Author: Gail Zack Anderson

As speakers we always want to come across as confident, knowledgeable, and well…powerful. But as we all know, too much of a good thing can be a problem. I think absolute power in speaking can be very intimidating. If we intimidate, we don’t influence people to do anything except fear us. On the other hand, too much warmth or niceness can project weakness. The audience may like us but not respect us enough to take action on our suggestions.

So what is just right? I think an appropriate balance of power and warmth can be our most successful combination. We want to be strong enough to command attention, but open enough to connect and inspire our audiences. Here are some ways you can find your power, and express it in a warm, connected way.

Breathe to release tension and to relax your voice. This is one place your stress or nerves could show up, so do all you can to relax into your voice. Open your chest, stand tall, open your mouth wide when you speak, and keep breathing.

Plant your feet in a wider, stronger stance. Train yourself to not cross your feet. Plant them firmly wherever you are in the room. Stand still much of the time, and move only from point A to point B, rather than pacing or wandering around. Use a powerful stance to feel strong from the inside out.

Keep your hands out in front, and use a few large gestures rather than lots of small ones. Get your elbows away from your waist when you gesture. Use a neutral position such as a relaxed steeple whenever you are not gesturing. But don’t gesture all the time; cultivate some powerful “quiet” or neutral body language as well.

Slow down your eye contact slightly. Be deliberate and calm as you send your energy outward to each member of your audience. If you are ever uncomfortable looking right into their eyes, be sure to look at their faces, specifically at their eyebrows. And don’t rush from one person to the next or you can look anxious.

Beef up your content by using solid structure. What is your message? Distill it into a crisp targeted message. What three questions or statements will capture and direct your attention to this message? What will be your memorable close and tie together with your message? Hone and refine these until you could say them in your sleep. Then create just a few slides or use flip charts for a “chalk talk” to drive that message home. Keep slides and visuals simple so that the focus remains on your message and the conversation around it.

Finding the right balance between power and warmth is not easy. You might need to experiment, get some feedback, read some blogs and books on speaking, or even hire a coach to help you figure it out. But when you think about all that is at stake; your great idea, the sale, the promotion, the respect of your audience, it seems well worth the price. In order to be a successful speaker you will need to find the right balance of warmth and power.

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I would love to hear from you. How do you balance power and warmth in speaking?

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

Web site: www.applauseinc.net

Blog: www.managementhelp.org/blogs

twitter: @ApplauseInc

You are in the middle of a client meeting, presenting information that your client has asked for. As you progress through the material, she periodically stops you to ask for clarification or more details. You respond and move on to the next point. It’s going pretty well. Then, suddenly you notice the time. Yikes! It looks like you are about to run out of time. Quick: what do you do?

If you have a little time left:

• Summarize a few of the less-pertinent items, saving time and helping you get back on track.
• Take a quick time out to let the client know what is happening. Ask if she is willing to run over by a few minutes, or if not, how to proceed.

If you are completely out of time:

Don’t just keep going. Note the situation and ask your client what she would like to do. Offer options such as these:

1. Is there some information that can be skipped over?
2. Is there some information that can be reviewed after the presentation?
3. Could we schedule a follow up meeting, or perhaps a phone meeting to cover the last few items?

Next time:

• Be sure you have scheduled a reasonable amount of time for the content. If not, let the client know what to expect and tailor your content accordingly. For example, you may need to limit the number of topics discussed, or the level of detail, or both.
• During the planning stage, estimate how much time each segment will take. Be realistic; we so often think we can do more than we really can. Build in a little wiggle room for questions.
• Put important items up front so you are sure to get to them. Think about which items will be most important to your client.
• Prepare detailed documents that can be left behind if needed; this will be really useful with clients who want to see all the details.
• Decide ahead of time what items can be ditched if needed. These are often “nice to know” items that can be included in leave-behind materials or in another meeting. Since you already know which ones might have to be discarded, it shouldn’t distract you too much to do so.
• Check time throughout your presentation so you know if you are on track. If you have the habit of checking in at the midway point and then again at about 75% of your time frame, you should be able to finish right on time.

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They say timing is everything. By planning ahead and staying alert, you should be able to stick within your time frame, projecting a highly professional image to your clients.

I would love to hear from you. How do you manage your time in informal or formal situations?

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

Web site: www.applauseinc.net

Blog: www.managementhelp.org/blogs

twitter: @ApplauseInc

Maybe you have always dreaded public speaking. Maybe you have convinced yourself you are no good at it, and never will be. Maybe you have resigned yourself to suffering through a series of painful speaking experiences.

