Tips on Presenting

Recently I completed over 10 presentations in 3 days. It can be a bit nerve wrecking, but presentations is always something that I loved. I love the idea of talking people, keeping them interested as well as imparting some knowledge to them. Also how, for 20 minutes or less, you can completely transform your persona. Over the weekend I was interviewed on my presentation as well as on presenting and it got me thinking about how I present. So I'm going to go through 7 main points that allow me to have good presentations and also help me feel comfortable.

1. Know your presentation and its topic. There are no two ways about it. The only way you are going to have good presentation and feel comfortable and confident is if you know everything there is to know about the topic and your presentation.
2. Use examples when possible. People are better able understand your presentation if you can give real world examples they can relate to.
3. Keep your slides clean and simple. Slides should be used as visual cues as opposed to information(exception;info graphics and numerical data). I like to use the slides for visual cues for both my audience and myself. Remember you are the focus of your audience not the slide. If the slide is full of words they will spend more time reading it than listening to you.
4. Practice but don't rehearse. The worst thing you can do when you present is to try and rehearse exactly what you want to say. What would happen is with the added pressure of a real audience you will become nervous and may forget tiny details which my fluster you. However it is important to actually say the presentation out loud when practising as it helps build confidence, and also allows you to really critique your presentation.
5. Be confident. How an you expect the audience to embrace what you said if you haven't?
6. Don't present. It might sound weird I know. But something that I try to do is not actually present but rather engage. You need to talk to your audience. You need to connect to them so that each person in the room feels that you are talking to them and not a crowd. This also helps you gauge the reaction of people in the room, to know when to emphasis on a point or when to move on. (Tip – During your presentation pick out two people who appear interested in what your saying. Make regular eye contact with them and it will help your confidence. Also nothing is wrong with having one or two of your good friends in the crowd to just nod and give you confidence, I did it for my first one:)).
7. Lastly you need to have fun. Unless your presenting on a topic that is socially bad(example crime), try to be happy, laugh, smile, make jokes, and have fun. It's no secret a smile in contagious. A smile helps you feel relaxed, at ease, and helps pick up your mood. Not taking yourself too seriously also does wonders. So if your up there, might as well have fun:)

Like everyone I have my flaws in presenting and have a lot to still learn. These are just some pointers that have helped me with my presentations. I've attached a small clip of my presenting “Flow's World” after the jump.