Nancy Ancowitz
Author
Nonverbal Cues
You can say volumes before you even utter a single word. The way you look at your audience, gesture, stand, and move conveys so much when delivering your message. Take note of these tips that will turn a so-so presentation into a powerhouse one.
Make eye contact. Look at one audience member at a time for several seconds, and square up your shoulders with hers when you do. Focus on these physical aspects of your presentation, rather than on what people are thinking of you.
Use hand gestures to emphasize your points. Make open gestures, keeping your hands away from your body, above your waist level, and out. If you’re nervous, touch your middle finger to thumb to ground those shaky hands.
Move with purpose. It can be distracting when speakers pace around the stage or shift their weight from foot to foot. It’s much more effective to move in sync with your words—and walk only when you have a reason to do so.
Stand with a strong stance. Walk with your head up and spine well aligned. Elongate your spine by thinking of your head as a helium balloon floating up toward the ceiling.
Presentation Pointers
September 2010
Remember, everybody gets nervous before a presentation, even strong speakers. But with some methodical planning and practice you can conquer your fears and win over any room. Nancy Ancowitz’s strategies will guide you along the way.
Create Engaging Content
Evaluate your audience
What brings them to your presentation? What is the demographic? Is it a small group of acquaintances or a stadium of strangers? What’s their mood likely to be? The more you know, the better you can fine-tune your message so it’s relevant and interesting for them.
Keep it clear and concise.
If you’re not clear about your single key message, your audience certainly won’t be. Review all the points you want to make and distill them down into something memorable. Keep refining your thoughts until you’ve developed a succinct, yet compelling presentation.
Design a precise PowerPoint.
Audiences should look to your PowerPoint for a few cool, useful nuggets and some stimulating visuals, not slide after slide of monotonous details and extraneous fonts and colors.
Streamline Your Notes
Use large text.
Use a 36-point font size, double space, and include wide margins to make it easy to keep your place.
Include the key points.
It’s best to write summary points rather than every word you’re going to say. Few people are adept at holding an audience’s attention while hunched over note cards reading a speech verbatim.
Write in cues.
Include stage directions such as, “Go to pie chart,” on your cards. To ensure you cover all of your points in time, write cues (i.e.: 9:15, first main argument; 9:30 second argument) to keep you on track. You may also want a note to breathe!
Use color highlighters.
Doing so will remind you to emphasize your main points. In case you get flustered you can easily regroup by returning to a colored key word.
Practice, Practice, Practice!
Videotape yourself.
Take note of how you look when you’re “on”. Pay close attention to facial expressions, gestures and other movements and pinpoint what you need to work on. Ask a trusted mentor or coach to watch it and offer constructive advice.
Avoid a wardrobe disaster.
Change into everything you’ll wear at your presentation, from head to toe and rehearse. Make sure your suit doesn’t limit the mobility of your hand gestures, or your shirt won’t need to be constantly tucked in.
Have a technical rehearsal.
Practice with all of the audiovisual aspects in the venue where you’ll present. If this isn’t possible, at least visit the venue prior to your presentation to check out the layout, the acoustics, the technical capabilities, etc.
Know when enough is enough.
You may want to rehearse excessively, but too much can actually detract from your final performance. Get to know what level of rehearsal enables you to present at your best.
Get Grounded Beforehand
Imagine a moment you felt your strongest.
Hold on to that feeling and visualize the most positive outcome of your presentation. Focus on your unique strengths and your favorite affirmations before you go on.
Breathe deeply a few times.
We often forget, especially when we’re nervous, to simply breathe. If your breath is shallow and scared, your voice may sound strange.
Start slow.
Don’t begin your speech before you reach the podium. Walk across the stage, put your notes in place, collect yourself, look around at the audience, and breathe.
Adapted from Self-Promotion for Introverts: The Quiet Guide to Getting Ahead, Copyright 2010 by Nancy Ancowitz, McGraw-Hill Brand, www.amazon.com.