Member Article

Practice makes perfect

I’ve spent a lot of time traveling by train recently. I got curious about my fellow passengers as I sat, so I wondered off to the Buffet Car, not just for a cup of tea but also to be nosy. I admit this is hardly a scientific test, but I had a quick count of who was doing what (in terms of work) as I went.The most popular form of work, it seemed, was tapping away at spreadsheets. Whether you can concentrate enough on a train to do that I don’t know. What concerned me was that very close behind it was the use of PowerPoint to write or review presentations. A good many people seemed to be “putting the finishing touches” to their business presentation as they travelled. The problem is that delivering a presentation is a physical act, like walking, playing tennis or riding a bike. You need to practice doing it for it to work. Sure you can learn a great deal about tennis (particularly the rules, for example) by reading a book but when it gets right down to it, nothing can replace standing on a court, holding a racquet. In the same way, you have to practise delivering your presentation out loud in a reasonable approximation of how you’re going to deliver it “live”. You can’t deliver your presentation that way on a crowded train – you should find something else to do. Actually, thinking about it, you might be able to do it out loud and kill two birds with one stone, by making sure that no one wants the empty seat next to you!As always, questions, comments and so on to me at sme@curved-vision.co.uk– or for more hints and so on you can hit the new presentation skills blog!

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .