If we had to label ourselves on
what we think good design presentation is and how we approach it the way that
the public places labels on singers, would you be a musician, an artist, a pop
tart or an entertainer? Each relates to music but is nuanced so that the impact
of each is easily construed. Musicians sing songs and can do it well. An artist
transcends the current expectations and is defined by a signature impression.
Pop tarts, or pop stars, heat up quickly and disappear just as fast when the
next big thing hits and entertainers are about the thrills they give the crowd,
but can be criticized, like pop stars for not letting the music speak for
itself. Unabashedly I know that I
gravitate toward entertainer. In the realm of presentations there are those
that can give a presentation very well; some people are more visionary at the
craft than others. There are some that can be a one trick pony, when the right
technology comes along they capitalize on it and then fade out when the
technology is considered antiquated, never keeping current with the next trend.
Others, their goal is to delight the audience whatever way will accomplish it.
For me, I want to give a presentation that is done well but I want it to be
memorable. I want it to be sensory in that maybe you experience something,
perhaps happiness, fantasy, whimsy. I want the time spent listening and
learning to be enjoyable and when you walk away something will be carried along
with you. That is quite a tall order to try to live up to.
I remember my first brush with
presentations, giving book reports in elementary school, which were fine introductory
lessons. When I think back, I especially remember when PowerPoint was introduced
and was a requirement to use for my Biology presentation in ninth grade. We
were each assigned a topic that we were to learn about, make up a presentation and
present it to the class through that medium so that we can learn the most
information by teaching each other in a shorter amount of time. I really did
not get the point of PowerPoint. I remember asking, so you type words on a
screen and then you can read them? Why not use note cards instead? (I am still
not sure what is advantageous about it, though I am sure there is something; it
has just illusively escaped me.) My two person presentation was on mollusks. I
was nervous about doing the presentation because the teacher knew everything
about mollusks, I mean; she was the teacher after all. I knew so little about
them in a scientific way, so I was sure to type all of the important
information down so that I would not miss it. Looking back on the presentation
I was glad to have it over with, but what I did would not count as quality or pleasurable.
My speaking was fine, but I could have read from the book and saved some time
and energy, if I were being truthful about it. When I think about how that
presentation could have been different I do not blame the technology; however,
I know that for me, I could have done so much more outside of it. If I were to
go back and redeem myself I would skip the PowerPoint and announce that the
snails wanted to do a sock puppet show and then after the show we were going to
catch up with the surf n’ turf war between the clams and the oysters. Sometimes
I feel that I do not always prefer multimedia as a method because unless you
are able to do something really special with it, it can feel like a crutch. I
love when others can do a really great presentation with multimedia, I think my
shortcoming with it is that I have the ideas first and then sifting through
everything that exists and getting it to do what I want leaves me talking to
the computer telling it how nice it is and exasperatedly asking can it please
just do what I want? You know, because computers have feelings and can hear me.
It is painfully clear I need practice and keep up with the techno Joneses when
that happens, oh, if only everything could be a song and a dance number.
Although I will say that I have
not experienced a lot of riveting presentations, I can give rave reviews to one
of my favorites, which was really one of the least likely to phone home about,
an at work Safety and Health presentation for new hires. It seems like what we
would have been told would be a lot of “do this, not that.” But that was not
the format, whatsoever. The speaker used slides sparingly to emphasize we were
transitioning to another point or when something was really important. To keep
it light and to keep us awake during the less grave portions of safety protocol
there was a lot of humor and it was really funny. During the portion about maintaining
a culture of safety, videos were shown from Youtube or other sites that had
really dangerous situations that someone decided to film and it really depicted
how something can go wrong quickly. The most memorable part for me was this
quirky little video in the health section of one minute and seven second short
about sneezing from the supposed Public Health Agency of Canada. Bottom line,
if someone sneezes in the back of your knee one day; just know that it is probably
for your own good… maybe. The video was absurd, but terrific and I do not blame
you if you search the web so that you can also share in this wondrous joy. There
was a lot of information that was presented that day and I really learned a lot:
fire diamonds, storing chemicals, ladder safety, basic first aid and first
thinking and then doing. I also left being excited about the time I spent there
and how I felt about what I learned.
Good design presentation can be
so important to attain your goals whatever they may be. I think it is important
to focus on what will aid your presentation and what will impede it. Typing in
PowerPoint and reciting from it is just not going to get the job done like in my
good old days of Mollusca. I think people are visual, but not in the ways of
reading along as you are reading to them. If Social Media can tell us anything,
it is that people like pictures. Maybe we had it right in Kindergarten, books
with pictures, please! A vivid graphic
that elucidates exactly what you are conveying can be powerful. Simplicity is
impactful so that you do not overload the audience with too many things all at
once. Telling stories and sharing something that is relatable can help your
point be understood. The person presenting is more important in providing the
message than the technology you use, so do not rely on it to be you. I think
something that is a presentation nightmare is to get the audience thinking
about anything other than what you are presenting about, so that is something
to consider and avoid. Ultimately, it is about the audience and getting your
message to them in the best way possible.
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