Let’s stop right there. Because it doesn’t have to be that way. You can get better, maybe much better. And you can eliminate a lot of the pain. Stop feeling bad about it and start today to build skills and confidence for once and for all. How? Read on.

1. Stop the self-talk. Listen to that tiny (but oh-so-powerful) voice inside your head. It says things like “I am no good at public speaking. I know I am going to be nervous. I will probably blow it.” Refuse to listen. Talk back. Substitute thoughts like these: “This is going to be great. I have good information to share. I am well prepared and everything is going to be just fine.” It sounds too simple to be helpful, yet it is. The only way to know is to listen for that voice and then replace it with more powerful messages.

2. Learn from observation. Watch for mistakes others make, and resolve not to make the same ones. If you see a speaker turn away from the audience and talk to the slides, resolve not to do that yourself. Likewise, if you hear a speaker connect warmly with the audience, or use a good metaphor, or gesture effectively, see if you can incorporate those techniques in your own presentations. If you have never seen a TED talk, go to TED.com and watch a few presentations. I am sure you will come away inspired and armed with new ideas.

3. Be willing to try. If you do the same-old-same-old, you won’t grow. Nor will you stand out in a crowd. If all the slides in your organization are content-heavy and bullet-laden, dare to be the person who streamlines the visuals, cuts through the clutter, and speaks more compellingly as a result. If your voice has always been soft, be brave and speak up. If you learn a new skill, use it. Try it. Otherwise you’ll never know how good you could be.

4. Get with a group. You might take a class with others who want to build their skills. Or join Toastmasters for skills and support. You might find 2-3 individuals who are interested in building the same skills. If you can learn with a group, you will have an automatic audience, a cheering section, and a wealth of good ideas you can all share. Maybe each time you meet you share articles, blogs or books you have read, and teach them to each other. There truly is strength in numbers.

5. Hire a coach. If you have tried repeatedly to improve your skills and confidence but don’t feel you are making much progress, a coach may help you jump to the next level. A professional coach has a wealth of ideas and experience, and should help you select exactly which skills, tools and techniques will make the most difference for you. An experienced coach will help you continue to move forward, through and past the discomfort of learning. A good coach will push you gently, encourage you, and celebrate with you.

Remember the old adage, insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different result. All that gets you is a self-defeating downward spiral. Don’t go there. Do better. I know you can. And please, let me know what works for you along the way to great public speaking.

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

Web site: www.applauseinc.net

Blog: www.managementhelp.org/blogs

twitter: @ApplauseInc

How are your presentations looking these days? Even the informal, across the table presentations can have an impact on how you are perceived and how well you are able to influence others. Here is a brush-up you can use to be sure your presentations are “in the pink.” Check to be sure you and your presentations are:

Presentable. How do you look? I recently presented to a potential client wearing a jacket that rode up in back and gapped in the front. Thank goodness I had worn a layer under the jacket, but even so, I was distracted and probably not all that presentable. Always wear clothes that fit and hang well, don’t wrinkle or gap, and are clean. Take time to check your teeth and hair in the mirror before you speak. And then forget about how you look or are coming across. Focus on the audience and your message.

Present. One of the biggest challenges we have in public speaking, formal or informal, is staying in the present moment. When we let our minds wander, we often lose our train of thought and end up with “ums” and “ahs” and a very unsettling feeling. We often allow distracting thoughts or worry that something is going to go wrong, or that the audience won’t like us, or that they aren’t reacting the way we expected. Any extraneous thoughts pull you out of the moment, and you lose focus and then your communication suffers. Stay focused, stay present.

Peer tested. Sometimes we get so attached to our subject matter that we have blind spots. We lose objectivity. When that happens we need a second set of eyes on our presentations. What do peers think about your premise, your conclusions, your call to action? What about your slides? Do they shed light, add meaning, or just muddy the water? How about anticipating questions? Ask a colleague to help you anticipate objections and questions ahead of time so you can be ready for them. Be sure to ask someone who really will give you honest feedback.

Prepared. Sometimes it’s a last-minute or fill-in-for-your-boss presentation and you don’t have time for thorough preparation. But whenever you can, however you can, try to find at least a little prep time. If you are caught in a time crunch, instead of scrambling to build slides, take a few minutes to think through the big picture: what is your purpose in presenting? What is your point of view or message? What are 3-5 key key facts or points that will make your point? What are one or two illustrations or anecdotes that would illuminate your point of view in a memorable way? If needed, use a single sheet of paper or a note card or two so you don’t forget those key points.

