Take a peek inside . . .
I know that you are eager to get started, and I am just as eager to share all the great tips in this book with you, so I am going to give you a quick peek ahead at some of them right here and right now.
Tips for everyone
Rather than chapters, this book is broken down by Tip Numbers. The first fifteen tips apply to all presenters and are broken into three sections: Before the Presentation, During the Presentation and After the Presentation.
• Tip Number 6 will help you refine your presentation skills by helping you to learn from the masters and from the duds.
• Tip Number 8 will tell you the four step process that all high-profile professional speakers use to handle questions from the audience.
• Tip Number 9 will solve the problem of how to get attendees back to their seats when the break is over.
• Tip Number 10 will help you dramatically improve your presentation in two easy steps; you will be amazed by the improvements that you will make from just this one tip.
• Tip Number 11 will tell you how to get audience feedback (positive and negative) after every presentation.
• Tip Number 13 will reveal the benefits to be reaped by following a Pre-Presentation Checklist and doing an After Action Report after every presentation.
And those are just six of the highlights from the first fifteen tips.
• Tip Number 6 will help you refine your presentation skills by helping you to learn from the masters and from the duds.
• Tip Number 8 will tell you the four step process that all high-
• Tip Number 9 will solve the problem of how to get attendees back to their seats when the break is over.
• Tip Number 10 will help you dramatically improve your presentation in two easy steps; you will be amazed by the improvements that you will make from just this one tip.
• Tip Number 11 will tell you how to get audience feedback (positive and negative) after every presentation.
• Tip Number 13 will reveal the benefits to be reaped by following a Pre-
And those are just six of the highlights from the first fifteen tips.
Tips for those who use presentation software
(and those who want to start)
(and those who want to start)
The next ten tips apply to presenters who use some type of presentation software, such as Microsoft PowerPoint, Apple KeyNote, Adobe Presenter, Corel Presentations, and Open Office Impress. These tips are broken down into two sections: Preparing for the Presentation and During the Presentation.
• If you use a break slide and/or a lunch slide, Tip Number 16 will teach you how to make those slides come up exactly on time, every time—no exceptions.
• After reading Tip Number 17, you will be able to take a break, navigate to a special break slide, start a countdown timer on the break slide, and then (after the break) return to exactly where you were when the break started, and, most importantly, you will be able to do all this seamlessly and with only two clicks.
• Tip Number 18 will tell you how to create and run your own promotional message (if you desire) before your presentation, during a break, and/or immediately after your presentation.
• Tip Number 21 will enable you to respond to a question by navigating to a secret page, pulling up the full text of the reference(s) you need to support your answer, and then return to exactly where you were in your presentation, without skipping a beat.
• Tip Number 25 will reveal the secret to never running out of material (if you must fill a specific time slot) and how to always end your presentation precisely on time.
These are only five of the ten tips that go way beyond smoke and mirrors; they take you and your presentation to a higher level of professionalism and elegance. Let’s get started right now.
• If you use a break slide and/or a lunch slide, Tip Number 16 will teach you how to make those slides come up exactly on time, every time—no exceptions.
• After reading Tip Number 17, you will be able to take a break, navigate to a special break slide, start a countdown timer on the break slide, and then (after the break) return to exactly where you were when the break started, and, most importantly, you will be able to do all this seamlessly and with only two clicks.
• Tip Number 18 will tell you how to create and run your own promotional message (if you desire) before your presentation, during a break, and/or immediately after your presentation.
• Tip Number 21 will enable you to respond to a question by navigating to a secret page, pulling up the full text of the reference(s) you need to support your answer, and then return to exactly where you were in your presentation, without skipping a beat.
• Tip Number 25 will reveal the secret to never running out of material (if you must fill a specific time slot) and how to always end your presentation precisely on time.
These are only five of the ten tips that go way beyond smoke and mirrors; they take you and your presentation to a higher level of professionalism and elegance. Let’s get started right now.
Some can do, and some can teach. To be able to do both is rare. Carlton C. Casler is one of the rare teachers who can do what he teaches—and he’s done it brilliantly in this guidebook for presentation excellence. This book is not only for the beginning speaker, but it is also for seasoned presenters who think they are good—very good.
The format makes this book a combination manual, how-to guidebook, reference book, and self-improvement tool. Reading it once isn’t enough. You’ll want to study it and highlight each tip that you will want to implement immediately to take your next presentation to new heights.
In the first thirty-five minutes, two tips in this book leaped off the page, grabbed my mind, and shouted “Use me and use me now!” You’ll experience the same revelation. Your next presentation will be much better than your last one—once you read all twenty-five tips! Start immediately!
The format makes this book a combination manual, how-
– Joel Weldon
Mr. Weldon is one of the founding members of the National Speakers Association and has been a professional speaker for over thirty-
• The GOLDEN GAVEL, "for his profound impact on corporate America,"
• The coveted Communication & Leadership Award,
• Induction into the Speakers Hall of Fame, and
• In 2006 he was named "Legend of the Speaking Profession."
I dislike books that insist on chronicling the author’s life story – since birth. I thought seriously about simply stating that I have done a lot of presentations and leaving it at that, but I recognize that these tips are useless to you unless you know that I am an experienced presenter. Consequently, my background is deliberately short, but relevant.
