Presentation Do Nots

• Do not depend on bullet points – the worst presenters simply read every single word on the screen. The presentation is used almost like bunch of notes, instead of a tool to convey a message designed to interest the audience. Relying on bullet points makes the presenter almost robotic. Here is what you could do instead:
o Approach the presentation from an entirely different angle. Keep your audience in suspense, keep them guessing. Do not go off on a tangent and then lost the plot, which will only make your audience wonder if they missed something.
o Have variety – throw in some interesting pictures or cartoons. Put together a presentation that really stands out.
o Readable – ensure that your audience is able to follow the flow of your presentation. The text on your slides must be easy to read. Keep it absolutely simple.
• Do not make it boring – if your presentation suffers from lack of interest or humour – then you have probably lost your audience after the first few slides. As a presenter, you do not have to be poker-faced or newscaster-like.
o Engage someone in your office who is creative and funny. Ask him to help you with your presentation. Make it interesting, entertaining and most importantly – memorable.
• Do not state the obvious – it really is a waste of time for your audience to listen to you drone on about stuff they already know. Everyone wants to listen to someone with new ideas, someone who has something different to say, something insightful. Make your presentation unique.
• Do not use conflicting image types – if you have chosen to use black and white pictures, then, stick with it. If your presentation calls for cartoons, then so be it. God forbid that you mix up black and white, with retro to clip art [do not ever use it] and thus, end up having a presentation which seems visually confused.
• Do not forget to proofread your presentation – if you do not trust yourself to proofread your presentation, then, get someone else competent enough. The slightest error could put all your hard work into jeopardy.