Following these 4 P’s can definitely make your presentations more pertinent, more persuasive and more professional. What other words come to mind to help you make an effective presentation?

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

Web site: www.applauseinc.net

Blog: www.managementhelp.org/blogs

twitter: @ApplauseInc

If your content is technical, complex, data driven or numbers-heavy, you will want to listen up. Don’t fall into the camp of “I know it is dry and boring content but I can’t do anything about it…” Instead, try one or all of these strategies to make complex information more engaging and more interesting.

Use the DEEP acronym to help remember these pointers.

Don’t cut yourself short–or go on and on. If you tend to speak your piece so fast you cut out huge chunks of content, start today to slow down and take the time you need. Rehearse so that you know you are going to fit your timeframe, then relax into the content a little bit. On the other hand, if you typically go way overboard with detail, and frequently see eyes glazing over when you speak, then plan for, and deliver, a shorter presentation. You might be able to add a slightly longer Q&A, turning your technical talk into an engaging discussion.

Expertise. Draw from your own experience, not just the word of experts. Use your own stories to paint a picture, build rapport, even add color and life to your speaking. Especially when the content is technical, you will want to “humanize” it by sharing your own reactions, knowledge and opinions as a subject matter expert. As you prepare your presentation, watch for sections that are dry and detailed, or slides that are heavy with content, and look for ways to make them shorter, crisper, and more human.

Enthusiasm. What is it about this material that excites you? If it doesn’t make your heart beat a little faster, chances are it won’t thrill your audience either. You might be better off searching for the one or two parts of it you can really get behind, and then focus on them. Your passion goes a long way toward making the content more interesting to others. If you have never seen this done, I recommend just about any TED talk (at TED.com) to see examples of what happens when an expert shows enthusiasm. It can be magical.

Pay attention to the audience. Just don’t fixate on them. Look at the audience, one at a time. Long enough to feel you are connecting. Not long enough to become a staring contest. See if they look engaged. If not, slow down….and ask a question. Or walk closer toward the crowd. Or stop and tell a story. Ask for a reaction. Or pose a problem and have them discuss it with the people they are sitting next to. Then listen to see if they really are connecting with your content. Don’t drone on and on if your audience has checked out; do something to get them back on board. Don’t assume you will know what to do if this happens; it should be an essential part of your planning process.

Technical presentations can be dry and boring…or engaging and stimulating. You can decide today to try these and other methods to bring your content to life.

Please let me know how they work for you, and what other methods you have found useful.

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

Web site: www.applauseinc.net

Blog: www.managementhelp.org/blogs

twitter: @ApplauseInc

I have all kinds of excuses. I was fighting off stomach flu and dizziness. I was dragging through my workshop toward the end of the day. I was digging deep to keep going, when suddenly I heard myself say the phrase I always bend over backward not to say, “I want you to……” Inwardly, even in my weakened state, I cringed.

You may have heard me rant about this before. While it’s not the end of the world to say it, it can hit a sour note with anyone who hears it. “I want you” to sounds bossy, arbitrary, and puts the focus on me the instructor or speaker rather than you the learner. It always reminds me of that awful phrase we use on our kids when we are exasperated: “because I say so.”

So when you are in the classroom, the boardroom, or the conference call, what is a better way to move people to action? Try one of these, or something similar that keeps the focus on the request and sounds a lot more polished. Like I could have done in that moment.

Better choices include:

Will you
Will you please
Would you
Would you please
Could you
Please
Shall we
Why don’t we
Let’s
If we could
If you would
Perhaps you would
If you would be so kind
If you are willing
I wonder if you would
It would be great if you would
I invite you to
I encourage you to
I urge you to
Now it’s time to

You may not like all of these phrases. In fact I am sure you won’t. Some will strike you as too direct, others as way too indirect. And some will just appeal more to your personality or style. But note that there are many ways to ask your class or audience to do something without telling them to do it because “I want you to.”

Please note that these “softer” phrases are specifically geared toward situations where you are enlisting support or action, as in training or coaching situations. When you are giving work direction, you may prefer to be more direct and forceful than these phrases suggest. Even so, I would think about stating your request in the “please will you do x” format rather than “I want you to do x.” Again, keeping the focus on the action, not having you do something simply because I want it.

If you are looking for a nicer way to couch your requests, I invite you to try one or more of these. Choose ones that sound like you and that you think would sit well with your listeners and be appropriate in tone. And please, do let me know if you have other phrases you would be willing to share.