I have been a public speaker, presenter, and trainer since 1983. I started in the United States Army as a trainer of other soldiers. I quickly rose to a position in which I gave regular presentations to the commanding general of the military base where I was stationed and his subordinate commanders. After the army, I went to law school and became an attorney; the focus of my practice was, and still is, real estate and contract law. When I present my legal theories to a judge or a closing argument to a jury, I regard it as a type of presentation. Since becoming a lawyer in 1990, I have been involved in hundreds of trials/presentations. In 1993 I was approved as a real estate instructor by my state’s department of real estate and I opened my first real estate school. Several years later I opened a second real estate school. I still operate and instruct at both real estate schools. I have written and presented countless courses about real estate. These courses were (and still are) written for and presented to judges, attorneys, and real estate brokers and salespersons. I have presented course material live, online, on audio tape, and on video tape/disc. And finally, I am a professional member of the National Speakers Association. I have, quite literally, given thousands of presentations.
The tips included in the book are the result of many years, many presentations, and, unfortunately, many presentations that could have been better. I am confident that every presenter who reads this book will discover at least one tip (if not many) that will improve his or her own presentation and make the presentation experience more enjoyable for both the presenter and the audience. After all, if you do not enjoy giving your presentation or your audience doesn’t enjoy seeing and hearing your presentation, then you have missed the point of being a professional speaker.
I have been a public speaker, presenter, and trainer since 1983. I started in the United States Army as a trainer of other soldiers. I quickly rose to a position in which I gave regular presentations to the commanding general of the military base where I was stationed and his subordinate commanders. After the army, I went to law school and became an attorney; the focus of my practice was, and still is, real estate and contract law. When I present my legal theories to a judge or a closing argument to a jury, I regard it as a type of presentation. Since becoming a lawyer in 1990, I have been involved in hundreds of trials/presentations. In 1993 I was approved as a real estate instructor by my state’s department of real estate and I opened my first real estate school. Several years later I opened a second real estate school. I still operate and instruct at both real estate schools. I have written and presented countless courses about real estate. These courses were (and still are) written for and presented to judges, attorneys, and real estate brokers and salespersons. I have presented course material live, online, on audio tape, and on video tape/disc. And finally, I am a professional member of the National Speakers Association. I have, quite literally, given thousands of presentations.
The tips included in the book are the result of many years, many presentations, and, unfortunately, many presentations that could have been better. I am confident that every presenter who reads this book will discover at least one tip (if not many) that will improve his or her own presentation and make the presentation experience more enjoyable for both the presenter and the audience. After all, if you do not enjoy giving your presentation or your audience doesn’t enjoy seeing and hearing your presentation, then you have missed the point of being a professional speaker.
The Tips, Tricks & Techniques working in concert for presentation excellence
You are a professional speaker. You were chosen for this presentation because of your credibility in this field. You are credible in this field because you stay current on trends in speaking and have taken conscious steps to “get good!” You are good because you have already: (1) critiqued your own presentation, (2) read and considered each previous attendee’s evaluation, and (3) gleaned the good and the bad from every other speaker you have seen. Your presentations are always excellent, not because you are confident and know the material (although you are, and you do), but because you select the perfect format for each presentation. You select the best format after considering ever-changing variables, including the topic, audience, resources, and the desired outcome. All is ready, but you arrive early and check everything—again. Your attire is appropriate for this particular presentation, and you have obtained all the tools you need to properly deliver this message to this audience. You use no tool that you have not mastered. Those seated in the back see and hear everything as well as those in the front, including every question and every answer. The presentation starts on time, breaks on time, and ends on time, just as you imagined it in your mind, well before the presentation actually began. Nothing goes wrong, but you are mentally prepared and systems are in place if anything (or everything) goes wrong. You speak your last word, and the audience erupts in applause. It’s over for them but not for you. There is still much for you to do: you follow up with key people and make post-presentation notes, after all, you have already promised yourself that the next one will be even better.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FOR ALL TYPES OF PRESENTATIONS
Before the Presentation
Tip Number 1:
Determine the best format for your presentation
Tip Number 2:
Get the tools that you need to make your presentation useful and relevant
Tip Number 3:
If you use any type of technology, know how to use it
Tip Number 4:
Have a “Plan B” for everything
Build your credibility and set yourself apart from the crowd
Tip Number 6:
Learn from other speakers
Tip Number 7:
Dress appropriately
Handle questions like a professional speaker
Tip Number 9:
How to get attendees back in their seats after a break
After the Presentation
Tip Number 10: (Improvement Guaranteed -
Improve your own presentation in two easy steps
Tip Number 11:
Use an audience evaluation form
Tip Number 12:
Validation
Tip Number 13:
The After Action Report and Pre-Presentation Checklist
Tip Number 14:
Have a follow-up system
Tip Number 15:
Stay current on the trends in speaking and training
FOR PRESENTATIONS THAT USE PRESENTATION SOFTWARE
Before the Presentation
Tip Number 16:
Put the break slide in the number-one position
Tip Number 17:
Hyperlink the break slide to take you back to where you were when the break started
Tip Number 18:
Hyperlink the break slide to something you want to show during the break
Tip Number 18a:
Variation of Tip 18
Tip Number 19:
The audience must be able to see your presentation
Tip Number 20:
Setup a portal slide
Tip Number 21:
Have a resource (or reference) slide
Tip Number 22:
Instant slide show of pictures
During the Presentation
Tip Number 23:
Use the Presenter View in PowerPoint (if you use PowerPoint)
Tip Number 24:
Use a remote control
Tip Number 25:
Always end your presentation on time and never run out of material
Presentation Excellence
Look for this book in libraries and bookstores under:
Business Communications, Public Speaking, Meetings & Presentations
Keywords and Tags:
Presentation Excellence, presentation skills, presentations, presenter, speaker, professional speaker, professional speaking, public speaker, public speaking, Powerpoint, Keynote