03 basics of presentation skills

Editor's Notes

• #2: Before we begin talking about the specifics of presentations, let’s begin by discussing some of the very basic skills necessary for a facilitator to possess and put into practice in order to have an effective presentation. Once we understand and practice the basics, all else are details that add polish. Talk about the different backgrounds in PowerPoint and photos vs. clip art.
• #3: Read the objectives of this presentation to the class.
• #4: Explain directions on slide. Provide chart paper and markers for each group. Allow @ 15 minutes. When completed, ask the spokesperson for each group to post the group’s findings and report back to the larger group. After the report, ask the opposite group if they have any other items they would like to add to the list. Do annoying habits first. Facilitate lot’s of good discussion before going to the next slides. Student manual page 17
• #5: Go through these items on the next two slides and point out those that are common to the list of annoying habits the group made. Ask participants for suggestions on how to control these bad presentation habits. Pacing – might ask a co-trainer, or friend who is a participant, to give some type of covert signal whenever pacing starts. Standing in one place too long – might ask a co-trainer, or friend who is a participant, to give some type of covert signal if you are acting like a statue. Create an invisible boundary or path that you can use to make a natural path around the “stage” area. Turning your back on participants – ask a co-trainer/friend and stay conscious! Jingling change – empty pockets of ALL items. This will eliminate the temptation to play with any item in your pocket. Chewing gum or candy – obviously this is to be avoided. Having a drink available to take a sip occasionally is OK. Playing with chalk, markers, pens or pointers – we often do this without even thinking about it. When done with any item, put it down until it is needed again. This is also a good idea if you use a remote controller for PowerPoint presentations and there are fairly long pauses before you need to change the slide. When playing with items, participants eyes will be drawn to the object and they may miss points you are trying to make. Student manual page 18
• #6: Go through these items on the next three slides and point out those that are common to the list of annoying habits the group made. Ask participants for suggestions on how to control these bad presentation habits. Chewing gum or candy – obviously this is to be avoided. Having a drink available to take a sip occasionally is OK. Playing with chalk, markers, pens or pointers – we often do this without even thinking about it. When done with any item, put it down until it is needed again. This is also a good idea if you use a remote controller for PowerPoint presentations and there are fairly long pauses before you need to change the slide. When playing with items, participants eyes will be drawn to the object and they may miss points you are trying to make. Distracting jewelry – long dangling/jingling earrings, necklaces and bracelets can be very distracting and pull attention away from your message. Remove them, or wear very small, conservative jewelry. Fidgeting – normally a sign of nervousness. Stress reduction techniques can help with this. Student manual page 17
• #7: Verbal pauses – ah, umm, and uh, etc. These are quite difficult to control. Many people have these as a part of their regular speech pattern. For others, this only shows up when the person is nervous. If you have the luxury of practicing in front of others, you might ask them to raise their hand every time they hear one of these. You normally can’t ask a co-trainer to do this during actual presentations as it will normally throw you off from what you are trying to say. If you don’t get this under control, some participant will surely become bored and start making tick marks on paper just to keep track “for fun.” Repeated words or phrases – many examples such as “OK,” “like,” “and now,” etc. Overusing phrases like “I understand” causes them to lose their meaning. I once had a co-trainer that would always say, “this is very important.” Unfortunately he said it before every single point he made during the lesson. All of the suggestions for verbal pauses also apply here. Speaking too loudly, softly, quickly or slowly – Often we do not know if we are doing this without feedback from others and then we have to practice the correct way. Remember to project your voice loudly enough for the person in the back of the room to hear you, but not so loudly that the people down the hall also can hear every word. Using jargon and acronyms – There are many technical terms and phrases as well as acronyms that we are very familiar with and use everyday that might be unknown to our audiences. Who can think of an example? “Sero-conversion”, “Sero-discordant couples”, “EBI’s”, MSM’s. Making up answers – We all want to have all the answers. You don’t want to give incorrect information. Just remember, it is OK to say I don’t know. Student manual page 17 Silence isn’t always a bad thing. Empty spaces don’t always need to be filled in.
• #8: Most of the items on our list of annoying attributes can be controlled if we can control our nervousness. Being nervous before a presentation is completely natural and normal. There are steps we can take to reduce the amount of stress we feel. BE PREPARED – If we are not, or do not feel, totally prepared, our nervousness is much more pronounced. Take every step necessary before stepping before a group to be as prepared as possible. PRACTICE – Hardly anything (outside of drugs) will ease your stress as much as when you have practiced and feel totally at ease with your subject and with the materials used to present the subject. Make sure you have your introduction down pat! Most of your nervousness will go away after you begin speaking. Nailing your introduction will give you confidence and give you a chance to settle down. Introducing yourself, the subject and then letting the participants introduce themselves will allow you time to settle down. Of course having participants introduce themselves is not always feasible, but introduce yourself and your subject. Release as much adrenaline as possible before getting up to speak. Stand in a doorway or against a wall and push as hard as possible. Grab hold of your chair seat bottom, while sitting, and pull as hard as possible. This will expend built up adrenaline and help control shaking. And, did I mention practice, practice, practice! Most people are rooting for you to do a good job! Student manual page 19 Also, supplemental reading, page 10
• #9: This slide and the next is just a humorous point that the old cliché of imagining your audience naked does not work. If you think anyone in the group might be offended, hide the slide.