In my opinion, using these phrases or ones like them shows more professionalism and more respect in the classroom or meeting room.

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

Web site: www.applauseinc.net

Blog: www.managementhelp.org/blogs

twitter: @ApplauseInc

Presentations don’t have to be formal, stand up affairs. Many times we make our case across the table from a client, a boss or a colleague. It may be tempting to consider these informal presentations as unimportant, but just think what is riding on them — a major sale or business relationship, a raise or promotion, the success or failure of a team initiative or project. Wow! I would say these presentations are every bit as important as the sit-down kind, and deserve our full attention in planning and execution.

To help you remember some of the keys to success across the table, here is a checklist in acronym form.

Tune in to your audience. Take time to think about WHO you are speaking with. WHY is this presentation important? WHAT do they expect to hear? HOW will you make your case compelling, especially if you are suggesting a change or presenting something new? Tune in to the rational as well as the emotional makeup of your audience as you plan what you are going to say.

Attend to your delivery skills. How are you sitting? Are you alert, calm, and facing the other person? Are your arms and legs uncrossed, your hands relaxed? Is your face pleasant and engaged? Are you enunciating clearly, and speaking with conviction? Be sure to breathe, open your mouth, and make steady but not overbearing eye contact as you speak.

Begin and end strong. As in all presentations, your audience will tend to remember what you say first and last. Plan ahead. Think it through. Create a one or two-sentence position statement that is clear and direct. After appropriate (but brief) social niceties, state your point of view, and then back it up with three or four supporting facts. As the discussion comes to a close, use your pre-planned closing comments to summarize your discussion, or to end with a call to action or next steps.

Learn your content. You may think these presentations require no rehearsal, since you don’t plan to be standing up in front of a crowd. But trust me; you can get just as tongue-tied in front of a client or boss. Take a few minutes in the days or hours before this conversation to rehearse your part of the conversation out loud. Record it on your smart phone, and then listen to it. Or have a friend or colleague role-play with you. The payoff will be increased confidence and credibility when you deliver the content to the intended audience.

Expect discussion. These informal presentations most often end up being discussions rather than monologs. Prepare yourself for several possibilities, so that whatever happens, you won’t be blind-sided. Will your listener agree wholeheartedly? Great! But you can’t always be sure how a listener will react. Maybe they will object strenuously. Become angry or defensive, or demand more information. Think about how you might handle each of these outcomes so you at least have a plan in mind. And stay flexible — you can’t always predict what will happen.

So as you see, presentations across the table, although more informal, require some of the same thought and planning that a formal presentation does. The good news is that each time you properly prepare and execute a successful informal presentation, you build and reinforce an important skillset you will use again and again.

How do you prepare for and execute informal presentations and critical discussions? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Sam didn’t know what a great business presentation looked like. He had joined his organization right after leaving school, and when he presented, he was alone with his clients. Other than all-hands meetings, he just hadn’t been exposed to many presentations, so it was hard for him to evaluate his own presentation skills.

Some of us learn what to do by observing great speakers, and seeing what they do well. If you are like Sam, and don’t really have positive role models, imagine how powerful it would be to have some great examples of what to do for presentation success! You would be able to focus on the positives, and build your own skills and confidence.

It’s a little bit like watching lots of home-improvement TV before tackling your own project. You will want to get lots of great ideas, decide which ones fit your house and your style, and then adapt them to your situation.

So, do your homework. See what great speakers do. Increase your level of self-awareness. Experiment. Get some feedback. Do lots of fine-tuning. In time, you will be the great speaker that others can learn from. Here are a few ways to get started.

Watch your boss. He or she may or may not be the ideal presenter, but this is the person you will probably see presenting most often, as well as the person who will likely be giving you feedback on your own presentations. What are this person’s strengths? What habits can you pick up from watching this person? How do you want to be like your boss as a speaker? And how would you like to be different. These could be great discussions for you both to have.

Watch your colleagues. They may be team members, or people from other functional areas. If you get a chance to sit in on their presentations, do it. Again, what do they do well? Observe their presentation structure, their slides, their delivery skills. How do they respond to the audience? Make note of 2-3 ideas you could “borrow” and adapt.

Watch your competitors. If you get a chance to go to trade shows or conferences, you may have a chance to sit in and watch your competitors in action. What do they do differently than you do? Where are their weaknesses that you could exploit by building corresponding strengths in your skills? For example, if they tend to have weak openings, you might be able to craft and rehearse stronger openings to capture audience attention faster.

