{"id":1818,"date":"2016-09-19T15:23:51","date_gmt":"2016-09-19T15:23:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-collegesuccess\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=1818"},"modified":"2024-05-01T18:33:59","modified_gmt":"2024-05-01T18:33:59","slug":"text-preparing-a-presentation","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/chapter\/text-preparing-a-presentation\/","title":{"raw":"Preparing a Presentation","rendered":"Preparing a Presentation"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Learning Outcomes<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Identify important audience considerations when preparing a presentation<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Explain how to avoid common pitfalls of visual aids in presentations<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Identify techniques to reduce anxiety prior to and during presentation delivery<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Think about the Audience<\/h2>\r\nNow that you've learned a bit about the various types of presentations, it's helpful to turn to another important part of presenting: the audience. Like reading and writing, presenting is a form of communication.\r\n\r\nWhether you're presenting information, giving a demonstration, creating a poster, or trying to change people's minds, your goal is to get your message across to your audience. A good strategy is to ask, what do I want my audience to know, believe, feel, or do as a result of my presentation? After you have answered this question, you can then determine what needs to be included or excluded in your presentation to achieve that goal. Start by considering the following questions:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What does my audience already know about my topic?<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What does my audience need to know to understand my topic?<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What is their general attitude about my topic?<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What examples or reasoning will appeal to my audience?<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What actions are they willing or capable of taking?<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nSince each audience is different, it is helpful to explore how your audience with interact with your presentation by considering presentation context and audience demographics.\r\n<ol>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The presentation context\r\n<ol>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\">Whether the audience will be live or asynchronous<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\">Whether audience attendance will be voluntary or mandatory<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The demographics\r\n<ol>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\">Size of the audience<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\">Age, geography, socio-economic information, education-level, etc.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nAs much effort as you\u2019ve put into putting together the perfect presentation for your audience, It\u2019s important to remember that your audience may not interpret the information you are presenting exactly as you have. It\u2019s your job as a presenter to explain your ideas using specific details, succinct and clear wording (avoid jargon), vivid descriptions, and meaningful images. As you organize your presentation, keeping this imaginary audience in mind can help you gauge how much background information and context to provide as well as shape the examples, visual aids, and content you include.\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/2535068d-90fa-4e62-8c70-2e10f41802da\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Choosing Media and Format for Visual Aids<\/h2>\r\nPerhaps you\u2019ve heard the phrase \"death by PowerPoint\u201d to explain that all-too-familiar feeling of being slowly bored to death by a thoughtless presenter who's droning on and on about\u00a0boring\u00a0slide after boring slide. If you'd like to know what the experience is about, and you have time for a laugh, watch the following video, starring stand-up comedian Don McMillan. McMillan pokes fun at bad presentations, but he\u00a0has some very sound\u00a0advice about what <em>not to do<\/em>.\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"\/\/plugin.3playmedia.com\/show?mf=1280716&amp;p3sdk_version=1.10.1&amp;p=20361&amp;pt=375&amp;video_id=MjcO2ExtHso&amp;video_target=tpm-plugin-t96qyms5-MjcO2ExtHso\" width=\"800px\" height=\"450px\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0px\" marginheight=\"0px\"><\/iframe>\r\n\r\nYou can view the <a href=\"https:\/\/course-building.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/College+Success\/Transcripts\/LifeAfterDeathByPowerPoint_transcript.txt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">transcript for \"Life After Death by PowerPoint (Corporate Comedy Video)\" here (opens in new window)<\/a>.\r\n\r\nYou may consider using PowerPoint for your presentation, and that's perfectly fine. PowerPoint can be a very effective tool with the right organization, layout, and design. Avoiding these five common pitfalls will go a long way toward making your PowerPoint presentation successful:\r\n<ol>\r\n \t<li><strong>Choosing a font that is too small<\/strong>. The person in the very back of the room should be able to see the same thing as the person in the front of the room.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Putting\u00a0too many words on a slide<\/strong>. Remember it\u2019s called PowerPoint, not PowerParagraph! Keep your bullet points clear and succinct.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Having spelling errors<\/strong>. Have someone proofread your slides. Any typos will detract from your presentation.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Choosing distracting colors that make it hard to read the information<\/strong>. PowerPoint gives you a lot of color choices in their design templates. The ideas in your brilliant presentation\u00a0will be lost if your audience is struggling to read the content.<\/li>\r\n \t<li><strong>Selecting images or visuals that do not clearly align with the content<\/strong>. For instance, a cute photo of your cat may look lovely up on the screen, but if it doesn\u2019t connect to your topic, it\u2019s just fluff that detracts from your message. Every slide counts, so make sure the visuals support\u00a0your message.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/4203c741-6594-4d7b-af90-0811ac54be11\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h2>Practicing for the Presentation<\/h2>\r\nOnce you've put together your presentation and have an idea of the audience that will hear and see it, it's time to deal with the nerves that can accompany the performance part of the presentation.