Death By Power Point

I'm trapped! Yet another Power Point presentation! My eyes are about to glaze over. I'm so bored!

I don't need to pay attention. The speaker's not adding anything extra. He's not giving any supplemental information or colorful anecdotes. He's just reading each Power Point screen like a script. Didn't anyone tell him? It isn't a teleprompter. Power Point is used to highlight ideas you want your audience to remember.

Do you think anyone would notice if I snuck out of the room and made my getaway? I'll just get a copy of his slides and read it later! Have you ever felt like this?

I see a woman in the next row squinting at the screen. The speaker used tiny 12 point font to cram his notes onto the screen. Instead, make your Power Point slides like a billboard: simple and attention grabbing.

The man sitting in front of me has his head down. I think he's sleeping! No wonder. The room lights are turned completely off. Turning off all the lights is unnecessary. Today's projectors are more powerful than earlier models. When you speak, leave the room bright enough so you can be seen. Remember, your gestures, facial expressions and enthusiasm make the best audio-visuals of all!

There's another problem when the lights are turned off. You can't see if the audience has questions. But, this speaker isn't taking questions. He says everything we need to know is already in his presentation. Power Point makes it too easy to do a 45-minute monologue. That's why professional speakers add exercises, icebreakers and energizers. They build in a change of pace every 11 minutes to hold the audience's interest.

This presenter used every special effect in Power Point. There are annoying sound clips and visual fade in/fade out effects cluttering the screen. It's so distracting. I'm getting a headache! This is a business presentation, not a circus. It's more important to make a point rather than make the slides look pretty. Audiovisuals must ADD to your message, not distract from it.

Remember, this software is called "Power Point." So ask your self, "What are the Powerful Main Points I need to make in my presentation?"

2008 Reflective Keynotes Inc., Toronto, Canada

Mike Aoki is a trainer and motivational speaker with 20 years of experience in the telecom industry. For more free tips on public speaking, sales and call center techniques, visit http://www.reflectivekeynotes.com/articles.htm

There's a fast way to put the commands and buttons you use most often within easy reach put them on the Quick Access Toolbar. This row of buttons above the Ribbon already contains several buttons by default, but you can add new commands. The demo shows you two ways to do this, as well as how to remove them later if you want to.

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