Projects and group discussions are normal in curriculum, especially in both junior college and polytechnics. You are suppose to present your research and findings on powerpoint presentations. These graded presentations can be stressful since you need to do it in front of an audience.
A successful presentation is not only based on how you design your slides but also, how you engage and interact with your audience.
Here below are some of the tips you can do for your project presentation:
Prepare Your Backup
First things first, before your Powerpoint presentation, always make sure that you have a backup copy of your presentation in another folder in case your original one doesn’t work. Some computers may not be able to read files if they are using an outdated version of the program.
You should also make it a point to check the presentation completely before you start the presentation so that you are reassured everything is working well.
You can consider a reliable PDF to PowerPoint converter for quick file conversion and easy editing.
Show passion
Passion is what differentiate a good presenter and an average one. Your enthusiasm and passion will definitely rub off on the audience as you do your presentation.
You know how you become animated and your voice raises to a higher pitch whenever you talked about a topic that interest and excite you? Remember that feeling and apply that kind of excitement into your presentation.
Do Not Read from Your Slides
Presenters often vary when it comes to how they present their presentations. Nobody should ever read off from the powerpoint slides. Why do we need to listen to the presenter when we can read the slides ourselves?
The best presentation is always when the slides don’t show a lot of words and when the presenters memorised their script from heart (here is how to improve your memory to do the same). It shows you are confident, well prepared and passion about the topic you are presenting.
Create Beautiful Visual Slides
If you want to get your classmates engaged with the presentation, you need to make sure your presentation is detailed and filled with interesting visual imagery that will support the information you are trying to present to them.
A good example is to see visionaries like Steve Jobs presenting their slides. Their slides are always clean and heavily focus on graphics.
Of course, make sure to adjust how many photos or videos to use because it may affect the quality of your presentation. Remember, this is not a presentation about your last vacation trip.
Never Turn Your Back to the Audience
Number one rule is never turn your back to the audience. It is not only rude but also breaks off any eye engagement you may have built up with the crowd.It can also make you lost momentum as you turned back to your audience, not knowing how they reacted to your last sentence.
Remember, presentation is about engaging your audience so if you need to reach out for props or anything during your presentation, please have them in front or next to you.
Smile and make eye contact
Some presenters fail to connect with their audiences because they are too focused on the presentation rather than making sure people understood the information.
A great way to ensure they are taking in what you are saying is through making eye contact with them and giving them a smile. Doing this will also help you build a connection with them and also help you with the nerves because you will know people are listening to you.
To practice that, stand in front of the mirror and rehearse. You can also record yourself on video. Watch your body language, listen to your tone of voice and remember to pause every now and then.
Be entertaining
If you want your classmates to look forward to your presentation, inject some jokes and funny photos related to the topic.
If you can’t find some interesting jokes or photos to support your presentation, simply showing your passion about the topic can get your classmates to stay curious and listen to you.
Use Stories to Prove Some Points
Some topics can definitely benefit from a good story when you do a presentation about them. It will be perfect to get people interested in the topic and also make your report more appealing to them.
You can also use stories to support some points to help your classmates to relate to the concept you are trying to teach.
Remember to Pause
Don’t rush into finishing your presentation. This only gives your audience the image that you are rushing things because you are nervous. This is how you can build your confidence.
It also prevents them from understanding what you are saying and not be able to identify parts they may want to clarify. Always make it a point to pause every once in a while to help your audience reflect on what you just said.
Use your voice effectively
Your voice should also be regulated when you report to show key points of your presentation. Here are the points on how to speak up in front of your classmates.
If your voice is too low or robotic, people will immediately get bored with your presentation. When you present, your tone should have highs and lows, pauses and proper speed.
Practice telling a story, use your tone of voice and create different characters in the story like the rough and deep voice of a bear or a high pitch voice of a mouse.
Body language
When you are presenting a Powerpoint presentation, people don’t just look into your presentation. They also look into your body language to see if you really know what you are talking about and if you can reach out to them directly.
The most effective presentations often use both non-verbal and verbal communication. When you report, it is important that your body language reflects the message you are trying to share. Good examples of confident body language are relaxed shoulders, wider stance, leaning forward and standing tall.
Rehearse
Before your presentation, try your best to rehearse so that you will be confident to present your presentation before your classmates. It will also help you practice your body language, which can also help you reach out to your audience better. You can get your family or your tutor to play as your audience and get their feedback about your report.
Be professional and polite at all times
Finally, it is important that you act professionally and stay polite throughout your presentation. Remember, your presentation is graded and the audience’s response can definitely affect your grade.
If they provide you with their feedback, don’t get mad at them if it is a negative one and do your best to improve on it next time. You should also thank them for their feedback and let them know you will take them into account. Always stay cool and gracious even if your classmates don’t show much interest to anything.
Final thoughts
If you are scheduled to present a Project Presentation to your classmates, don’t immediately despair that they won’t listen to you no matter how interesting the topic is. You can definitely catch their attention if you prepare accordingly and do your best to show that you are interested in sharing your topic. As you learn, you will definitely build the right skills in doing these presentations which can definitely help you in the future.
For more tips on how to score in your presentation, here are the articles to help you:
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