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 ABSTRACT/ EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

“Being an exceptional presenter can be a deal maker in business.”

No matter if we are presenting to one person or thousands of people, a high-quality presentation

can dramatically increase our results, whether it be driving sales, marketing a product,
prospecting, branding, or whatever is relevant to your line of work.

Regardless of our end goal of the presentation, the bottom line is that people are buying the
presenter as much as they are buying the concept being presented. Grasping the attention of the
audience and engaging them can be elusive, but this is something that the best presenters are
consistently able to do.

According to NBC Health, as much as 75 percent of people have anxiety when it comes to public
speaking. Throw in the stress of having to prepare a presentation in which your company’s sales
numbers hang in the balance, for example, and you’ve got a real pressure cooker.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel, however, and becoming a masterful presenter is within
reach. It’s not just about practicing for hours on end. Although that may help, there are many
factors and elements that go into making a presentation - not just the everyday, bare minimum,
yawning presentation, but imagine yourself with the audience hanging on your every word as
you guide them through a dynamic, engaging, well-structured presentation. How would that
feel?

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 OUTLINE

Introduction/Background of Problem
• Overview of presentations
• Why they are important
• How to prepare for success
• Reaching objectives

Solution
• Other solutions that don’t work
• Importance of Language and Body Language
• Framework of solution
• 6 Steps to Nailing Any Presentation
• Examples/stories/studies/data

Conclusion
• Recap of issues at hand
• Closing statement
• Where can audience find additional resources

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A 2014 Prezi survey about employees and their attitude towards presentations in the
workplace found that 20% of respondents said they would do almost anything to get out of giving
a presentation, including faking an illness or asking a co-worker to handle the presentation for
them, even though they would be losing respect in the workplace. However, 70% of employed
Americans who give presentations agree that presentation skills are critical to success in
business.
If the ability to make quality presentations is fundamental to success, why, then, are so many
willing to overlook the importance of becoming a good presenter? The answer is fear. The fear
of public speaking is real, and moreover, so is the fear of presenting at your workplace, at a
conference, to investors, and so on. If one cannot convincingly and confidently present ideas and
products, then failure is likely. That could be in the form of lost sales, inability to secure funding,
lack of leadership, and ultimately, a career that is mired in the mud.
While some people are born with certain abilities to connect with people and articulate valid
points, the reality is that the overwhelming majority of people are not. Even the greatest speakers
and presenters have had to work to get to where they are. Very few, if any, can hit a homerun
with their very first presentation. Like anything, presenting is a skill that does take some practice,
but between making a commitment to improving presentation skills and following a solid formula
to creating successful presentations, anyone can improve.
Take a second to think of all of the additional opportunities that may arise simply by becoming
a more proficient presenter. Promotions, commissions, funding, sales, you name it. If is your
objective to take your career to the next level, then get started with developing presentation
skills - skills that are widely agreed to have such a positive impact on your business or career.

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 “People will tell you that it is simply a matter of gaining
confidence or picturing the audience naked”

The truth is that there are people out there who do a lot of speaking, and they are not engaging
their audience and moving them to act. They are, instead, just talking at them.
Have you ever had the head nods during a presentation even though you had a good night’s sleep
the night before? Have you ever found yourself daydreaming during a meeting when you were
supposed to be paying attention to important information? Of course, we all have. Flat, boring
presentations can have a similar effect of a bottle of Nyquil.

Although practice makes perfect, practicing the wrong thing only serves to make
a perfectly bad presentation.

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Before we delve into the structure of a presentation, we should first talk about language. We
must always be conscious of is the language we use. We must pay attention to, and practice, both
our spoken language and our body language. Someone who stands tall, speaks clearly and
positively, and engages with the audience is more likely to earn the respect of the listeners.
Body language expert, best-selling author, and PhD, Amy Cuddy gave a Ted Talk in 2012. The
focus was obviously on ... body language, and she explained that we should all spend a couple of
minutes “power posing” before we go on stage. According to Cuddy, a social psychologist at
Harvard Business School, power posing is adopting the stances associated with confidence,
power and achievement — chest lifted, head held high, arms either up or propped on the hips.
Actually, some of Cuddy’s research involved studying two groups of people. The first group was
to pose in high-power poses, while the other was to pose in low-power poses. The findings were
astonishing. While high-power posers showed an 8% increase in testosterone, low-power posers
had a 10% decrease in the hormone. Meanwhile, the inverse relationship happened with cortisol,
the hormone related to stress. While high-power posers experienced a 25% decrease in cortisol
levels, low-power posers had a 15% increase in their stress levels. This research strengthens the
notion that our minds and our bodies, when working together, are truly amazing. To this date,
Amy Cuddy’s Ted Talk is the second most watched of all time with over 28 million views.
Just as important as how we present ourselves in relation to our body language, the verbal
language we use and how we use it can have a dramatic impact on our overall success. Using
positive language can not only create an instant connection between people, it can also be a
useful vessel to take people where we want them to go.

