A Good Presentation

Today I participated in College Pathways, a day for high school juniors and their parents to learn about planning, applying and paying for college.  I saw four different presentations, all of them different.  I reflected afterward on what makes a good presentation.

It depends, of course, on several factors:  the topic, the audience, the forum, even the weather.  The second best presentation of the four was in the worst forum--a gymnasium with bleachers.  It was not a comfortable setting and the sound was poor.  The presenters, however, overcame the challenges and engaged the participants.  They were participants, too, not just spectators.  Another presentation was in a large auditorium, with a Power Point slide show, and the interaction was limited.  When a presenter interacts with the participants, it becomes their experience, where they can learn and take part.  The lecture format may be necessary at times, but the learning from it simply can't match a more experiential presentation.

Engaging is not enough, however.  How a presenter engages is important.  Telling bad jokes or making references that the audience members do not understand will not work.  One presenter made a reference to Arsenio Hall, who had a talk show long before the memory of any of the students present.  They weren't going to get that one. 

The best presenter of the day used language that a high school student would understand (and presented in the same challenging gymnasium).  He feigned being disappointed in himself, whining "I suck and this sucks, why me?"  He then asked participants to raise their hands if they ever said that something sucked.  Then he asked them to raise their hands if they ever had a parent ask, "Can't you use another word?"  Then he asked, "How many of you didn't raise your hand because you are sitting next to a parent and don't want to use that word because you know you will get that question later?"  That is engagement.

A good presenter knows the topic, can read the audience and rarely sticks to the plan.  A question arises and it lead the discussion (rather than the lecture, even if the format is primarily lecture-based) in a new direction.  The audience gets excited about one topic and more time gets spent on that topic.  A good presenter gets names and pertinent information from those attending.  That brings people in.  Even those not fully engaged, and not asked a question, pay more attention because they might get the next question. 

Knowing the information is important.  Having a plan is important.  Being flexible is critical, at least for a memorable presentation.  Want someone to look back and ask "remember that guy who gave that workshop about the effects of interest rates on college major selection?"  A dry topic, perhaps, but a good presenter brings it alive.  Being flexible allows a presenter to craft a session to those present.  If I attend and it really was aimed at me, I will remember the information as well as the presenter.

When I provided teambuilding programs regularly, I would make a plan A and I would make a plan B and then I would offer the program with the plan C that I had not fully planned in advance.  I was prepared but I was flexible.  So much depended on the reactions and questions and dynamics of the group that sticking to the script would have been a recipe for failure.  Who's hungry for that?

The presenters today gave me much to consider.  They each offered elements that worked for their groups, but some were clearly better than others.  I present much less than I used to, but I am going to present for a national conference in a few weeks.  I would like to provide a dynamite, not just effective, presentation.  I need to know what I am talking about.  I need to plan what I will offer and how.  And then I need to have a menu ready for the people that show up. 

It isn't easy to present this way.  It requires risk and trust.  It is easier to put together a Power Point slide show and repeat what it displays.  But those presentations suck.  That seems the right word for it, wouldn't you say, Mom?