Introduction to Presentation Skills Lecture - Rick Ferguson

During today's lecture presented by Rick Ferguson, he demonstrated many techniques and skills when delivering an presentation to an audience. 

These were the following points he would go through during the presentation: 

• How we might want to behave during a presentation? (and what we might want to avoid behaving like)
• How we might choose to structure a presentation? (and what we might want to avoid)
• How to decide what kind of content we might include? (and what to content we might want to avoid)

System 1 (intuitive) 

System 2 (logical) 

Albert Mehribain's communication model on the relative importance of the different ways in which we communicate. 

• The way we say words 
• Non-verbal behaviour (body language) 
• Words we use 

The pie chart below shows which one of these are the most effective whilst delivering a presentation. 

Then we had to repeat this sentence 'It's all about tomorrow, tomorrow, and tomorrow.' in the following order. 

• Speed - can vary - choose when you want to speed up slightly, and slow down slightly. 
• Volume - can vary, but the main consideration is that you can be heard! 
• Pitch - decide where to vary the pitch, to pose a question or to emphasise words. 

'Okay, so, em, It's, em, all about, y'know, tomorrow, and em, tomorrow, em, and, em tomorrow.' 

'(pause) It's all about (pause) tomorrow (pause) tomorrow, (pause) and tomorrow.' 

• Avoid crutch words - (so, okay, right then, moving on, um, err... inappropriate laughing etc.) - use a pause instead. 
• Appropriate eye contact 
• Awareness of unconscious 'tic's'/movements. Be aware of gestures. 

How we might choose to structure a presentation? (and what we might want to avoid?)

Structure: 

• 'Bookending' - (mentioning something at the start of your presentation and returning to it at the end.)
• Power of 3 - (we only tend to be able to remember 3 main things - any more than this and our brain has difficulty coping). 

• Intro (including bookend 1)
• First section 
• Second section 
• Third section 
• Conclusion (including bookend 2) 

How to decide what kind of content we might include? (and what to content we might want to avoid)

• Head (where, what, how)
• Heart (why, who, who else) 

Logical Level diagram

Next time...