April 10, 2013

Take 20 minutes to learn the best presentation tips

What are the attributes of a good presentation and how can you adapt them to the next one you develop?

Below are three links – two videos and an article – that clearly and concisely lay out some great tips and simple truths about great presentations.

The first video teaches us that:

  • You’ve got to tell a story
  • Go low tech in the preparation phase (don’t start off in PowerPoint!)
  • For design, less is more
  • Rehearsal is perhaps the single most important aspect of preparation (that’s often overlooked)

The second video (that deconstructs the Steve Jobs presentation formula) teaches us that:

  • Setting the theme right up front is key
  • Providing an outline sets the pace
  • Managing topic transitions helps the audience follow along
  • Always, always, always put numbers in context
  • Again, be visually compelling by keeping design simple
  • Show passion and don’t be afraid to use a little showmanship
  • Rehearsal is crucial

Finally, in the article below, Nick Morgan lays out the basic story constructs and how they can be employed in your presentation.

All in all it should take about 20 minutes to watch and read this information, which could transform your next presentation from bad to good (or good to great). Enjoy.

How to Give an Awesome (PowerPoint) Presentation [video]

Present Like Steve Jobs [video]

How do you take an ordinary presentation and turn it into a powerful story? [article]

 

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March 24, 2013

Good ideas are not the secret sauce

Compelling presentations, great books, inspiring videos, great podcasts, insightful articles – you are literally surrounded by good ideas.

But that’s not the secret to making things happen.

There is no shortage of good ideas, there’s a shortage of action. Of course, the irony is that in order to apply the glitzy idea or create the compelling story or accomplish the larger visible goal, a lot of boring, tedious, and very un-glamorous work needs to be done. That’s the secret sauce.

You have the knowledge and experience to relate the good ideas to your circumstance. These ideas provide you with insight and motivation for moving forward. And you can share them and leverage them as a jumping off point for conversations and work with groups of people in order to make the larger changes happen.

But it’s all predicated on some quiet time, alone, working through the tedium. Uncovering the details that matter, struggling with the analysis, discovering lots and lots of roadblocks, wrestling with discouragement, finding hope, and mustering sheer determination to finish the thing.

It’s not easy, but it’s worth it. Big results only come from working through the details.

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November 9, 2012

Unprecedented

We should learn from the past. But it shouldn’t be our guide to the future if we are seeking change, if we are seeking innovation. Everything new and innovative is by definition unprecedented.

To change things going forward, we should put as many ideas on the table as possible. We should put the crazy ones right next to the rational ones, without pre-filtering or pre-judging them. We should try to keep all the ideas alive as long as possible. We should morph them into various iterations and use little gems of them to inspire new ideas and approaches.

We should try some things. Experiment and see what happens. Share the ideas, experiments, and results with others and invite their ideas. And we should do all this while the path to the future is still unclear, so that we can see what emerges from this process with an open mind.

Photo credit: Julian Santacruz

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November 3, 2012

Thinking it through

Multiple modes make for better thought processing. Sitting around thinking about a problem, idea, or initiative is useful. But don’t stop there, and don’t do it all at once.

Sit and think for a bit, but then take a break.

At the next intveral, switch modes. Write down some notes. Write down some prose. Draw out a diagram.

Then, take a break and go do something else.

At the next interval, find someone to talk to. Discuss, debate, dissect. Talk to someone who knows a lot about the topic. Talk to someone who knows very little about it. Both will be helpful.

Then, take a break.

At the next interval, you could do a little research. Listen to what others say about the topic on podcasts or video streams. Read what others have written in books and blog posts.

Take a break and go do something else.

Your subconscious will continue to work on things when you’re on “break” (that’s precisely when it does its thing). Insights will emerge over time. Things will be clearer. And you’ll be more comfortable with the ideas now that you’ve worked through them from multiple angles.

Photo credit: tanjila

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June 20, 2012

Who cares?

We make a lot of assumptions about who cares about our ideas, project, initiative, opinion, and more. Often, we do this up front, because we think it matters a lot. Many times it does. Many times it does not.

Sometimes the best way to find out who cares about your idea is to put it out there. Give a talk, write a blog post, Tweet it, or just tell some friends (they have to listen, even if they don’t really care).

Sometimes the best way to get your project off the ground – to find out who cares and how they may want to help shape it, share it, and enjoy it – is to just get started.

Sometimes the best way to find out who cares about an important initiative is by letting others know that you care about it.

Sometimes the best way to find out who cares about your opinion – and whether they agree or disagree with it – is to share it.

Action leads to reaction. Which can lead to discussion, momentum, and change. Or not. But it may be one of the best ways to give you a much better sense of who really cares.

Photo credit: kretyen

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June 18, 2012

Thoughts on not thinking

When we have a problem, we like to think of a solution. The more important the problem, or the more urgently a solution is needed, the harder we need to think about it. Or so the thinking goes.

Sometimes all that thinking gets in the way – the best ideas often emerge in a clear mind.

Thinking real hard can be constricting. It gest us into an analytical mode, which relies largely upon examining linear paths and evaluating things very logically. Sometimes that’s good, but sometimes this approach may be blocking out the most creative, intuitive, and clever ideas.

