Presentation Training:
Presentation Skills Pet Peeves

Almost 20 years in the business of presentation training and coaching speakers and presenters has given me a ringside seat to view some of the most incredible -- and the most awful -- of presentation skills. While everyone has their own reasons for liking or disliking a presentation, I think I've earned the right to offer up my own dish of presentation skills pet peeves. These things drive me crazy because they reflect so poorly on the speaker; they can derail an otherwise great presenter. These six presentation skills pet peeves make the top of my list.

6. Calling on audience members for no reason. The speaker is talking and all of sudden calls on an audience member out of the blue: "Janet, what do you think of that?" Poor Janet's attention might have been wandering right then, or perhaps she doesn't know what she thinks about it, or doesn't want to share it. She has just been put on the spot by the presenter and very likely will not appreciate it. That's not going to endear her to the speaker, and isn't a good use of presentation skills. Why do that to your audience members? If you want feedback from your audience, ask the whole audience ("Who knows...?" or "How many of you...?"). Then call on those with raised hands.

5. Saying names for no purpose. This isn't about calling on someone, like number 6 above. It's just simply -- and purposelessly -- mentioning his/her name: "Joe, we've had such a great year. Let's take advantage of it, Cindy. Fred, I've got just the solution." I've seen presenters do this in the interest of what I assume is audience involvement. But note it's not really involving them. Remember in grade school when the teacher would say a student's name in the middle of her instruction? She did it because she could tell the student wasn't paying attention. It was a verbal rap on the knuckles to get the child's attention. That kind of behavior, for an adult, may evoke that same feeling of a slight reprimand -- again, not good presentation skills, and again, not something likely to endear you to the audience. I'm not suggesting that you should never call audience members by name. In answering someone's question or directing a comment specifically to one person, using the individual's name can be a nice personal touch and great presentation skills. It's only when it's not purposeful that it sounds gratuitous.

4. "I said, GOOD MORNING!" Undoubtedly you've experienced the presenter who comes on stage, says "Good morning," and gets a handful of mumbles back. He pauses, then says slightly louder, "I said, GOOD MORNING!" And of course, the audience feels compelled to loudly yell "good morning!" back. What purpose does this accomplish? Such a presenter might argue that it's using presentation skills to create energy and excitement in the audience. But a good speaker will naturally generate that enthusiasm in his presentation skills. Forcing the audience to be loud and responsive right out of the gate is more about stroking the speaker's ego than building liveliness in the crowd.

3. In the dark. Augh. How many times have you seen a presenter in a hotel or conference center room where all the lights were turned out or way down? Did you ever ask yourself "why"? Oh, so the audience can see the screen? But -- what about the speaker? Why is the visual more important than the presenter? The irony is today's LCD projectors have strong bright lights and can project easy-to-see images even in well-lit rooms. You don't need a darkened room to see the screen. So turn on the lights -- see your audience and let them see you. Don't worry about the screen's presentation skills. It will be readable enough.

2. "I know you can't see this, but..." Oh, woe is me. Busy, over-done, information heavy slides will be the death of me. This is maddening to me, especially when a presenter actually acknowledges it ("I know you can't read this..."). Why in the world would you display such eye-straining slides if they serve no purpose? PowerPoint presentation skills slides should be simple, legible, and support your points. If the audience can't read them, then what good are they?

1. Violating time limits. Wooh. This one drives me crazy. If the agenda calls for you to speak for 15 minutes, it doesn't mean 25. If the organization asks you to give a 30 minute luncheon presentation skills speech, they don't mean an hour. Violating time limits sends so many bad messages: It says you don't respect the audience's time. It says don't care about anyone else on the agenda who may be expecting their time allotment. It says you haven't prepared (it's a lot easier to speak longer than it is to speak shorter). I've even heard presenters say to the audience, "I know this may run a little long. If you have to leave, that's okay." Huh? Are you trying to say your presentation skills are not that important? Are you saying you just like to hear yourself talk, even if no one can stay around to listen? Puh-lease. Honor time limits.

Source: Barbara Busey http://www.compellingspeakercertification.com/

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