I regularly see articles with advice for speakers. It could be five things to do, nine things to avoid doing, or some variation on those themes. You probably see these articles too. You can safely ignore almost all of this advice. Let me explain why. The problem with these articles is that they don’t apply…
Category: Latest Information
Headline template for result of analysis; Issue #372 September 13, 2016
In almost every customized workshop I do, writing headlines for slides is the single idea that people say will help them the most and the one they can start implementing immediately. In this article I want to share a template to guide writing a headline for a slide that presents the result of some analysis you…
Download free Timelines & Calendars; Issue #371 August 30, 2016
Quickly create timeline visuals by starting with a pre-built timeline or calendar you can copy onto a PowerPoint slide
Showing performance compared to past and budget; Slide Makeover #85
Use a multiple-width overlapping column graph to compare current performance to past and expected performance
Save time with Custom Shows; Issue #370 August 16, 2016
One question has been raised in a number of my custom workshops recently so I thought I’d share it and the answer with all of my subscribers. The question is in regards to presenting the same topic to different audiences: audiences that may have different roles, may have different knowledge levels, or may need to know different levels of…
Index line graph instead of dual-axis graph; Issue #369 August 2, 2016
I have written about the problems with dual axis graphs in the past. One situation where some presenters say dual axis graphs are necessary is when the two data series being compared are measured in very different units. In this case, they say that you need a dual axis graph because the measurement units aren’t…
Using the Snipping Tool for screen captures; Issue #368 July 19, 2016
Certain topics in presentations benefit from being illustrated with screen captures. If you are showing how to use a system or website, a screen capture is a great visual to use. Adding callouts to screen captures can make explaining the step-by-step process much easier than a series of bullet points. While there are specialized screen…
Extracting data from a linked Excel graph; Issue #367 July 5, 2016
When I work on the slide makeovers for my customized workshops, I often run into graphs that can be formatted in PowerPoint, but the data can’t be accessed. This is common because when you use the default paste (Ctrl+V) to paste an Excel graph into PowerPoint, you get a graph that has the data linked…
Show the difference; Issue #366 June 21, 2016
When the difference in values is the message, just show the difference, not the values
Strategic approach for presenting to Boards and Senior Management; Issue #365 June 7, 2016
As I work with more executives and managers who present to Senior Management and Boards, I see an issue get raised repeatedly that I want to address in this article. The issue is ultimately about strategically sequencing the information that is sent/presented, although it rarely gets raised that way. Often I am asked if sending…