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We’ve all sat through those presentations where someone bored us to death with slide after slide of text, dated images or graphs crammed with information.

That’s why the phrase “Death by PowerPoint” was invented.

Many organisations have responded to this by banning the use of PowerPoint in any presentations. In some cases, they allow other programmes, such as Prezi, but some ban the use of visuals altogether.

Are they right to do this?

I can certainly sympathise. Most speakers I see use PowerPoint very badly. Their main crimes are:

• using slides as a crutch for themselves, in effect writing out their presentation on PowerPoint and using it as their notes
• writing PowerPoint slides which they intend to print off as handouts
• hiding behind the slides so the presentation becomes little more than a voiceover
• using the basic templates in PowerPoint to produce endless bullet point lists or repetitive slides with a heading and a tiny picture

This may be partly because of lack of time, or lack of expertise or just plain laziness.

Whatever the reason, the result is that thousands of people have to endure dreadful presentations and the whole dreary PowerPoint experience continues.

So I can see why some places might be tempted to just ban the whole thing. And I would be happy if one result of this was to force speakers to concentrate on keeping their audience’s attention by having great content and developing their delivery skills.

I’m all for developing a much higher standard of oratory amongst presenters!

But there are some problems with banning slides altogether.

Powerful visual aids can play a huge part in getting across key points with impact and helping an audience to listen, learn and remember.

Used well, visuals can:

• grab, and keep, attention
• explain a point more clearly than words
• form a strong emotional connection between the audience and the subject matter
• leave a lasting impression which fixes the point in the audience’s long term memory
• introduce humour in a relevant and appropriate way

Of course, the key point is that they do have to be used well. The way most slides are used, they do none of these things.

But that’s not the fault of the medium itself – it’s not really PowerPoint’s fault, it’s the fault of the speakers who use it.

And I have to say, it’s not just PowerPoint, I’ve seen people using other packages just as badly.

So perhaps banning PowerPoint isn’t the answer. Because banning visual aids cuts off what could be a massive asset for a presenter and a massive benefit for the audience.

The answer is to give people the training they need to use PowerPoint the way it should be used – so presenters can speak with more impact and audiences can be spared the “death by a thousand slides” which they have to endure at the moment.

Many speaker and presenters find it a challenge to keep their audience riveted and absorbed in their presentations and talks. They worry about being able to maintain the right level of entertainment and information or building a rapport with their listeners. Whether you’re an online or off-line speaker, if you need to have tools and techniques to help break up your talk and retain audience attention, this article will provide you with quick and easy tips and techniques to leave them asking for more.

Most people have a concentration span of about 20 minutes before their mind begins to wander. The easiest and one of the most effective ways to break up your talk is to involve your audience. Interactive questioning, poll taking with a show of hands, getting them to repeat words or phrases or respond as a group, are great ways to draw in your listeners in an off-line setting.

If speaking in an online event such as a teleseminar or webinar, ask them to answer a poll or write a comment on the webinar platform or connect via a social media platform such as Facebook or Twitter and comment there.

You need to judge how often and to what degree you want to bring in the audience into the presentation – too many interruptions and you’ll break the flow of your talk or overrun your time. For the same reason, keep questions from the floor to the end as part of your usual Q&A slot – keep control of the interaction so that it enhances not detracts from the points you want to make.

Balance and judgement are also needed if you want to use props or comedy to engage with your audience. Inappropriate jokes or over-elaborate, vulgar or overly complex props are clearly out of the question. But gentle humour can build a rapport with your audience while suitable visual aids can highlight a point or concept to help them reach a better understanding more quickly.

If your audience can’t relate to what you’re saying, you’ll soon lose their support and interest. A key way to build a bond and keep your audience listening is to be relevant and genuine. People don’t want to be talked at – they want to feel that you’re sharing your knowledge as part of a common experience. Hearing about how you have dealt with your mistakes or difficulties, how you’ve overcome challenge and adversity is more interesting and relevant to them than hearing of unqualified success.

Keep this sense of sharing and intimacy through your body language and voice. Keep eye contact with people from all parts of the room; smile frequently which will again strengthen bonds and help your body to unwind. Make sure your body language is open and expressive – people respond to confidence, authority and someone who is relaxed and comfortable. For virtual events, show this warmth through your voice. Remember that your smile can be “heard” so keep smiling as you would if were onstage.

If the facilities are available, ask for a remote slide control so that you’re not tied to the computer to move along your PowerPoint slides. If they don’t have one, then break the routine by occasionally walking away from the computer to talk through a slide and then walking back to move the slide along. If the room size allows, you could move along the aisle space when you’re interacting with your audience, and then return to the stage area when you resume your talk.

Avoid Death-By-PowerPoint presentations. Don’t show over-wordy slides for every point you make in your speech. The audience should be listening to you, not reading long paragraphs on screen. Use the slides to emphasise and highlight only salient points and provide strong visual images that reinforce or explain a point quickly. New versions of PowerPoint allow you to easily embed videos and audio media – again judicious use can create a powerful impact for both online and offline events.

A speaker who clearly understands their topic and is passionate and enthused about it, is someone that an audience will respect and warm to. If they can see your obvious enthusiasm to share and connect with them, they will be only too eager to respond in kind. By offering content that is relevant, informative, addresses their issues and concerns, and which is tailored to their level, you’ll keep your audience interested in what you have to say.

How many times have you heard “Everything Negotiable?” You have probably heard this quite a few times in various contexts. However, have your really taken it to heart? Do you look at every situation as a chance to negotiate?

Many people think negotiation only entails to product purchases, big business deals, or dispute interactions with foreign countries. These are the kinds of negotiations we read about in the papers. What many people forget is there are opportunities to negotiate every day. Each time you want someone to do something for you, or someone wants you to do something for them, a negotiation is in process. Sure, many of these situations are not worth negotiating, we just plod forward and do it. However, if you want to develop your negotiation skills and think like a negotiator, start looking at these situations as opportunities. Not only will you develop greater negotiation skills, you will also find that you get more of what you want. The person who thinks like a negotiator looks at every situation as an opportunity to negotiate and win. Better yet, look at each situation as an opportunity to negotiate and ensure both sides win.

From now on, look for opportunities to negotiation and practice your negotiation skills at every opportunity. Each time you buy something, there is a potential negotiation. Yes, I realize if you go to the gas pump it will most likely be a futile discourse trying to get the station to lower your price per gallon, just as it will be difficult to negotiate the stated price of produce with the checker at the grocery store. However, many places to present opportunities to negotiate. Think like a negotiator and look for them. Remember, practicing your negotiation techniques on small items will enable you to negotiate bigger items in the future.

It is up to you to start thinking of common goods and services that might be negotiated. We all know that buying a car is often a negotiated deal. But what about a TV? How about work on your home or yard? Can you negotiate for services such as typing, web design, graphic arts, or computer programming? Have you ever asked a store to match a competitor’s price? That’s negotiating. Have you ever bartered goods or services with anyone for something? That’s negotiation.

Start thinking like a negotiator and practicing your negotiation skills and you will be amazed at the opportunities that surround you. Keep at it and your negotiation skills will improve, you will be making more win-win deals that you can count, and you will ever increase the size and scope of your negotiations. Not only will these skills pay off for you at home, they can positively impact your work as well. Then you will be using your newfound negotiation attitude to negotiate a higher salary.