Quality In Quality Out - PowerPoint
PowerPoint is like Kleenex. It’s a word so ingrained in our culture, it’s gone from being a proper noun to just a noun.
They are both words we use interchangeably with what they actually represent. It’s just as acceptable to give a “PowerPoint” as it is to give a “presentation.” But if PowerPoints are so common, why are they so bad?
In a presentation on presenting, Seth Godin breaks down the four important steps to giving a good PowerPoint presentation:
- Who is it for? Pick a persona, find out what matters to them, and move ahead accordingly.
- Do you have enrollment? Get buy in from those personas so they own some accountability.
- How is your narrative? Create tensions and tell stories.
- Finally, what’s next? Provide a call to action.
He talks about the need to first establish yourself as a presenter and what you’re trying to achieve. Translate that into why it matters to the personas in the room. And then establish the reason “what’s next” should happen today and not tomorrow. That’s the “now” of the presentation.
“The entire point of using our power is to create the tension as it unfolds in front of the person we are seeking to change,” he says.
Show up. Share your story. Create change. And please don’t bore us to death.