Not thinking about the problem – or, if possible, not really thinking about anything at all – can help liberate the best ideas.

Psychology teaches us that we have two main systems of thought – conscious and subconscious. Subconscious thought is a bit of a black box, but it’s clearly very powerful. And sometimes if we get our conscious minds out of the way, the subconscious has a chance to bring some very good stuff to the surface, giving our conscious minds something really great to work on.

Have a really hard problem to solve? Try not thinking about it for a while.

Photo credit: the italian voice

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April 9, 2012

Move away in order to get closer

Challenging projects require intense focus. But focusing intensely can be exactly the wrong thing to do sometimes.

Leaning in

When the going gets tough, many drop out. That’s why a lot of projects fail. That’s why succeeding is hard – and worthwhile.

Which reminds me of a favorite quote: “Stormy waters favor strong swimmers.”

That’s why, when you’ve got a real problem to solve or some other real challenge, and you want to persevere, you “lean into” the problem. You embrace the difficulty. You immerse yourself in the work, with a keen eye kept on the goal. You push through the hard times for the greater good. And that is what often makes the difference between success and failure.

Clarity and space

While leaning in and doing the work is the right thing to do, it can cloud your vision. Getting so close to the problem can blind you to some solutions. Spending a lot of time in the trees can limit your ability to see the forest.

Creating some space can help. Getting physically, mentally, and emotionally away from the project, the problem, the environment can allow the solutions to present themselves more readily. Giving your subconscious a chance to have a go at the problem, uninterrupted by the conscious focus on the problem, might just be the thing that helps tip the scales back in your favor for the long haul.

Going for a bike ride works for me. The focus on the present moment, the terrain, the traffic, my heart rate, effort, and the space I’m riding through creates a flow of consciousness unencumbered by daily tasks and specific thoughts of what to do next. It creates just the sort of space for ideas to flow through. And they do. Often the best ones.

What do you do to create space for yourself to receive ideas?

Photo credit: Nicholas T

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March 20, 2012

Repetition

“People like it when you repeat things.”

That’s a funny phrase, isn’t it? But it’s funny because it’s true.

You don’t often think about people liking repetition, because we think of repetition as boring and tedious. After reading that phrase that challenged my intuition, I realized that it’s right in many circumstances. Particularly in communication.

I might rephrase it to say that people appreciate repetition, though. And they appreciate the repetition of ideas, not necessarily strict repetition of a message again and again.

When you put your message forth several times, using different words and phrases, talking about the idea behind it from different angles, abstracting it in different ways, and using different mediums, it works. So the people who want to get your message, who want to understand your idea, appreciate all that effort.

Want to take it to the next level? Take that repetition and turn it into a two-way conversation. A conversation that continues in many iterations over time. Not only does that add to the power of repetition, but the learning becomes bi-directional and magnifies immensely.

Photo credit: Charles Collier

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August 22, 2011

The absence of distraction

One way to get to something, is to focus on nothing. When there’s so much going on, so much to keep track of, so much to think about, it can get a bit overwhelming. Good ideas don’t come from an overwhelmed mind. Rather, to-do lists, worry, and frustration emerge.

Sometimes the right answer is to go away and do nothing. But, doing nothing can be hard.

Doing something that fully occupies the mind, like sailing a boat, playing an instrument, or going for a mountain bike ride can be a better way clear the mind. Playing a song on guitar requires you to know about chords and scales and the key you’re playing in, but you can’t think about those details while you’re playing or all fluidity is lost. You need to be in the “flow” of the activity.

And when in the flow, to-do lists, worry, and little thoughts are no longer distractions - that energy is taken up by the matter at hand. Yet, there are some cycles – and room – left for bigger ideas to come. And they don’t have to fight their way through.

Photo credit: CTD2005

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August 2, 2010

Books: 3 good choices, 1 great combination

Someone borrowed three books from a pile of mine, stacked in the corner of the room. It’s fun to share things you’re passionate about and interested in, and I love sharing ideas. Three of my favorites were selected, but more striking was the powerful combination of ideas represented by these particular three books together.

Confessions of a Public Speaker, by Scott Berkun. This book is an interesting, well-paced and honest (sometimes raw) account of what it’s like to be a public speaker. Important lessons: Be interesting. Be clear. Practice (for confidence, not memorization). Be in control (be the leader). Be prepared (for when things go wrong). Be engaging – take a position, explore and consider the counter-arguments, know your audience, set the pace/manage expectations, and use lots of Q&A.

Improve Wisdom: Don’t Prepare, Just Show Up, by Patricia Ryan Madson. An engaging presentation of lessons from a 30-year career teaching improvisation from a Stanford University professor, this book presents thirteen maxims of improv. Important lesson: You can leverage these maxims from a seemingly unrelated source in your approach to life and work to bring about real results. Be more present, more in focus with the “here and now.”

Tribes: We Need You To Lead Us, by Seth Godin. Humans have always formed tribes. People just need a leader and a way to connect. The internet has removed geography as a constraint and provided a whole bunch of tools for you to connect with others easily. Important lesson: there is a huge opportunity for you to lead. You can do it and you should do it, so do it. Be a leader.

Photo credit: kwerfeldein

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