Tips for a Great Presentation

When one finishes a project, design, or whatever it may be, it is a great feeling. However, the project is only as good as the presentation of it. One can have a great project but have it lose credibility with a poor presentation. Here are a few tips brought to you by Mark Suster on how to give a great presentation in order for one's project to reach its full potential.

1. Show some energy!

No great presentation can be delivered like a conversation. You're not lecturing to a college class, you're not at a cocktail party and you're not chatting with a small group in a board meeting. You're on stage! 

2. Tell a story

Every great presentation tells a story. A story has a beginning, middle, and end. They humanize issues and stir emotions. They bring your product to life, but are not buzzwords or bullet points.

3. Learn how to structure

 Telling a story is one thing, but make sure that you have structure. You need to break down your message into key components, which all follow a theme or thesis. You then need sub-themes or supporting evidence to reinforce your key theme. These are weaved through your story.

4. Know your audience 

5. Be unique and memorable

 Remember that most speaking events have a ton of other speakers--most are exceedingly boring. They all start to blend together. Make sure you do something that makes you stand out.

6. KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid)

The goal of the presentation is just to give the audience a basic sense of what you do and why it matters. Don't confuse this with a tour-de-force education on the finer details of how your company's operates.

7. Summarize 

 The old line about presenting was, "tell us what you're going to tell us, tell us, and then tell us what you told us." If you do this it will be very boring, but the core idea is right.

8. Make it visual 

Bullet points were the worst thing ever created for group presentations. Nobody wants to read your text on a big screen. The way to capture an audience's attention is visually. Pictures set the image, your voice tells what would have been in the bullet points.

9. Practice 

You actually need to do a dry run in front of friends, colleagues, and others. There is only one way to know how your presentation will go and this is by getting real feedback from your listeners. Ask them to be harsh, it's better that you know now than when you deliver it in front of 300 people.

10. Stick to your allotted time

 If you've been given six minutes then plan a presentation that can be done in five. Trust me, whatever amount of time you've gone over in practice it will be longer when you're on stage. And if you're done a minute early, bravo!

For a more in depth description of each point visit http://www.inc.com/mark-suster/10-tips-for-a-killer-presentation.html