Making a presentation to people whether they are managers, important clients or strangers can be a daunting exercise. A nagging thought is that this presentation can either boost or set back your career prospects. So much is centred on your presentation that it can give you sleepless nights.
 
You can get someone else to make the presentation. Or, you can take control of it by planning and preparing ahead and not wait until the last minute. So you decide to do the latter. Planning is very important as you need to know who you will be presenting to and their needs, the length of time for the presentation and, more important, the topic.
 
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Image courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net and author ambro
 
You need to have a list of the main points to be covered so you can build your presentation from these. Always bear in mind that you are pitching this presentation so you need to focus on what the audience needs and not on what you would like to say.
 

You can now draft these points onto slides if you are making a PowerPoint presentation. You should not have any decoration on the slides for a business presentation. Review the slides with a critical eye – do they have great effect or are they too wordy and ensure that it flows.Remember to have some niceties which may be used as reserves.

Now you need to deliver your presentation. You should practice the delivery beforehand. Ensure your voice is clear and can be heard by those at the back of the room. You can enlist the help of a friend or use a video-cam or recorder. Check that you are looking at the audience and not talking to the board or screen. Also any ‘umms’ or ‘you know’ should be eliminated. You may have to practice this a few times in order to have some fluency.

 

Work meetings
Image courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net and author ambro
 
Remember to ask if there are any questions and prepare yourself for them. You should allow time for this.
On the day of the presentation, it most likely it is not a situation where the audience will applaud which will give you immediate job satisfaction but you can gain that silent praise by just looking at the audience. You can see from their countenance whether they are satisfied, have a look of approval, a smile or nod. Acknowledge it with a smile as this is the silent approval that your presentation was excellent.
 
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