Transcript Oral Presentation Skills

Speaking professionally...
Oral Presentation Skills
Adam Warren
[email protected]
02380 594486
Learning and Teaching
Enhancement Unit
Aims and Objectives
• why are you are making a presentation?
• what do you want to achieve?
• what message do you want the audience
to take away?
• what will they will gain from listening?
set yourself a written list of three goals
Advance publicity
• info for conference programme:
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title of talk - make it sound attractive
summary - what are you going to talk about?
objectives - what will people get out of it?
structure - how many people? how will it run?
what resources/equipment will you need?
• objective is to attract an audience
– most conferences run parallel sessions
The Audience
• to hold their attention, you need to
know:
– who you are talking to
– their level of prior knowledge
– roughly how many people will be there
• how can you grab their attention?
• how can you interact with them?
Gaining attention
• make the audience listen to you from the
very beginning of your talk
– plan the start carefully
• relate your talk to familiar concepts using:
– examples
– anecdotes
– analogies
Interaction
• involve your audience to help them
learn and remember more
– be sensitive to atmosphere
– use analogies and anecdotes
– get them to do something
– ask them direct questions
– ask for questions
Selecting material
• what to choose, what to leave out?
– always more material than time available
– a limit to how much the audience can absorb
• select relevant material which:
– the audience understands and find interesting
– can be explained by a variety of means such
as examples, statistics, graphs and analogies
The structure of your talk
• organise your material into:
– the introduction
– the main body
– the summary or conclusion
creating OHP slides can help you do this
The introduction
• introduce yourself
• describe (briefly!) what you are going to
talk about and its context
• briefly outline the structure of the talk
don’t spend more than 2 minutes on this
The body of your talk
• cover what the audience
– needs to know
– wants to know
• divide material into ‘bite-sized’ chunks
• provide a logical sequence
• use examples and visual aids
The summary
• what message do you want the audience
to take away?
– summarise main points
– ask for and deal with questions
– conclude on a high note
• let the audience know you have finished
Prepare yourself
• preparation time will reap benefits in
the moments before and during your
presentation - think about the following:
– coping with nerves
– using prompts and visual aids
– how you will stand and talk
Coping with nerves
• being nervous is natural - it’s a good sign
and shows the adrenaline is flowing
• make nerves work for you not against you:
– rationalise about why you are nervous
– take a few deep breaths to calm yourself
– rehearse well, time your presentation and
know your opening lines by heart
Don’t panic!
• if you do ‘dry up’, lose track of what you
are saying or have a technical problem:
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pause - have a drink of water
regain your composure
backtrack if necessary
start when you are ready
if you can’t fix technical problems quickly,
revert to your contingency plan
Prompts
• don’t read from a script - it is lifeless
and boring to listen to
• use prompts to keep you on track
– use thin card so they don’t rustle
– use a large font, so you can read them from
a distance
– highlight the main points
Using visual aids
• are they relevant and easy to read?
– clear and concise text
– clear colours and good contrast
– use diagrams
– show charts and graphs rather than data
• practise your talk with the visual aids
– mark in your notes when they are to be used
Stand and deliver
• if you have a choice, make sure:
– the audience can see you clearly
– you are not surrounded by distractions
• windows with bright sunshine, passing traffic
– you are not disturbed by external noises
– all equipment and controls are to hand
– there is somewhere to put your notes
Speaking
• speak clearly - don’t rush
• project your voice - speak to be heard at
the back of the venue
• have a glass of water available
• introduce unfamiliar jargon and acronyms
• keep track of the time
• relax! talk to your audience, not at them
Posture
• your gestures, body language and facial
expressions should help support what
you are saying and help you project a
confident image.
– stand up straight; a sloppy posture invites a
negative reaction from the audience
– move around, but don’t sway or pace
Do’s and don’ts
– look at the audience, scanning rather than
focusing on one person
– talk to the audience, not to the floor,
ceiling, flip-chart, whiteboard or your notes
– use your hands to emphasise a point, but
don’t wave them around
– don’t put your hands in pockets or grip the
podium
Check out the venue
• if possible, visit the venue beforehand
• be aware of any danger zones such as
wires and steps
• find out what equipment is present
– will you need to organise other resources?
• will you need to rearrange the furniture?
– if so, allow plenty of time before your talk
Test the equipment
• make sure you know how it works
– room lighting?
– power sockets for computers and projectors?
• have a contingency plan in case of
technical problems
– OHP slides in case of computer problems
– handouts which could be photocopied at the
last moment
Final preparations
• rehearse your presentation out loud
(in front of others, if possible)
• pay attention to timing - cut material if
you are going to take too long
• plan your timetable around your
presentation to make sure you arrive in
plenty of time
• allow time for delays and hitches
Resources
• this presentation and other useful
links are on the Web at:
http://www.lateu.soton.ac.uk/events/workshops/
OPS/OPSdetails.aspx