I have a few presentation suggestions that have worked well for me. If you like the suggestions and they fit your personality/presentation style, then great...please use them to success.
Engage the crowd. Audiences want to, and love to, interact with the presenter when they know their contributions will result in a positive experience. At appropriate points in a presentation, ask the audience, "What has been your experience with this concept?", "What successes have you had with this principle?", "What things must you look out for when applying this idea?", "What risks can you forsee while implementing this?", "How can you effectively manage such risks without losing the benefits of this concept?"
Always compliment contributions; never react to participation in such a way that the contributor feels embarrassed or regrets their participation.
Another suggestion for engaging your audience achieves the following results:
1) Immediately breaks the ice
2) Conveys to the crowd that you are willing to have fun
3) Reinforces and encourages audience participation in your presentation
4) Engenders good humour amongst the crowd
5) Prevents low blood sugar
It has nearly become a trademark for me and an expectation amongst "return customers" to my presentations, that after I begin a presentation, when I ask questions or when people raise their hand to participate, following their participation, I toss them a piece of wrapped chocolate candy (such as Hersheys Kisses, Dove Chocolate pieces, anything Cadbury, et cetera). The crowd quickly gets the idea that if they particpate, they get chocolate. (If you use Hersheys Kisses, you can also throw in at an appropriate moment, "What's your boss going to say when you get back to the office and tell her/him you got a 'kiss' from the seminar presenter?" It gets a good laugh, regardless of whether you use it on a guy or a gal.
Be humourous. I know that some say, "I can't do that...I'm just not funny." No matter who it is (even professional comedians), being funny is a
learned skill that comes with
practice and
testing. Practice being funny in front of family, friends, and co-workers. Don't start out by saying "Hey, I have a joke for you," or "Hey, let me tell you a funny story." Such lead-ins always reduce the "funny-factor" of what you are going to tell them. You can, however, start out by interjecting in an already-running conversation, "That reminds me of the guy that..." (You'll be surprised how your attempts at humour, both successful and failures, can enhance your relationships with your test audience.)
Start gathering an electronic file of amusing anecdotes about your life, profession, friends, et cetera. I don't leave home without a printout of my "jokes.doc" file tucked away in my brief case. You needn't let the crowd see that you have "crib sheets" for your jokes. (If you don't have your own "jokes.doc" file already, perhaps with John's (CajunCenturion's) concurrence, we could start a thread of "Anecdotes and humor for Presentations"...we could give Purple Stars to the real "gut busters".)
Using humour is not only a great way to break up the tedium of an otherwise monotonous topic, but it is also a good way to re-focus everyone following a break or to start the day.
Avoid giving the impression of being an arrogant 'Know-it-all'. There is a thin line between instilling in your audience confidence and trust in your presentation versus coming across as an arrogant know-it-all. Among the techniques of instilling quiet confidence (and also sharing the "Knowledge Glow" among others in the audience) is to occasionally respond to a particularly good question from the audience with, "That's a very good question...what are some responses from the rest of you to her/his question?" Then, when appropriate, bring the suggestions to a close with a good summary from you along with additional ideas you have that the other contributors overlooked.
Another way to infuse humour and to avoid the 'know-it-all' syndrome is to tell anecdotes from your personal experience that illustrates what can happen if/when you do not follow the particular prinicple that you are presently presenting. Appropriate self-deprecation reassures the audience that you are human, as well, and that you know from personal experience what can happen when you don't apply principles correctly.
Ultimately, audiences love to see/know that the person up front is a human, that s/he has shared experiences with the audience, and that the presentation will be as entertaining and as enjoyable as it is informative.
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Mufasa
(aka Dave of Sandy, Utah, USA)
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