Presentation Recommendations

I am putting together a series of slide presentations to be distributed at
Axiom Architectures at Google code

In writing these presentations I recognized that I was falling into the trap getting too caught up in covering every little detail. In other words I was writing a paper and passing it off as a presentation. The upshot was that the material was generating inertia rather than momentum during my talks.

So to better connect with my audience, I jotted down these presentation recommendations:

A. Comfort

1. Recognize that you were invited because people believe in you.
2. Take comfort from this belief.
3. The audience wants to get to know you.

B. Narrative

1. Tell a memorable story.
2. Maintain a consistent thread throughout your story
3. Tie in your personal experiences, perspectives, insight, opinions and humor.

C. Material

1. Condense the slides to focus entirely in support of your story.
2. Your slides are only sign posts for the audience to follow your narrative.
3. Pull out any distracting diversions and props.

D. Profound

1. List papers and references so the audience can stay connected with you and your knowledge.
2. Consider suggesting some next steps.
3. Close with a profound statement to invite stimulating questions.