sci see this, presenters spending the entire time staring up at their powerpoints, gesturing vaguely with their arms).
2) Never use pale green on a white background to emphasize a point, unless you want to emphasize our eyestrain. Similar for neon yellow with pink. YIKES.
3) There is no reason to give a "I will talk about intro, methods, data, and conclusions" outline when you talk will be 20 minutes or less.
4) Make sure you can pronounce brain areas better than our recent president. It is not pronounced "nuke-ulus accumbens" (AUGH, REPEAT OFFENDERS!!!)
5) You have a WHOLE SCREEN! All to yourself, you lucky guy! Use it! Do not make your graph a tiny square in the middle that no one can see from the third row back.
6) If you don't know what to do with your hands, do NOT use then to wave your laser pointer at the screen all the time. You end up with the dreadful, circling laser pointer, like a buzzard over your data. It's one thing to circle the data your talking about, and that's good. It's quite another to have it circling your entire slide, slowly, over and over and over. Use when you need to, and the rest of the time, PUT IT DOWN. BACK AWAY SLOWLY.
7) There is NEVER an excuse for a semicolon in a powerpoint; Ever.
8) If you must use a screen capture, have the grace to crop the image so that we don't have to see the remnants of your Google toolbar.
9) Check your powerpoint for misspellings before you talk in front of several hundred people. If you screwed up it might be "extreem".
10) Try not to leave your mouse arrow hanging out in the middle of the screen for 3/4 of your talk.
11) Avoid the happy trigger finger for your slide advancer. Damn! You just gave away that really cool graphic on the next slide! For the fourth time.
12) DO NOT write it down, read it aloud, and follow it with your pointer. Honestly, at this point you might as well not be there at all.
13) If your hand is shaking, don't try to hold the pointer still over your slide, we're all going to see it and realize how incredibly freaked out you are. Or, being neuroscientists, we will try to diagnose you will Parkinson's.
14) I realize that you might have a monotone voice in your normal daily life, but TRY to vary it up when you give a presentation. We're exhausted, and all the caffeine in the world is not going to make us alert when you sound like the teacher from 'Peanuts.'
15) There are things called 'crutch-words'. You should...um...know what your...um...crutch...um...words are...um...they can be really...um...distracting.
16) There is such a thing as too much animation. Just because *flash* your powerpoint *fly in* can do it *underline* doesn't mean *wave like a flag* that it SHOULD *spin*. Also, if you have animations, know where they are so they don't catch you by surprise and make it obvious to everyone that you're giving a talk that was actually written by your post-doc.
17) I realize that big bad famous profs give a lot of presentations, but please have the courtesy to prep a little. I'm saying, if the presentation is 20 minutes, give a 20 minute talk, not a 40 minute talk that you won't make it through and have to skip through the last 20 slides worth of data. We will either assume that, despite your experience, you can't manage your time, or (more likely) that this is your "stock" talk, that you give all the time, and you (or your post-doc) couldn't be bothered to put something new together. It's not THAT hard. And here's a hint: you know it's going to be too long when you start giving your outline and you're already 10 minutes in.
18) Even if you did it at the last minute, KNOW your SLIDES. I actually heard a "hey, how did THAT get in here..."
19) And never, never, please never, begin or end your talk with a variation on "it's my first talk, and I'm totally nervous". *eyeroll*. In the best case scenario, we should not be able to TELL it was your first talk. We should assume you've got lots of experience. Being told that you don't know what you're doing doesn't inspire a lot of confidence. Statements like that don't earn you sympathy.
MY THOUGHTS!
Guilty! Guilty!Guilty! These are really valuable tips. As we gain experience in presentations and public speaking, we become confident and sometimes fail to take note of the little details that are actually not "little" to some audiences. So, pay attention. What have we got to lose?
Category: Academia
Posted on: August 17, 2009 1:05 AM, by Scicurious
Sci was at a conference last week. It was a REALLY good time. As Sci advances in grad school, I feel I am beginning to come into my own, and it's a good feeling, esp when you can walk around feeling like you have a posse of fellow grad students and post-docs who all want to collaborate.
It's an exciting time, learning the latest stuff, seeing the newest methods, and meeting famous people. It's the craziest thing running into some of these professors. I've read all of their papers, I desperately try to meet all their grad students and postdocs, and my only goal is to see the famous person and say something GENIUS, something that will make them remember me and think that I've got promise. And then I meet them, and I say...I say...oh CRAP. Once in a while, though, the genius does come out, and then I feel that verily, Sci has BLINDED YOU WITH SCIENCE this day.
