BSN 3 year

rd

English V

Topic:
presentation skills
Define Presentation skills

Presentation skills are the abilities one needs in order

to deliver compelling, engaging, informative,
transformative, educational, enlightening, and/or
instructive presentations.
Different skills

Skills in general are broken down into soft skills (those

you develop throughout life, like communication
skills) and hard skills (those you study, such
as computer skills).
Presentation Delivery Methods
Extemporaneous presentations are those you deliver
without any preparation, though you plan it
beforehand.
Memorized presentations are those you learn by
heart. Hard to get right, but compelling if it is!
Manuscript presentations are those you deliver from
a pre-written script or notes.
Impromptu presentations are similar to
extemporaneous presentations, but you decide on and
deliver them on the spot.
 Different presentation skills
Prepare Your Presentation in Advance
There are various methods of preparing for a presentation.
Run lines with a mock audience or friend, like actors and
actresses auditioning for movie and stage roles. Give
yourself plenty of time to prepare for an upcoming
presentation or speech, especially when you are less
experienced.
And, the last part of preparation—always be prepared
with answers to follow-up questions once your
presentation is over.
2. Practice Your Presentation As
Much As Possible
As with anything, practice makes perfect.
Hopefully it doesn’t come down to Malcolm
Gladwell’s “10,000 hour rule,” but practice of some
length is always required to hone your presentation
skills.
Practice alone. Then, practice with a friend or family
member. Then, always use each live presentation
opportunity as a practice round for the next
presentation.
 Learn How to Skip Around
Poor presentation skills for most people involve a
monotonous, robotic delivery.
However, what’s equally lackluster is a presenter who is
unable to be dynamic and find real-time solutions to
questions asked during the presentation. If an
interruption or news update mid-presentation throws you
off, then you need to practice and learn how to handle
them.
Likewise, imagine giving a breaking news update to the
public. If an advisor comes up to your podium to whisper
in your ear, you have to take this new news into
consideration, altering your presentation to fit.
 Speak Passionately About Your Topic

 When you are passionate about the topic of your

presentation, the audience senses it. It leaks through your
pores and reflects from your eyes.
Show passion. Show enthusiasm. Be slightly crazy—
Audience members who feel it on a visceral level, rather
than only intellectually, are much more inclined to pay
attention and find agreement with you.
Tell Stories in Your Presentations

 Storytelling is one of the most effective presentation

skills.
Crowds love stories. They give great examples of what
the presenter is talking about, and they earn that rapt
attention which any presenter aims for much more easily.
 Understand What You Should And
Shouldn’t Do
 On your first presentation, you’d be forgiven for having a
coffee to clear the fog from your mind. If and when it
increases any pre-PowerPoint jitters, you know never to
drink coffee prior again.
Same goes for the way you breathe, and the food you
consume beforehand. You don’t need the added discomfort
of a gassy stomach, so know what foods, if any, cause that
for you.
On the opposite side, exercise, for most people, is a great
way to relieve any built up tension the night prior.
As you practice, practice, practice, you’ll get signals from
your environment, audience, and body as to what does and
doesn’t work for you.
 Know Your Audience
 This one requires research in advance (remember:
prepare!).
Let’s say you were hired to deliver several motivational
speeches to various members of a large company. You nail
your first presentation delivered to an audience of interns.
Do you give exactly the same performance to the senior-
level executives, your next step?
You wouldn’t, hopefully.
Executives will need to be spoken to in a different language,
almost, with different vocabulary. Research your audience to
deliver a presentation that speaks directly to them, not some
other crowd, even if it was successful before.
 Tell Them You’re Nervous

 This is one of my favorite presentation tricks, as I get

super anxious before any kind of public speech or
demonstration.
If you feel nervous, consider starting off by telling the
audience such (“Forgive me, please, if my voice is
wobbly, I’m a bit nervous…”). The audience is sure to
empathize with your situation, and you don’t have to go
through the entire presentation with some higher bar of
confidence.
 Use Humor

 Add some jokes and humorous comments throughout

your presentation. Like storytelling, it connects with the
audience on a deeper level, and getting them to laugh
helps to earn their attention back if you were losing it.
On top of that, you help cut any tension in the room,
which is helpful if you’re nervous or have a fear of public
speaking, but also helps to make any proposal or
instructional presentation more palatable to the audience.
 Remove Filler Sounds & Crutch Words
 For example, do you, um, give, like, uh, sounds like this?
There’s nothing wrong with these in everyday speech. In
linguistics, these are called filler sounds (or crutch words),
and it is a common way to allow your brain to catch up
with your words.
However, in presentations, these only make you look
incompetent. Likewise, find other ways to improve your
presentation delivery. Maybe your hand gestures look
robotic, your jokes fall flat, or your voice cracks.
A compelling presentation depends on a compelling
delivery.
Improve Your Confidence

 When trying to learn how to improve speaking skills or

how to improve public speaking, work on improving your
confidence. It’s one of the single most effective ways to
boost your delivery, and thus your presentation.
Think positive thoughts.
Work on your body language and stance.
A confident speaker is way more effective at how to give
a presentation than one who isn’t.
 Focus on the Core
 A great presenter may have many illustrious stories to help
the audience understand the gist of the show.
However—
If you don’t use storytelling correctly, you’re liable to go off
on tangents which will lose the audience. More disastrously,
it could make you lose your own train of thought.
So, when you’re more of a beginner, focus on your core
topic, and don’t stray far from its message. As you get more
confident, you’ll be able to step further and further with your
storytelling.
An added bonus: your presentation will be short, sweet, and
over that much faster.
 Sit In on Other Presentations

 Aside from your own public speaking and presentations,

what better way to improve your presentations than by
watching others?
Don’t just watch anybody, of course.
Find a person or two whose presentation skills you
absolutely adore. Whether they’re online or at your local
town hall, watch closely and take notes on what makes them
such a compelling presenter.