4.7  Learning Activities

Now that you have put your knowledge of giving oral presentations to the test, try your hand at these learning activities.   

A1 — When you have completed a first draft of your presentation slides, improve them by printing them six on a page; holding these pages like you would any printed document; and reading all text items, including labels in illustrations. Identify those items that are too small for you to read on these pages, as they will likely be too small for your audience to read on the projection screen. Next, review your slides and identify all items you could remove without loss of information: a background picture or pattern, purely decorative lines or colors, a corporate logo on every slide, unnecessary words or font variations, etc. Then go back to your computer and edit all items you have identified.

A2 — When you believe your slides are ready, give them to someone else, such as a colleague, and ask this person to tell you for each slide if the what and the so what are clear. For example, if the person does not know what a given drawing represents, some information (what) is missing: You should probably add labels. In contrast, if the person knows what a drawing represents but does not know what you are trying to tell your audience with this drawing, the message (so what) is missing: You most likely need to change the slide's title to make a statement.

A3 — As you practice giving a presentation supported by slides, do so at least once without your slides to be sure you can anticipate your slides during the presentation and, ultimately, that you will be able to go on no matter what. You can either pretend that your slides are projected next to you and point at them as if they were there or imagine that all the equipment broke down and you must go on without slides. Whatever you do, do not have your slides in view on your computer screen or on a printout: practice entirely without slides.

A4 — To get rid of systematic delivery shortcomings, for example using filler words such as um, gather a few friends or colleagues (two or three is enough) and ask them to make you speak on simple topics, as with the prompt "Tell us about your apartment." Every time you show the undesired behavior (in this example, by saying um), they should let you know without interrupting you, as by snapping their fingers. By focusing on the ums, you should progressively be able to anticipate them and eliminate them. Focus on one shortcoming at a time: If you are working on your ums, do not worry about body stability, eye contact, etc. Keep doing the exercise until the desired behavior becomes automatic. One session of 15 minutes per shortcoming typically suffices.

A5 — When you are bored by a presentation you are attending, conduct an evaluation of the speaker. Take out a piece of paper and a pencil and write down your comments in three categories: structure, slides, and delivery. For structure, check for the presence of the elements discussed in this module (see Structuring Your Oral Presentation). For slides, check if each of them conveys a message, develops it visually, and avoids unnecessary or distracting items. Write down any frustrations, such as overly small text, poor color contrast, and unclear drawings. For delivery, identify the quality of the signal (intonation, gestures, eye contact, etc.) and the sources of noise (filler words, pacing, fidgeting, etc.). Draw lessons for your own presentations from what you observe. If the speaker is a friend or colleague, offer to share your analysis (tactfully) with him or her.