PRESENTATION SKILLS -- SELLING YOUR AGENDA

Click to download:

• The Module Objectives (.pdf)
• The presentation materials (slides) from this session (.pdf)
• The worksheets from this session
  • The Story Spine Handout (.pdf)
  • Storytelling Spine Worksheet (.docx)
    
  • Presentation Development Worksheet (.docx)
• The Briefing Sheet for Module 7 (.docx)

The focus of this Module is on providing you with tools for developing effective presentations for the audience you are speaking with. The skills taught will include how to develop your narrative, create engaging first impressions, craft a powerful close, eliminate stage fright, and effectively use your energy..

MATERIALS

• Harvard Business Review, "How to Give a Killer Presentation" (Chris Anderson, June 2013) at https://hbr.org/2013/06/how-to-give-a-killer-presentation
• Harvard Business Review, “How to Become an Authentic Speaker” (Nick Morgan, November 2008) at https://hbr.org/2008/11/how-to-become-an-authentic-speaker
• Harvard Business Review, “Create a Conversation, Not a Presentation” (John Coleman, July 29, 2015) at https://hbr.org/2015/07/create-a-conversation-not-a-presentation
• Harvard Business Review, “Visualizations that Really Work” (Scott Berinato, June 2016) at https://hbr.org/2016/06/visualizations-that-really-work
• Matt Abrahams: “Speaking Up Without Freaking Out.” TEDxPaloAlto, June 7, 2018, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIXvKKEQQJo (link provided under terms of a Creative Commons license, BY–NC–ND 4.0 International)

TASKS

• Prepare a 2-3 minute presentation about “a lesson that I’ve learned from living through the conditions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.” Some ideas: how well you have been able to work from home; your multitasking strategies; the importance of your physical space; work/life balance; family life; etc. Your audience for the presentation is the members of your cohort.
• Please make sure to create your video on the GoReact platform no later than 9 a.m. on July 12 (extended deadline). (See GoReact instructions at the end of the document version of the Briefing Sheet, downloadable above.)
  • Watch and comment on your video.
  • Provide comments in GoReact to the presentations recorded by the members of your cohort by no later than July 16.
  • Either Jeanine, Robert or Ilene will also make comments on your video by no later than July 16.
  • Drawing from your assessment of your video and the comments you received from others, identify ONE area you would like to improve and ONE area you would like to keep the same in your original presentation. Prepare a revised version of your remarks (do not record this version on GoReact) that you will deliver “live” in breakout rooms on July 20, and possibly to the whole group.
• Before your next cohort meeting, deliberately observe the presentation skills of speakers at meetings. Use a notebook with you to capture your experience.
  • How would you evaluate each speaker’s eye contact? Natural smile? Pace? Tone of voice? Volume? Ability to connect quickly with you? Hold your attention?
  • How would you evaluate the overall content of their presentations?
  • How did the virtual environment impact both the speaker and your ability to listen?
  • Today – now removed from the presentation(s) what do you recall? What lasting impression have they had on you?
• Bring with you to your cohort meeting a past slide deck that you have used for a presentation. (If you don’t have one of your own, bring a deck from a presentation you attended.) Spend some time with your group looking at each other’s decks and talking about what stands out as effective and what challenges you see.

PERSONAL REFLECTION

• What is your current belief about yourself as a public speaker?
• Why would someone go out of their way to hear you deliver a presentation?
• What kind of feedback have you received recently about a presentation you have given?
• How do you try to differentiate yourself as a speaker?

COHORT MEETING (Meet to discuss the following BEFORE Classroom Session)

• Check in and share any additional learning from the previous session.
• Share your observations of speakers at meetings and their impact on you.
• Share your takeaways from the readings.
• Share any general observations about one another’s GoReact recordings.
• With regard to the TEDxPaloAlto video, discuss your own comfort/anxiety level about giving a presentation.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Learn the requisite non-verbal communication strategies that create positive connections
• Learn how to develop your own narrative as a context for “Why”, “How,” and “What” you want to convey in your messages
• Learn how to create engaging first impressions that get attention quickly
• Learn how to craft a powerful close that creates a lasting impression
• Discover remedies to minimize “stage fright” and how to use that energy in your presentation
• Practice delivering a short presentation with peer and instructor feedback
• Consider the impact of the virtual and hybrid settings on presentations
• Prepare for the final Module at which you will present a formal presentation to other members of the Class of 2021, members of the Board of Advisors, and other invited ACC NCR members