Dave Paradi's
PowerPoint Tip Newsletter - Issue #183, April 21, 2009
Published & Copyright
by
Dave Paradi of ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com. Circulation over
8,200
In this issue
Latest Slide Makeover
29 Minutes With Dave web
training
Being prepared for computer failure
Comments from recent workshop attendees
From the blog
One
of the
Top 10 Business Books of 2008
Click on the cover to learn more
Book Dave to do a live program
for your group:
1) Transforming Text Slides into Persuasive Visuals
2) Hands-on Creating Persuasive PowerPoint Visuals
3) Cutting Presentation Preparation Time by Using Content Templates and
Creating a Slide Library
4) Creating and Delivering Effective Web Presentations
Click
here to learn more and book Dave.
Dave's Travel Schedule
April
21 - Toronto, ON (Association conference)
April 24-26
- Mississauga, ON (Participating in Speaker Boot Camp, e-mail me for
details)
May
8-9 - Chicago, IL (MBA students)
May 11
- Toronto, ON (CAPS Chapter)
June
28-30 - New Orleans, LA (SHRM Conference)
July 22 - Toronto, ON (Sales group)
August 21
- Toronto, ON (MBA Students)
October 13-14
- Atlanta, GA (PowerPoint Live conference)
October 17
- Edmonton, AB (CAPS Chapter)
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Latest Slide Makeover Video
When we present a proportion or share statistic, I would usually
suggest using a pie chart. This makeover shows how a diagram with
universal symbols can sometimes be more powerful than a pie chart in
helping the audience understand the message. Click
on the
video below to play it in your browser via YouTube (or click
here to watch it on my web site in QuickTime format).
Learn how to create Calendar
Visuals in 29 minutes - session is in two days on April 23rd!
Want
to know how to create powerful visuals like the one above to show date
based information? You can, and in just 29 minutes. Get all
the
details at www.29MinutesWithDave.com.
PowerPoint
Tip: Being prepared for computer failure Last
month I had an experience that I wish you never have - my computer
operating system got corrupted. Of course, this happened a few days before I flew to Los
Angeles to do a post-conference workshop at an association conference. I caused the problem by
disconnecting an external hard drive while the computer was hibernated
without properly ejecting the drive first. You have probably been
told not to do this with USB flash drives, trust me, heed the warnings.
I
am pretty much back to full speed with my laptop, so I can now share
the lessons I learned from going through this experience. Lesson
#1 is to always have a full backup of your system. I have an
automatic image backup run every morning while I get ready and have
breakfast. An image backup allows me to recover everything,
including the operating system, if the hard drive crashes. I also
use an online backup system that saves any changed data files every few
minutes during the day so that my data is always safe. So I knew
I had some place to start from when I realized I had to rebuild my
machine from the OS on up.
Lesson #2 is to build relationships
with experts you can turn to when you have problems. I am very
lucky that my brother is a technical expert and was able to give me
valuable advice on what may be wrong and what potential scenarios we
were looking at. One of his suggestions is my third lesson.
Have easy access to all your program disks or files. I already
had all my operating system and program CDs in a filing cabinet, but he
suggested that I organize all downloaded programs into sub-folders in a
master folder called Source. Now I can use the backup of that one
folder to restore any program easily. I prioritized what programs
were essential to have for the presentation and trip and focused on
getting those running. All other programs could wait until later.
Lesson
#4 is to have a plan B. If you have an important presentation
coming up, make sure you implement a contingency plan. Copy your
presentation file and any other linked files or media content onto a
USB flash drive. In another computer, test that the presentation
works the way you want it to. Yes, test every slide and hyperlink
to make sure. Be prepared to borrow or rent a laptop if
needed. I hope you never need to use your contingency plan, but
it is far better to have thought it out in advance instead of hoping
you make the right decisions in the heat of the moment.
As
I
said at the start, I hope you never have to go through this sort of
experience. But for those who make high stakes presentations,
these lessons will help you be prepared for when technology fails you.
If you run into a minor issue, such as the projector not
displaying your screen, check out the solutions at
m.thinkoutsidetheslide.com, a site that is easily viewed on a
smartphone (bookmark it so you have easy access when a presentation
problem comes up).
Book Dave for a workshop and your staff will have
comments like these recent attendees
"It was great! Not only did I learn useful shortcuts, how to
think beyond text slides and how to get my point across with graphs and
pictures instead of text, but I was engaged the whole time.
Proving that Dave’s process really works. Fantastic workshop!"
"I’ll
never look at my PP screen the same again.
Ideas will allow me to produce a far
more convincing, interesting and
worthwhile presentation. Thank
you very
much, fantastic day."
"I’m shocked – way above my expectations which were already high."
"Very
informative ….Great real world examples delivered with intelligence."
Click here to learn about how I customize every workshop to deliver exactly what your group needs.
From
the Blog at PPtIdeas.blogspot.com: Learning from Kenny Chesney
I saw an interview the other day with Kenny Chesney, the country
music superstar. He was talking about the preparation for his
annual tour. Kenny has been voted as Best Entertainer eight times
and his summer tour usually ranks at, or near, the top of the list of
highest earning tours every year. He’s obviously doing a lot of
things right. Here’s a couple of ideas about preparation I picked
up that apply to presenters.
First, he is meticulous in his
preparation each year before the tour starts. He personally
oversees every aspect of the show, from lighting to sound to which
songs get played in what order. He knows that he has to have
everything just right in order to put on a great show. As
presenters, do we take enough time to prepare? Do we care as much
as Kenny does? Too often I see presenters who create their
text-only slides on the airplane on their way to the presentation,
never rehearse and rush in 2 minutes before their presentation is to
begin. It is no wonder that the presentation is less than it
should be. Take the time to prepare properly, your audience
deserves it.
Second, he explained that even though they have a
two and a quarter hour set prepared, if the audience energy is right,
they will extend the show to as long as three full hours. Kenny
and his band have enough material prepared that they can go where the
audience wants them to go. As a presenter, do you have the depth
of knowledge and expertise to go where the audience wants to go?
True experts prepare what the audience needs, but always have the
ability to answer questions that come up or go in different directions
if that is what is needed. If you don’t have the expertise you
feel you need, create a plan to become an expert – study your desired area one
hour every day, and pretty soon you will start to see the result.
Any
time you see a great artist perform, whether it is Kenny Chesney on his
tour, a local play or a symphony, remember that the artist has put
countless hours into preparing just so you can enjoy the
experience. Let’s commit to preparing better so that our
audiences have a great experience too.
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Contact
Dave:
Dave@ThinkOutsideTheSlide.com
or call 905-510-4911
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