Sharp PG-M10X Operation Manual page 46

Guide to Effective Presentations
44
d. Rehearsing & Delivery
• The best time to rehearse is the day or evening before,
not a couple of hours before, and the best place to
rehearse is in the actual room. Rehearsing a speech in a
small office is not the same as standing up in front of
100 people in a hotel ballroom or classroom.
• Due to varying processor speeds of computers, practice
your slide transitions for proper timing.
• Whenever possible, set up your equipment well in
advance to allow adequate time to resolve any
unexpected issues such as lighting, power, seating and
audio.
• Thoroughly check every piece of equipment you bring
along. Make sure you have fresh batteries in your
remote controls and laptop computer. Fully charge your
computer's battery before the presentation and connect
your AC adaptor for added safety.
• Make sure you are completely familiar with the control
panel on your projector and remote controls.
• If you are using a microphone, check it out before hand
and walk around to see where you might have problems
with feedback. Avoid standing in these problem areas
during your presentation.
e. Presentation Tips
• Before beginning, visualize yourself delivering an
outstanding presentation.
• Know your speech, memorizing at least the first three
minutes of your presentation will allow you to focus on
your rhythm and pacing.
• Speak to early arrivals to help you build a rapport with
the audience and make you feel more comfortable.
• Do not be overly dependent on your visuals by reciting
what your audience is already reading. Know your
material well enough to be able to deliver the
presentation with ease. Use your visuals to emphasize
keypoints.
• Be sure to project your voice clearly and use eye
contact to maintain audience attention.
• Do not wait until halfway through your presentation to get
your point across. If you wait and try to create a "build-
up", you may lose some of your audience along the way.
• Keep your audience's attention. As most people only
focus for 15 to 20 minutes during a one-hour
presentation, it is important to recapture their attention
periodically. Use phrases like, "This is critical to my
point" or "This is absolutely fundamental" to remind them
you are saying something they need to hear.