Watch TED talks. If you haven’t seen any TED talks yet, I recommend highly that you scoot over to TED.com and start watching. The topics are associated with technology, education and design, and the speakers do vary, but generally you will have a chance to see some great speakers in action. How do they command the stage? How do they use humor? How do they convey a lot of technical detail in just a few minutes? What do their visual aids look like? As a rule, these talks are extremely well designed and executed, and you could learn a lot here about what to do.

Go to conferences. Whether the content is pertinent to your field or not, you can sit in on a large number of speakers and see how they are all different. Take a few notes about what appeals to you and what does not. For each speaker, look for at least one thing you like, and at least one thing that does not appeal to you. Keep notes, and look for trends. Remember, content, slides, delivery, and audience interaction are all great topics to evaluate.

Go to webinars. There is no reason NOT to see speakers in action when you can sit in on free webinars day or night. Listen to the voices. Focus on the content and how it is presented. See how they engage their audiences, or not. Some webinars are extremely well done, polished pitches. Others are home-spun and imperfect. But you can still learn from them without leaving your desk.

See yourself. It is very hard to “see” yourself as others do, and just as difficult to evaluate your own skills. Many of us are way too hard on ourselves, others think we are better than we really are. The best way to begin to understand your own strengths and weaknesses is to video yourself, either in rehearsal or in the actual presentation, and then watch it with an unbiased eye. This is not easy, and you may need to get someone to help you through it, but it is critical to building genuine confidence tempered with humility.

A few words of caution: if you have been learning how to give presentations by avoiding the mistakes others make, you may be overly focused on what NOT to do. With this mindset, it is easy for us to feel nervous or unsure of ourselves. So look for the good in your observations, as well as the not-so-good.

You might also fall into the trap of observing a great speaker and then wanting to be just like them. Not a good idea, as you will fall short every time, and end up being less sure of your own strengths and abilities. The goal is to adapt, not copy, what you are seeing.

That said, if we observe others who are good at public speaking, we can “try on” some of the behaviors that appeal to us and see what fits us and what doesn’t. By picking and choosing from a number of skilled speakers, you are more likely to find your own style. And that is something you can be confident about.

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

Web site: www.applauseinc.net

Blog: www.managementhelp.org/blogs

twitter: @ApplauseInc

The day of your big presentation is fast approaching. You have been amassing plenty of facts, thoughts, photos, charts and graphs, enough to fill a large file. Now the big question is how do you organize it?

One great way to proceed is to start from a big-picture viewpoint. What is the point of this presentation? What does the audience need to hear? What do you want them to remember, think, feel or do? Write this down. Yes, really. You might have a sense that you know the answer, but until you capture it in words, you can’t be sure you really have it. If you would like, try saying it out loud. Once you have it, write it down, quickly, before you forget what you said.

Here are versions of a theme or message you might use to begin a presentation.

Version One: “Today’s topic is blogging.”

Version Two: “By creating and contributing regularly to a blog, you will be able to connect with your customers in real time, provide them incentives to purchase, and establish yourself as a responsive partner.”

Which one did you like better? If you are interested in blogging in the first place, the first version told you that you were in the right room, but not much more. The second one gave you reasons to listen, and clearly spelled out some of the benefits you might enjoy from starting a blog.

How could you make it better? If you know your audience well, you can make your message more specific. If you don’t know them as well, or if there is a mix of attendees, you might need to make your message broader. But don’t forget to always give reasons to listen, and benefits of doing the action you are recommending.

Version Three (Broader): “Blogging is an easy, simple way to connect with more people and share your knowledge.”

Version Four (Narrower): “As brand-new bloggers, today you will learn how to avoid some of the pitfalls new bloggers often fall into and how set yourself up for success.”

We could go on all day creating different versions of the message, but you know your audience and your material best, so create the message that fits the situation and compels your specific audience to want to hear more. Starting with your message will definitely inform your organization.

So now on to organizing all the supporting data you have been collecting. The next step is likely to be narrowing it down. Take a look at your content and see how each piece of information supports the message you have created. If it does not, put it aside; it isn’t needed for this presentation. Save it for another day, perhaps, but don’t squeeze it in just because it is “nice to know.”

Step two will be sorting through all the data that remains, and organizing it into chunks or buckets of information. Which of these methods appeal to you?

Mind map. I like to draw a “picture” of my presentation in the form of a modified mind map. I use an oversized sheet of paper and in the middle write out my theme or message. I then start to branch out from the middle, thinking about the important topics rather than individual facts. (If I am creating a training program or interactive presentation, I also write what learning methods will be used for each topic. You might think about what stories or examples you would use for each section.)

