You stand confidently in front of the room in a position of power. You’ve practiced the pitch. It’s simple, clear, and brief. Your slides are beautiful. You feel like a presentation rock star. You’re ready. People are starting to walk into the room. Suddenly, you look down and notice – you’ve forgotten your pants!
It’s a dream – or nightmare – used to describe the fear presenters often face. Usually a sign you’ve forgotten something, but what?
The Presentation Rock Star of Design and Delivery
Are you lacking confidence? No.
You’ve practiced over and over again. You can deliver the presentation with confidence and professionalism. It’s smooth!
Have you missed the mark in the design? No.
The slides have just the right detail and are visually appealing using beautiful images with very little text. It’s a work of art.
The issue isn’t your design or delivery, but where you begin preparation.
The Presentation Rock Star – Isn’t You
When you begin presentation prep, do you start with what’s important to you? If so, that may be the wrong place to start.
Before one word hits the page, you need to start first with the right perspective.
The most important perspective to recognize is the true rock star of the room: the audience.
Missing this first step places you, the presenter, as the star of the show. You create the presentation to show off your ideas or your company’s strengths and credentials.
The true powerful presentation places the audience as the star and recognizes their power in determining whether or not the presentation is a success. Only your audience has the power to move your idea forward.
So the next time you sit down to prepare for a presentation, put yourself in your audience’s place and ask yourself: what does the audience need to know, see, feel, hear or do in order to accept my idea?
Begin with the end in mind. Make the audience the presentation rock star.