Last year at a similar conference, I ended up compiling a list of things that one should REALLY try to avoid if at all possible when giving a conference talk. There are more to add, every single time. Behold, the bad, the ugly, and the presentations guaranteed to give your eager listeners a headache:
The 19 things (and counting) you should NEVER do in a powerpoint presentation.
1) Do NOT spend your entire presentation with your back to the audience (I cannot tell you how many times Sci see this, presenters spending the entire time staring up at their powerpoints, gesturing vaguely with their arms).
2) Never use pale green on a white background to emphasize a point, unless you want to emphasize our eyestrain. Similar for neon yellow with pink. YIKES.
3) There is no reason to give a "I will talk about intro, methods, data, and conclusions" outline when you talk will be 20 minutes or less.
4) Make sure you can pronounce brain areas better than our recent president. It is not pronounced "nuke-ulus accumbens" (AUGH, REPEAT OFFENDERS!!!)
5) You have a WHOLE SCREEN! All to yourself, you lucky guy! Use it! Do not make your graph a tiny square in the middle that no one can see from the third row back.
6) If you don't know what to do with your hands, do NOT use then to wave your laser pointer at the screen all the time. You end up with the dreadful, circling laser pointer, like a buzzard over your data. It's one thing to circle the data your talking about, and that's good. It's quite another to have it circling your entire slide, slowly, over and over and over. Use when you need to, and the rest of the time, PUT IT DOWN. BACK AWAY SLOWLY.
7) There is NEVER an excuse for a semicolon in a powerpoint; Ever.
8) If you must use a screen capture, have the grace to crop the image so that we don't have to see the remnants of your Google toolbar.
9) Check your powerpoint for misspellings before you talk in front of several hundred people. If you screwed up it might be "extreem".
10) Try not to leave your mouse arrow hanging out in the middle of the screen for 3/4 of your talk.
11) Avoid the happy trigger finger for your slide advancer. Damn! You just gave away that really cool graphic on the next slide! For the fourth time.
12) DO NOT write it down, read it aloud, and follow it with your pointer. Honestly, at this point you might as well not be there at all.
13) If your hand is shaking, don't try to hold the pointer still over your slide, we're all going to see it and realize how incredibly freaked out you are. Or, being neuroscientists, we will try to diagnose you will Parkinson's.
14) I realize that you might have a monotone voice in your normal daily life, but TRY to vary it up when you give a presentation. We're exhausted, and all the caffeine in the world is not going to make us alert when you sound like the teacher from 'Peanuts.'
15) There are things called 'crutch-words'. You should...um...know what your...um...crutch...um...words are...um...they can be really...um...distracting.
16) There is such a thing as too much animation. Just because *flash* your powerpoint *fly in* can do it *underline* doesn't mean *wave like a flag* that it SHOULD *spin*. Also, if you have animations, know where they are so they don't catch you by surprise and make it obvious to everyone that you're giving a talk that was actually written by your post-doc.
17) I realize that big bad famous profs give a lot of presentations, but please have the courtesy to prep a little. I'm saying, if the presentation is 20 minutes, give a 20 minute talk, not a 40 minute talk that you won't make it through and have to skip through the last 20 slides worth of data. We will either assume that, despite your experience, you can't manage your time, or (more likely) that this is your "stock" talk, that you give all the time, and you (or your post-doc) couldn't be bothered to put something new together. It's not THAT hard. And here's a hint: you know it's going to be too long when you start giving your outline and you're already 10 minutes in.
18) Even if you did it at the last minute, KNOW your SLIDES. I actually heard a "hey, how did THAT get in here..."
19) And never, never, please never, begin or end your talk with a variation on "it's my first talk, and I'm totally nervous". *eyeroll*. In the best case scenario, we should not be able to TELL it was your first talk. We should assume you've got lots of experience. Being told that you don't know what you're doing doesn't inspire a lot of confidence. Statements like that don't earn you sympathy.
MY THOUGHTS!
Guilty! Guilty!Guilty! These are really valuable tips. As we gain experience in presentations and public speaking, we become confident and sometimes fail to take note of the little details that are actually not "little" to some audiences. So, pay attention. What have we got to lose?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)