Comments on: Ten suggestions on how to give good talks

By: Raul

Raul — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 16:58:16 +0000

@ inaequitas – true, slides should be the backdrop

@ teflonjedi – wow, that’s an interesting strategy!

By: teflonjedi

teflonjedi — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 12:22:39 +0000

For item #5, I would suggest that sometimes planting questions in your talk is a great way to get the audience to engage.

In my Master’s thesis, I sprinkled 5 slight errors in the document. Thus, when the thesis defence came along, I was prepared for the questions already. It actually worked pretty well, and also helped me deal with my nervousness. The audience (my defence committee) engaged along a path of my choosing. (I did correct all 5 slight errors afterwords….plus fixing the spelling on the name of the scholarship I was on, which was just embarrassing…

By: inaequitas

inaequitas — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 06:00:44 +0000

On the topic of visuals/not reading, I would always add a note, if needed, to NOT have presentations that you read out or that simply mirror the words that are coming out of your mouth too closely. I have seen sufficiently many PR/marketing/sales/end-of-quarter presentations to know that numbers, charts, blocks of text and a complete disregard of design principles (that speak at large on contrast, typeface considerations, layout etc) to know how ineffective, boring and lame the presentation ends up being. The lack of visuals may just as well be more to your benefit in certain situations.

Great presentations? Goes without saying, but Steve Jobs has probably gotten the art all figured out for his keynotes. Laurence Lessig, as well, has a most effective presentation style.

I would say, for the visuals, either narrate the slides or have them as your backdrop. Ignore them or make yourself ignored (but not what you are saying, of course). Do not force the audience to follow both because they will not follow either.