Guidelines for Graduate Study

Presentations

There are many guidelines to preparing for and delivering a presentation. Although I have summarized some of the key points on this page, these are not absolutes; each subject matter, audience, and venue may require guideline modification.

Toastmasters Speaking Guidelines:

ü Know the room. Be familiar with the place in which you will speak. Arrive early, walk around the speaking area and practice using the microphone and any visual aids.

ü Know the audience. Greet some of the audience as they arrive. It's easier to speak to a group of friends than to a group of strangers.

ü Know your material. If you're not familiar with your material or are uncomfortable with it, your nervousness will increase. Practice your speech and revise it if necessary.

ü Relax. Ease tension by doing exercises.

ü Visualize yourself giving your speech. Imagine yourself speaking, your voice loud, clear, and assured. When you visualize yourself as successful, you will be successful.

ü Realize that people want you to succeed. Audiences want you to be interesting, stimulating, informative, and entertaining. They don't want you to fail.

ü Don't apologize. If you mention your nervousness or apologize for any problems you think you have with your speech, you may be calling the audience's attention to something they hadn't noticed. Keep silent.

ü Concentrate on the message -- not the medium. Focus your attention away from your own anxieties, and outwardly toward your message and your audience. Your nervousness will dissipate.

ü Turn nervousness into positive energy. Harness your nervous energy and transform it into vitality and enthusiasm.

ü Gain experience. Experience builds confidence, which is the key to effective speaking. A Toastmasters club can provide the experience you need.

Tips for Building Good Presentations:

ü Consider your audience and how they should receive your subject matter

ü Distill your key points to a outline

ü Title each overhead or slide

ü Titles can include larger fonts and a distinct style or color

ü Text should be limited to one or two fonts and colors, w/ variety in size and style

ü Each overhead should be simple and stand-alone

ü Each overhead should have no more than six bullet points

ü Use graphical illustration to represent ideas

ü Use pie charts for comparison of components

ü Use line charts to show trends

ü Use bar charts to make comparisons or show trends

ü Order points by order of importance - most important first

ü To maximize impact, combine sound, image and motion (multi-media)

ü To minimize strain, keep plenty of white space on each overhead

ü To optimize delivery, view the slides for a logical sequence or presentation order

ü Maintain notes to reference any specific data or information that does not fit

Tips for Giving Good Presentations:

ü Print a summary or create speakers notes of the presentation

ü Rehearse and determine how long it takes

ü Try out the presentation on a friend

ü Introduce yourself, thank your host, greet your audience

ü Encourage people to ask questions throughout

ü Display an organized manner

ü Limit your use of technical jargon

ü Stand beside monitor not in front of it

ü If others may not have heard a question, repeat each question that is asked

ü Talk to your audience not to your monitor & maintain eye contact

ü Pay attention to the non-verbal signals your audience is giving you and adjust your presentation accordingly