Presentation Information presented by the folks at termpapers4all.com


Just Say No to PowerPoint: Enough is Enough!


Have you ever been slideswiped? You walk into a meeting and once everyone has arrived, the lights are often dimmed and the show begins. The presenter clicks the mouse again and again, showing you slide after slide until you can take no more. Exasperated, you shut your eyes and doze off. You have just been slideswiped!


Or, have the training classes and presentations at your company become stale and commonplace? Do they tend to look and feel exactly the same regardless of the topic? The only difference is the words have been changed-Few presentations stand out and you begin to wonder if anyone in your company is capable of a creative thought. Maybe most of the presentations you see have started with one of the templates found in PowerPoint®. Do you need to communicate bad news? Click on the template "Communicating Bad News." Do you need to report progress or status? Click on the template "Reporting Progress or Status." Do you need to create an employee orientation training program? Click on the template "Employee Orientation." Do you need to create a company handbook? Click on the template "Company Handbook." Now, your company looks and sounds like all the others.


If you think these scenarios can't happen, think again. They already are happening in companies across the globe. PowerPoint® has become so popular it is now a synonym for a presentation. Instead of asking for a copy of the salient points in a training program or company presentation, people are now saying, "Please send me the PowerPoint® from Wednesday's class." Scott Adams is cartooning about it, too. In the first frame Dilbert is using a pointer and says, "As you can clearly see in slide 397?" In the next frame the audience is tearing their hair out and one of the employees falls over on the floor. In the final frame, Wally looks at him and exclaims, "PowerPoint® Poisoning!"


Recently, I was speaking at an off-site meeting for a software company and was scheduled to present immediately following the VP of Marketing who was talking about the possibility of downsizing. When I arrived, the room was dark and the VP was reading from the screen. I saw heads nodding and people dozing. He was on slide 23 and had 22 more to go! The audience had a handout on which each of the slides was printed and numbered and those still awake, read along with him. Why bother? There was no interaction and people were discouraged from asking questions. Just pass out the handout and go home.


Given the touchy nature of the subject matter, a "lights on," Q&A would have been much more effective. The handout could have been distributed prior to the meeting so people could prepare their questions. Instead, he simply read to a group of scared employees who were in the dark to begin with and who he ultimately left in the dark.


Many presenters and trainers have become addicted to this technology. It's like drugs are to junkies. The more it's used, the harder it is to stop using it. It becomes a crutch. And, there's a price to pay. Audiences tune out, fall asleep and dread wasting time sitting in a room where slideswiping is the norm. Productivity drops, learning doesn't happen and humans disconnect. It seems presenters and trainers have forgotten how important it is to communicate with a group rather than just read to them, and how important it is to connect with an audience rather than just dazzle them with special effects. General Hugh Shelton, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, issued the following order to our military bases around the world, "Enough with the bells and whistles, just get to the point." (Wall Street Journal, 4/26/00).
Remember, people process information in many ways. Some learn visually, others learn by listening, and the kinesthetic types prefer to learn through movement. It's best to provide something for everyone. Remember, visual learners do not learn from bullet points alone; they learn from pictures, graphs, and images. Auditory learners do not learn from listening to sound effects like bells ringing and typewriters clacking. Instead, they learn from listening to an engaging speaker whose voice is powerful and who captivates their curiosity. And, kinesthetic learners do not learn from the movement of words on a slide. They learn from doing, touching, and moving around. They like to be involved and participate.


Usually, people don't participate because they suffer from low self-esteem or have been humiliated sometime before. Perhaps they learned through early experience that there is a much greater chance of being embarrassed than of being rewarded when they speak up in a meeting or a class. They might be afraid that they have nothing important to contribute or that they will appear foolish in front of others. They may also be disinterested in what's going on; they may feel they don't have a "stake" in the outcome. While there is no one solution to the problem, there are several things that can be done to enhance communication. Start by changing "Are there any questions?" to "What questions do you have?" Invite participation. You just might get it. 
(c) Nancy Stern 2004 

Through her workshops, seminars and consulting projects, Nancy Stern MA, helps people keep connected through conscious communication because how you say what you say matters?. She can be reached at 800-280-2666 or on the webwww.nancystern.com


MORE RESOURCES:

