Abstract

The popularity of the TED talk has raised the bar for public speaking and presentations. Audiences expect to be educated, inspired, and engaged whether they are sitting in a conference room or an auditorium. Yet too often presenters lack the skills to take command and deliver persuasive and entertaining pitches and presentations. Where most presenters fail is twofold: First, they often give into and accept their fear without fully understanding how their DNA is affecting their body and mind. Second, most people think the presentation is all about them and not the audience, which could not be further from the truth. The audience is the hero of the story and the presenter is their guide to take them on a journey. Like a one–act play, a presentation is not a meeting, it is a performance. And it is the job of the presenter to respect the audiences’ wishes, wants, and needs. With the advent of smartphone the job of the presenter, which is to keep the audience’s attention on them rather than on the tiny device in their hand, has become increasingly more difficult. The purpose of this book is to inspire you to take the next step in your presentation skills and practice. I simplify my theories and break it down into three areas: Identifying your unique style (Chapter 4), how to identify and work with different personalities in the audience (Chapter 5), and how to use tools such as PowerPoint, to create engaging and exciting slide decks (Chapter 7).

This book is intended to be used as a reference guide when you are creating a new presentation and figuring out how to deliver it to persuade the audience to take action. Whether you are a seasoned presenter, a CEO, a marketing manager, an Executive Director of a nonprofit, or a teacher, there are ideas, tips, and tricks within the pages of this book to help you better understand who you are and how to engage your audience.

Throughout the book are exercises to help you identify your own personal and unique style and practice by yourself or with others.Keeping with the theme of storytelling I share my own personal stories and anecdotes to illustrate my theories on how I became the seasoned presenter I am today.

Keywords

audience engagement, bullet points, fear of public speaking, keynote, pitching, PowerPoint, presentation skills, public speaking, slide decks, slides, storytelling, TED