| How to Give Better
Presentations Based on a lecture by Dr. Edward Tufte James Hayes-Bohanan, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Geography Revised: October 14, 2010 |
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| How to Give Better
Presentations Based on a lecture by Dr. Edward Tufte James Hayes-Bohanan, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Geography Revised: October 14, 2010 |
|
| This page is
meant to
help people of all kinds to make better presentations. This includes
students
making presentations in class, professors teaching a class, people
presenting
research results, and professionals presenting ideas in a business
environment.
The ideas here are based on those presented by Dr. Tufte in his course "Presenting Data and Information" on March 9, 2000 at the Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel in Boston. As an indication of how well he implements these ideas, he kept the attention of a crowd of 500 people through FIVE HOURS of lectures. He dimmed the lights and played a lullaby at the end, and nobody fell asleep. Now, THAT is an effective presentation! A few days after I created the site, musician and music professor Livingston Taylor was a guest on WBUR's The Connection. His topic: The Art of Live Performance. Visit the program web site to hear the one-hour program and/or to explore some written material on the subject. Taylor and host Christopher Lydon explore many of the ideas below - especially about respecting one's audience - in the context of musical performance. |
1. Show up early
Showing up early can lead to a variety of improvements in the
presentation. First, it can help the speaker to solve unexpected
problems with lighting, room assignments, equipment, and so forth.
Second, people tend to trickle into meetings, but to leave abruptly, so
the time leading up to the presentation is a good time to get to know
at least some of the audience members in advance, to develop rapport
with them, and to promote one's cause (see item 2). It is also a chance
to distribute handouts (see item 4).
2. State the problem
Early in the presentation, the speaker should let the audience know
what problem needs to be addressed, and how the information being
presented will be important in that process.
3. Particular - General - Particular
Give the audience a very specific story or example with which they can
identify, and then show how that relates to a more general concept.
Then show them how
that concept can be applied in other particular situations. By
presenting both the general and the specific, a speaker can help
motivate the audience to listen to the presentation (or to read -- this
can be applied in written reports as well).
4. Leave traces
Give everyone in the audience at least one piece of paper, both to jog
their memory later and -- more importantly -- to convey some
credibility. For this reason, the paper should have the speaker's name
on it, so that the audience knows the speaker is holding him- or
herself accountable for the information.
The information density of the paper handout can be great. That is, a large amount of information can be included, particularly if it is designed well. See Dr. Tufte's books (below) for suggestions.
5. Match the audience
Think about what the audience reads, and try to match the information
density of that material. That is, if the audience is used to reading
high-density material, do not bore them with cartoons. The opposite is
true. As a faculty member, I would suggest a corrallary rule, which is
to encourage students to increase the level
of the material they read.
6. Avoid overheads, PowerPoint, and bullet
lists
This is Professor Tufte's idea, and I am still struggling with it,
because I use all of these. I do not fully agree, but his reason for
this suggestion deserves careful consideration, although it tends to
contradict point 5 above. People have become increasingly accustomed --
perhaps addicted -- to receiving information in very small packets.
Political soundbites, three-column-inch stories in USA Today,
21-minute television "news" programs, and 30-second advertisements are
just a few examples. Collectively, these contribute to a softening of
analytical abilities a tendency to oversimplify complex problems.
Overuse of bullets can contribute to a tendency to skim over details
and complexities.
Providing more nuanced information in writing (see item 4) can help the
audience
to probe more deeply.
It is ironic, of course, that Dr. Tufte suggests avoiding lists in
presentations,
as part of a list in his presentation. It is good to have foibles!
7. Respect the audience
Do not oversimplify; it shows disdain for the audience. Whatever group
is in front of you (or is reading your written work), it has been
winnowed down from all the world's people by a complicated and
elaborate process. This audience
deserves your utmost respect and should be treated with the respect
afforded
your peers. Dr. Tufte gave the example of a technical manual he was
helping
to edit. One of the authors told him, "We had to dumb this down for
Suzie
Secretary." Once Dr. Tufte observed the contempt this writer showed for
his
audience, he was better able to understand why the manual was so
terrible.He
added that some lawyers lose cases because jury members feel they are
being
talked down to.
8. Use humor, but use it wisely
Humor that is carefully woven into a presentation can be like a bell
that the speaker can ring from time to time, keeping the audience's
interest building rapport.
Humor that is disrespectful or reveals prejudices such as racisim, sexism, homophobia, or religious intolerance must, however, be avoided at all costs (see item 7). It can alienate audiences without good reason. Audiences should be alienated only on the basis of the content! (See item 10.)
9. Avoid "he" when referring to people in
general
About half of all people are female. The use of Man, he, him, and so
forth to refer to people is alienating, archaic, and imprecise. Some
people continue to use "he" only because of the awkwardness of using
constructions such as "he and/or she" or "one." Although some such
constructions are still required in written work, Dr. Tufte indicates
that such constructions as
"Each student should complete their reading."
are acceptable in spoken English, and have been recognized as such by the Oxford English Dictionary for 250 years.
10. Believe the presentation
The presentation will not be convincing if the speaker does not exhibit
conviction. Although it is important to be respectful of the audience,
it
is not useful to "soft pedal" or conceal one's views. State the case
clearly
and offer the strongest support for it. People can then choose to agree
or
disagree on the merits. Step out of the "stage" persona to talk
directly
with the audience.
11. Finish early
The greater one's preparation (see item 12), the shorter the
presentation can be. Audiences rarely leave a meeting saying, "That was
very good, but I wish the speaker had gone on for 20 more minutes."
Finishing early leaves more time for questions, and shows appreciation
and respect for the time
the audience members have taken to attend.
12. Practice
A good presentation is hard work. Spend time researching, writing, and
honing the presentation. Talk in front of a mirror, a friend, or a pet
-- both to get more relaxed and to reveal redundant or problematic
passages.
13. Hydrate
Two of the most dehydrating experiences in modern life are flying in
airplanes and giving presentations (all of that water vapor escaping
through the open mouth really is important). People who fly from place
to place giving presentations or who give presentations often should
continually replenish fluids. Water is best, juice is next best.
Alcohol and caffeine cause further dehydration, and should be offset by
even more water. Water is useful during the presentation, to preserve
the voice.
14. CONTENT
Points 1 through 13 are of no value apart from the quality, relevance,
and integrity of the content being presented.
| Bibliography All of the titles below are recommended for anyone wishing to improve teaching or other professional presentations. The most important and accessible is Dr. Tufte's PowerPoint essay, which is required reading for several of my classes and recommended reading for all of my colleagues. For a humorous look at how I used PowerPoint prior to encountering Tufte, see my Teilhard page.
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