ResCare to Participate in the 27th Annual JP Morgan Healthcare ...
MSNBC - 3 hours ago
A live audio webcast of the presentation will be available by accessing the Company's website, www.rescare.com, approximately 15 minutes prior to the event ...
Watson to Present at the JP Morgan 27th Annual Healthcare Conference CNNMoney.com
Gen-Probe to Webcast Presentation at the 27th Annual JP Morgan ... PR Newswire (press release)
ZymoGenetics to Webcast Presentation at JP Morgan Healthcare ... WELT ONLINE
GuruFocus.com - WELT ONLINE
all 509 news articles


Toll Brothers' January 14 Presentation At The Credit Suisse ...
MSNBC - 1 hour ago
The presentation can be accessed through the Investor Relations portion of Toll Brothers' website, www.tollbrothers.com. To listen, enter the Toll Brothers' ...


Anaren, Inc. to Participate in the Eleventh Annual Needham Growth ...
MSNBC - Jan 6, 2009
The Company's presentation will include a review of Anaren's business strategy and historical financial results. Interested investors may listen to the ...
Netezza Presenting at Needham Growth Conference Trading Markets (press release)
Harmonic Announces Audio Webcast Presentation at Needham & Company ... WELT ONLINE
Fuel Systems Solutions to Present At the 11th Annual Needham ... MSNBC
Trading Markets (press release) - Trading Markets (press release)
all 331 news articles


Nevada Gold & Casinos to Present at the 11th Annual ICR XChange ...
FOXBusiness - 9 hours ago
The presentation will begin at 11:40 AM Eastern Time. The investor presentation will be webcast live from the investor relations portion of the Company's ...
True Religion to Present at 11th Annual ICR XChange Conference WELT ONLINE
Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation to Present at the 11th Annual ICR ... PR Newswire (press release)
Steve Madden Announces Participation in the 11th Annual ICR ... Trading Markets (press release)
WELT ONLINE - WELT ONLINE
all 146 news articles


Eliminating Verbal Distractions from Your Presentations
BusinessWeek - 23 hours ago
The fact that so many people are talking about fillers carries an important lesson for all of us who make presentations on a regular basis. ...


Genzyme to Present at 27th Annual JPMorgan Healthcare Conference
WELT ONLINE, Germany - 2 hours ago
The presentation will take place on Tuesday, January 13, 2009, at 9:00 am (PST). To listen to the presentation, please visit the Investor Events section of ...
Medco CEO to Present at the 27th Annual JPMorgan Healthcare Conference PR Newswire (press release)
Cambrex Presentation at The JPMorgan Healthcare Conference to be ... PR Newswire (press release)
Incyte to Present at the 27th Annual JPMorgan Healthcare Conference WELT ONLINE
PR Newswire (press release) - PR Newswire (press release)
all 78 news articles


Presentation delayed
Greenville News, SC - 9 hours ago
By Kelly VanLeeuwen • TRIBUNE-TIMES WRITER • January 7, 2009 The long-awaited presentation from the LandDesign team for Mauldin's US 276 corridor project ...
Mauldin submits wish list Greenville News
all 2 news articles


RHI Entertainment to Present at the 2009 Citi Global Entertainment ...
Trading Markets (press release), CA - 9 hours ago
The presentation will be webcast and can be accessed on RHI's website at http://ir.rhitv.com. To listen to the webcast, please visit the investor relations ...
DIRECTV to Present at Citi's 19th Annual Entertainment, Media, and ... WELT ONLINE
SBA Communications Corporation to Speak At The Citi 19th Annual ... MSNBC
InfoSpace to Present at the 2009 Citi Global Entertainment, Media ... WELT ONLINE
Trading Markets (press release) - Trading Markets (press release)
all 130 news articles


Gold Reserve Files Investor Presentation
WELT ONLINE, Germany - Jan 6, 2009
Gold Reserve Inc. (NYSE Alternext:GRZ) (TSX:GRZ) today announced that it has filed an investor presentation with Canadian securities regulatory authorities ...
Gold Reserve Desperation Presentation Midas Letter
Rusoro Responds to Gold Reserve's Directors' Circular and Ongoing ... MSNBC
Vancouver-based Rusoro consolidating Venezuela's gold industry Financial Post
National Post - The Canadian Press
all 37 news articles


PPT2DVD Burns Presentations to DVD
Washington Post, United States - Jan 5, 2009
If your ISP nixes a PPT file's huge size--or if you have to make a presentation to someone who doesn't have a computer--PPT2DVD can help. ...

Presentation - Google News

home | site map
© 2006