\r\n\r\nBefore your presentation, prepare by standing and delivering before a live audience (even if it's just your cat). This practice will help you anticipate issues with timing, where you might stumble, and where elements might need rewording for clarity.\r\n\r\nPart of what can make a presentation so nerve wracking is the anxious thoughts we have in anticipation of the presentation. What if I make a mistake? What if people can tell I am nervous? To help combat those thoughts you can visualize yourself delivering your presentation well, instead of worrying about what might go wrong. Using positive visualization can help you overcome your anxious thoughts and remind you that positive outcomes are possible too.\r\n\r\nWhile you\u2019re delivering your presentation, it\u2019s natural to feel anxious. Remember, the audience is rooting for you, they actually want you to do a good job, and they\u2019re interested in what you have to say.\r\n\r\nWhile you\u2019re giving your presentation, don\u2019t underestimate the positive effect that taking a deep, restorative breath can have for you. Pausing to take a mindful breath can help you slow your heartbeat and relax your body, which will help reduce the symptoms of your anxiety.\r\n\r\nRemember, you\u2019ve worked hard as the owner of this presentation, so have confidence in your work. It\u2019s tough to remember confidence when you\u2019re nervous, but you\u2019re the person who knows the most about your presentation and your presentation is a chance for you to demonstrate what you\u2019ve learned and share that with others.\r\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\r\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\r\nhttps:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/c3943f5c-fc9a-4e51-847a-abe2442e74b1\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Learning Outcomes<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Identify important audience considerations when preparing a presentation<\/li>\n<li>Explain how to avoid common pitfalls of visual aids in presentations<\/li>\n<li>Identify techniques to reduce anxiety prior to and during presentation delivery<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Think about the Audience<\/h2>\n<p>Now that you&#8217;ve learned a bit about the various types of presentations, it&#8217;s helpful to turn to another important part of presenting: the audience. Like reading and writing, presenting is a form of communication.<\/p>\n<p>Whether you&#8217;re presenting information, giving a demonstration, creating a poster, or trying to change people&#8217;s minds, your goal is to get your message across to your audience. A good strategy is to ask, what do I want my audience to know, believe, feel, or do as a result of my presentation? After you have answered this question, you can then determine what needs to be included or excluded in your presentation to achieve that goal. Start by considering the following questions:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What does my audience already know about my topic?<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What does my audience need to know to understand my topic?<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What is their general attitude about my topic?<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What examples or reasoning will appeal to my audience?<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">What actions are they willing or capable of taking?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Since each audience is different, it is helpful to explore how your audience with interact with your presentation by considering presentation context and audience demographics.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The presentation context\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\">Whether the audience will be live or asynchronous<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\">Whether audience attendance will be voluntary or mandatory<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The demographics\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\">Size of the audience<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"2\">Age, geography, socio-economic information, education-level, etc.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>As much effort as you\u2019ve put into putting together the perfect presentation for your audience, It\u2019s important to remember that your audience may not interpret the information you are presenting exactly as you have. It\u2019s your job as a presenter to explain your ideas using specific details, succinct and clear wording (avoid jargon), vivid descriptions, and meaningful images. As you organize your presentation, keeping this imaginary audience in mind can help you gauge how much background information and context to provide as well as shape the examples, visual aids, and content you include.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_2535068d-90fa-4e62-8c70-2e10f41802da\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/2535068d-90fa-4e62-8c70-2e10f41802da?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_2535068d-90fa-4e62-8c70-2e10f41802da\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Choosing Media and Format for Visual Aids<\/h2>\n<p>Perhaps you\u2019ve heard the phrase &#8220;death by PowerPoint\u201d to explain that all-too-familiar feeling of being slowly bored to death by a thoughtless presenter who&#8217;s droning on and on about\u00a0boring\u00a0slide after boring slide. If you&#8217;d like to know what the experience is about, and you have time for a laugh, watch the following video, starring stand-up comedian Don McMillan. McMillan pokes fun at bad presentations, but he\u00a0has some very sound\u00a0advice about what <em>not to do<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/plugin.3playmedia.com\/show?mf=1280716&amp;p3sdk_version=1.10.1&amp;p=20361&amp;pt=375&amp;video_id=MjcO2ExtHso&amp;video_target=tpm-plugin-t96qyms5-MjcO2ExtHso\" width=\"800px\" height=\"450px\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0px\" marginheight=\"0px\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>You can view the <a href=\"https:\/\/course-building.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/College+Success\/Transcripts\/LifeAfterDeathByPowerPoint_transcript.txt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">transcript for &#8220;Life After Death by PowerPoint (Corporate Comedy Video)&#8221; here (opens in new window)<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>You may consider using PowerPoint for your presentation, and that&#8217;s perfectly fine. PowerPoint can be a very effective tool with the right organization, layout, and design. Avoiding these five common pitfalls will go a long way toward making your PowerPoint presentation successful:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Choosing a font that is too small<\/strong>. The person in the very back of the room should be able to see the same thing as the person in the front of the room.