Story board. To create a story board, create a series of boxes that look like a comic book or comic strip. You can use oversized sheets of paper or flip chart paper if you like, or draw it on a large whiteboard. Start your story with your message. End it with your message. Now, think about how you are going to get your audience from where they are starting to where you want them to be at the end of your presentation. You might even select headings such as, “the current state of blogging, benefits of blogging, steps to setting up your blog, and what you might expect as a new blogger.” Once you have your headings, fill in your facts and date under each heading. Voila! You are not only organized, you are also moving your audience logically from Point A to Point B, a key component of storytelling.

Sticky notes. Many speakers put each fact on a sticky note, and then arrange the notes on a wall or whiteboard. With this method, you can easily move things around until you get them into the right category. You might be able to see that you have too much information in some areas and not enough in others. Or that you have way too much data and will have to streamline even further. This method also allows you to visualize the whole presentation, and play with it over a few days or longer, if you can leave your notes on a wall to keep referring to.

3×5 card sort. A more hands-on variation is to write the information on a number of 3×5 cards. You can move them around on a table until the main chunks are sorted out and you like the sequence. This could be a good method if you are creating the presentation with others, as they can each add to the stack of 3×5 cards. And again, you can easily discard cards that aren’t going to be used.

Outline. If I am “writing” the presentation on the computer or my tablet, I might use an outline format. This is very convenient when you want to draft a presentation at a coffee shop, on the train, or on your patio. Just be aware that outlining isn’t quite as “whole brain” as some of the other methods discussed above, because it relies so heavily on sequencing rather than free-form thinking. That said, one advantage of outlining this way is that you can dump your outline onto PowerPoint and have more or less an instant slide show. I would recommend this method only if you are very familiar with your content and need to create your presentation rapidly.

Organizing your presentation doesn’t have to be a drag, but be sure to allow yourself enough time to do it well. Experiment with different methods. Think about how your audience likes to have information presented, and go from there.

Please let me know which methods you have tried and how they have worked for you. Are there others you would recommend? And all best wishes organizing your next presentations.

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

Web site: www.applauseinc.net

Blog: www.managementhelp.org/blogs

twitter: @ApplauseInc

A client told me recently how he begins preparing for a future presentation. “When I know I am going to give a presentation in the future,” he says, “I place a yellow pad on my desk, right where I see it every day. Whenever I have an idea, or come across a piece of information that relates, I jot it down there. By the time I am ready to put my presentation together, everything I need is already there.”

Good tip, yes? What is so great about this method is its simplicity, and its visibility. Once you made a conscious decision to start gathering information on a given topic, you will likely come across many ideas that relate. Making it easy to capture them is key.

A variation of this method is making some kind of mind map. I often take an oversized sheet of paper and draw my map so I can begin to see the whole presentation at a glance. The oversized paper gives me plenty of space to sketch, doodle, and write. I can see how much time to devote to each section of the presentation before any final decisions about content are made.

If you prefer a slightly more high-tech version of the yellow pad, try another thing I like to do. Use a notes program on your computer, smart phone, and tablet, storing them in the cloud. This way, if you inspiration strikes on your commute, or at the gym, you can add it to your electronic note pad, and find it there when you arrive at the office and log in. (Personally, I find these notes a little tidier than my hand-written notes, but that is another story.)

Another colleague gathers her notes on OneNote, organized by task or project. Some people love Evernote, where they can clip and add photos, graphics, and clippings found anywhere online. Some people are starting to use Flipboard or PInterest in similar ways. Just be sure to select the appropriate level of privacy before compiling all your notes on these sites.

If you are a tactile learner, you might even use a simple file folder, in which you can stash hand-written notes, clippings, or other printed material. Some speakers keep notebooks or folders with stories, metaphors, and quotes they could add to a presentation — a folder would be a great place to keep them handy.

No matter which method you choose, planning ahead for your presentation and beginning to collect ideas and data makes a lot of sense. Choose one or more of these and give it a try. Anything is probably better than avoiding the matter until the last minute and then scrambling for ideas.

What do you do to gather ideas for your presentations? One of these, a combination, or something else altogether? I would love to hear what works for you.

Author Gail Zack Anderson, founder of Applause, Inc. is a Twin Cities-based consultant who provides coaching and workshops for effective presentations, facilitation skills for trainers and subject matter experts, and positive communication skills for everyone. She can be reached at gza@applauseinc.net.

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