• #10: Again, go through these and point out those that are on the group’s list of positive attributes. These are the skills we want to practice and enhance. Talk at the educational level of the audience – Don’t talk “over the heads of” or “down to” your audience. Acknowledge all answers to questions – Whenever a participant replies with an answer – right or wrong – acknowledge the input. If they are correct, say something like, “exactly” or “very good” or “correct” or “good answer.” Just make sure you use a variety of ways to acknowledge a correct answer and don’t get stuck using the same phrase over and over. Do not tell them “You’re wrong.” Rather say something like, well, I think a closer answer would be…” or “Another way to think about that might be…” or “OK, thank you, does anyone have anything different?” Answer all questions – make some type of reply. If you do not know an answer, you might throw it back to the rest of the class to see if anyone knows. If nobody does, or others are just guessing, tell the person you will find out and get back with them, and then do it. If you are getting a lot of questions that seem to be off track, tell them you would like to put that “in the parking lot” to answer during break, after class, or at another time that is appropriate. And don’t interrupt. Wait for them to finish asking the question. Don’t make up answers. Clarify if you don’t understand – often participants will use slang or terminology that the facilitator won’t be familiar with. Student manual page 19
• #11: Again, go through these and point out those that are on the group’s list of positive attributes. These are the skills we want to practice and enhance. Manage time – Become very familiar with your agenda. Participants get anxious and can’t learn if they don’t get regular breaks (at least every 2 hours, 90 minutes is better) and class starts and ends as announced. Be flexible – At the same time that you want to stay on schedule, you want to remain flexible. The best facilitators know their material and agenda well, but can make changes and adapt the agenda as necessary. Keep your energy at a high level – This takes some effort and thought on your part, particularly if it is material you have presented on numerous occasions. Remember, it is your participants first time to hear it. Be enthusiastic without being phony! Maintain eye contact – this is a critical skill. Most of us have a “favorite” side of the room we will always look at, or we will pick out the “friendly” faces and concentrate our eyes on those individuals. Every participant needs to be looked in the eyes on a random basis. Don’t stare or hold the contact for too long. Just a couple of seconds is sufficient. When we fail to maintain eye contact, we are sending messages such as “I don’t really believe in this subject,” or “I am really, really nervous and unprepared,” or, if nothing else, “I am a ‘mousy’ (unassertive) person.” Be sincere – Often, this is just being yourself. You have to believe in yourself and believe in the message you are conveying. You have to be honest, polite, genuine, friendly, respectful, and project this to your participants. Student manual page 19
• #12: Be articulate and clear – Sometimes when we are nervous, our language can become hard to understand. If you are someone whose speech can be hard to understand, it will be important to be very familiar with what you are going to say and to practice it before you are in front of your audience. Use inflection – (say this in a monotonous tone) The last thing you want to do is bore your audience to the point of tears with a voice that always has the same tone. Adding some inflection to your tone adds variety and captures your audiences attention. Be sincere – Often, this is just being yourself. You have to believe in yourself and believe in the message you are conveying. You have to be honest, polite, genuine, friendly, respectful, and project this to your participants. Care about your audience – If you sincerely like your audience, it shows. This applies even more to when you are facilitating, but it is worth repeating later… Student manual page 20
• #13: Cont. from previous slide We all want to be effective and help our participants understand our message. It takes constant effort to work on skills that will help us do just that and to get rid of the annoying habits that take away from our goal. Review Question Answers: AVOID Pacing Standing in one place Turning back on audience Jingling change in your pockets Chewing gum or candy while presenting Playing with chalk, markers, pens or pointers Fidgeting Distracting jewelry Numerous verbal pauses Repeated words or phrases Speaking too loudly, softly, quickly or slowly Using jargon and acronymns Making up answers Attributes of a good presenter : Talk at the educational level of your audience Acknowledge all answers to questions Answer all questions Clarify when you don’t understand Manage time Be flexible Keep a high energy level Maintain eye contact Be articulate and clear Use inflection Be sincere Care about your audience
• #14: For your ten minute presentation, you must use a technique other than, or in addition to the lecture technique.