Make your presentations worth hearing
When you make a presentation, however short or long it is, and whether it is for a grand occasion or not, always make an effort to make it memorable. That way it will benefit both you and your audience.
There are 9 essential elements that make a presentation worth hearing, and I’d like to offer you a simple way of remembering them all. So let me start with the image. Picture a shed high up on a mountain. Behind it you can see the snow-covered Alps. The shed belongs to your mother. Got the picture?
Now remember this phrase:
Please Remember Frozen Alps Behind My Mother’s Mountain Shed.
Got that? Now let’s take the initial letters in turn.
P = Purpose. Why are you making the presentation? What are you hoping to achieve, and what do you want to happen when you have finished?
R = Relevance. Will your presentation be directly useful to your audience? In what way? It must relate to their interests.
F = Focus. Is the presentation for the benefit of your audience … or yourself? Are you aiming for applause or action?
A = Authority. Why should they listen to you? Make sure that you an authority on the subject. It helps if you have written a book about it or can demonstrate your credentials in some way.
B = Benefit. How will they gain from listening to what you have to say? Give them something they can take and apply to make their lives or their business better.
M = My. The first M stands for Message. What sits at the core of your presentation? What matters is not the information you impart, but its significance. Be clear about your Message. What should they take away and remember about your presentation?
M = Messenger. The second M is about you. Why do they need to hear the Message from you? What makes you the custodian of the Message?
M = Method. The third M stands for Method. You must develop the skills to put across your Message and deliver your presentation effectively. Otherwise you will just waste the opportunity. The content will not speak for itself. It needs you.
S = Sincerity. You must walk your talk. If you really believe in your Message, speak with conviction and sincerity. You can’t (and must not try to) fake it.
Once again, there is the phrase to remember and help you reconstruct the nine essentials to make your speech or presentation worth hearing:
Please Remember Frozen Alps Behind My Mother’s Mountain Shed.
If you’d like help with any of this, contact me here: phillip@speakingandpresentationskills.com
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