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Putting\u00a0too many words on a slide<\/strong>. Remember it\u2019s called PowerPoint, not PowerParagraph! Keep your bullet points clear and succinct.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Having spelling errors<\/strong>. Have someone proofread your slides. Any typos will detract from your presentation.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Choosing distracting colors that make it hard to read the information<\/strong>. PowerPoint gives you a lot of color choices in their design templates. The ideas in your brilliant presentation\u00a0will be lost if your audience is struggling to read the content.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Selecting images or visuals that do not clearly align with the content<\/strong>. For instance, a cute photo of your cat may look lovely up on the screen, but if it doesn\u2019t connect to your topic, it\u2019s just fluff that detracts from your message. Every slide counts, so make sure the visuals support\u00a0your message.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_4203c741-6594-4d7b-af90-0811ac54be11\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/4203c741-6594-4d7b-af90-0811ac54be11?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_4203c741-6594-4d7b-af90-0811ac54be11\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Practicing for the Presentation<\/h2>\n<p>Once you&#8217;ve put together your presentation and have an idea of the audience that will hear and see it, it&#8217;s time to deal with the nerves that can accompany the performance part of the presentation.<\/p>\n<p>Before your presentation, prepare by standing and delivering before a live audience (even if it&#8217;s just your cat). This practice will help you anticipate issues with timing, where you might stumble, and where elements might need rewording for clarity.<\/p>\n<p>Part of what can make a presentation so nerve wracking is the anxious thoughts we have in anticipation of the presentation. What if I make a mistake? What if people can tell I am nervous? To help combat those thoughts you can visualize yourself delivering your presentation well, instead of worrying about what might go wrong. Using positive visualization can help you overcome your anxious thoughts and remind you that positive outcomes are possible too.<\/p>\n<p>While you\u2019re delivering your presentation, it\u2019s natural to feel anxious. Remember, the audience is rooting for you, they actually want you to do a good job, and they\u2019re interested in what you have to say.<\/p>\n<p>While you\u2019re giving your presentation, don\u2019t underestimate the positive effect that taking a deep, restorative breath can have for you. Pausing to take a mindful breath can help you slow your heartbeat and relax your body, which will help reduce the symptoms of your anxiety.<\/p>\n<p>Remember, you\u2019ve worked hard as the owner of this presentation, so have confidence in your work. It\u2019s tough to remember confidence when you\u2019re nervous, but you\u2019re the person who knows the most about your presentation and your presentation is a chance for you to demonstrate what you\u2019ve learned and share that with others.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox tryit\">\n<h3>Try It<\/h3>\n<p>\t<iframe id=\"assessment_practice_c3943f5c-fc9a-4e51-847a-abe2442e74b1\" class=\"resizable\" src=\"https:\/\/assess.lumenlearning.com\/practice\/c3943f5c-fc9a-4e51-847a-abe2442e74b1?iframe_resize_id=assessment_practice_id_c3943f5c-fc9a-4e51-847a-abe2442e74b1\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none;width:100%;height:100%;min-height:300px;\"><br \/>\n\t<\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t <section class=\"citations-section\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t <h3>Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t <div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <div id=\"citation-list-1818\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <div class=\"licensing\"><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">CC licensed content, Original<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>College Success. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Lumen Learning. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><li>College Success. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Anne Fleischer. <strong>Provided by<\/strong>: Lumen Learning. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"license\" href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\">CC BY: Attribution<\/a><\/em><\/li><\/ul><div class=\"license-attribution-dropdown-subheading\">All rights reserved content<\/div><ul class=\"citation-list\"><li>Life After Death by PowerPoint 2012 by Don McMillan. <strong>Authored by<\/strong>: Don McMillan. <strong>Located at<\/strong>: <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/MjcO2ExtHso\">https:\/\/youtu.be\/MjcO2ExtHso<\/a>. <strong>License<\/strong>: <em>All Rights Reserved<\/em>. <strong>License Terms<\/strong>: Standard YouTube License<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t <\/section>","protected":false},"author":19,"menu_order":13,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[{\"type\":\"original\",\"description\":\"College Success\",\"author\":\"\",\"organization\":\"Lumen Learning\",\"url\":\"\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"\"},{\"type\":\"copyrighted_video\",\"description\":\"Life After Death by PowerPoint 2012 by Don McMillan\",\"author\":\"Don McMillan\",\"organization\":\"\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/MjcO2ExtHso\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"arr\",\"license_terms\":\"Standard YouTube License\"},{\"type\":\"original\",\"description\":\"College Success\",\"author\":\"Anne Fleischer\",\"organization\":\"Lumen Learning\",\"url\":\"\",\"project\":\"\",\"license\":\"cc-by\",\"license_terms\":\"\"}]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"8ff4512e-72c4-4565-bf8e-a137e2256878, 0a1f376a-8343-4ca1-b4f6-36e488629d39, 33af9ffb-f37c-4f2a-b8a8-e41095c78619, 76fa71e0-b863-44fb-9b81-0bcf2438af76","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-1818","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":133,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/1818","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/1818\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7620,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/1818\/revisions\/7620"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/133"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/1818\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1818"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=1818"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=1818"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/wm-collegesuccess-2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=1818"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}