University of Minnesota, Twin Cities School of Social Work Jane F. Gilgun, Ph.D.

, LICSW November 2012 Guidelines for Oral Presentations: Whats Your Point? by Bob Boylan as summarized by Jane Gilgun The ability to express an idea is nigh as important as an idea itself. Bernard Baruch Good presentations are clear and concise lead to actions on the part of your audienceor at least a change in thinking Presenters can handle situations that come uplike awkward questions, av equipment doesnt work presents self as someone with authoritybut still open to new perspectives Note: most people are afraid to do public presentationmany more afraid of dying than of doing public presentations Skills needed eye contact calm, relaxed good use of body language vocal energy story telling together with organization preparation Audience analysis how many what is their preparation for/knowledge of the topic how receptive will they be to what you want to say? answer the question that audience members have: Whats in it for me? types of audience o respectful o neutral o hostile, resistant, or defensive admit the difference present the others favorable arguments appeal to opponents sense of fairnessmore likely to hear you if s/he believes you have heard him/her o setting get there early

check that everything works/set up well a desk/podium can be a barrier between you and audience note: assume that even if audience is knowledgeable, they will want to know how you see things The content focused o Who are you addressing? o what do you want to say? o what are the benefits to audience? correct you believe in it o what do you want to say? what is your point of view? does it make sense? do you believe it? is it the essence of what you want to say? does it have some benefit to the audience? are you committed to it Is it as concise as it can be? What are your main points? o what supports your main points? o personal/professional experience o experiences of others that you can tell first-hand o research o theory Key points to remember Therefore, I recommend or I plan to do the following....