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Human empowerment coaches, like Tony Robbins, are masters of using words to help develop
self-confidence. This practice is called neuro-linguistic programming, or NLP. In short, it is the use
of powerful and positive words to create belief in oneself, to alter perceptions, even to walk on
fire (as he does in many of his courses). The more positive affirmation we give ourselves, the
more belief we develop.

Aside from using positive language to present ourselves better, we can also use certain words to
guide an audience during a presentation. Using active phrases like “imagine” and “picture this”
can allow a presenter to get the audience to a more subconscious state, where our minds are
allowed to dream, invoking powerful emotion.
Further, the use of the words to tell a story are imperative to develop. In fact, according to NY
Times Best-selling Authors Chip and Dan Heath, 63% of people remember stories following a
presentation, whereas only 5% of people remember statistics. Painting vivid pictures with words
and taking the audience on a journey can break the mundane nature of the average presentation.
And those who are the best can allow people to see the world (or the issue) differently by the
end of their talk.
Begin to adopt the practices of positive language immediately. It is a process and won’t happen
overnight, but as we have seen, the results can be transformational.
Now that we have established some guidelines for how we present ourselves, let’s look at some
general rules for how we should present our material. As mentioned earlier, many people out
there believe that one merely has to be confident to be a good presenter. Sure, that will help,
but a good presenter always has a logical flow to the presentation in order to properly convey
the message.

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 THE 6 STEPS TO PRESENTING

Here are the 6 steps to presenting:

1. What are the universal problems that your audience can relate to? Define
the problems, needs, and pain points. This is where there is an immediate opportunity to
connect with the audience. By sharing the problems, a good presenter is able to put
themselves in the audiences’ shoes and establish a connection. Maybe they, too, had
struggled with this problem in the past, or possibly a friend, family member, or co-worker.
This can go a long way in building credibility with the audience.

2. What are other solutions out there that do not work? Have others attempted
to solve the universal problem? If so, what are other solutions that have attempted but
failed to solve the issue. In this step, there is a relation to frustration and more pain.
Perhaps the potential client has spent money on things that didn’t work or wasted time.
In this step, it is critical to include the emotions of frustration, regret, apathy, exhaustion,
and disappointment. Great presenters do not put down any other person or company
however they will gracefully illustrate why those solutions do not yield success.

3. What is our solution and why is it better? This is the opportunity to make your
case for whatever it is that you are presenting. Maybe it is a product that you are selling.
Maybe you are training or teaching the audience. People want core information about
what is in it for them. Using very powerful language is important here, as it is an
opportunity to guide the audience to visualize your product, service, etc. as something
that is useful, necessary, or helpful. The key in this step is to point out differences. The
potential client is thinking, ‘I haven’t tried something like this yet,’ and this opens them
to what you have to offer.

4. What makes you qualified to give this information? Add further credibility to
who you are and why the audience should listen to what you have to say. Generally,
excessive bragging can turn off an audience, but this is a time where the people should
be convinced of the validity of your credentials. Past experiences can be very valuable

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 when building credibility. If you’ve been there before, then people are willing to buy the
fact that your experience adds value to your message.

Stories are powerful. People remember stories over facts. This is your opportunity to
share from your heart. Let people see that you have experienced similar pain and that
you have transcended it.

5. What is the scientific/empirical evidence? This section is where research fits into
the equation. Find studies, polls, or anything else concrete or proven that substantiates
your claims. Ordinarily, stats can be boring, and as we heard earlier, the overwhelming
majority forget most statistics shortly after the presentation. However, we must keep in
mind that our words and pictures can powerful when used properly - even when using
statistics. For example, Forbes has estimated that on any given day, approximately 30
million power point presentations are delivered. While that stat is fairly amazing by itself,
to further give the stat context and make it more memorable for the audience, you could
add something like, “That’s the equivalent of 20,000 presentations starting every
minute!” Great presenters not only tell stories to engage their audience, but when they
do have to use statistics, they find a way to breathe life into them and allow them to
resonate with the crowd. Use phrases like, “To put that number in context...” or “That’s
the equivalent of...” to make stats easier to grasp.

6. What is the anecdotal evidence? A story works well here to complement the
scientific evidence and further support your case. While empirical evidence is crucial,
people also need to hear stories of success. Examples of real people accomplishing with
the benefit of your product, service, etc. Use powerful language here to paint the picture
for the audience. Allow them to see how great their life could be, using phrases like
“imagine,” “picture yourself,” or “think about how great.” If people can picture things in
their minds, then they are one major step closer to becoming a reality.

Now that there is an easy to follow outline, the stress of having to give an
important presentation or speech can begin to fade away like a distant memory.

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Whether you are presenting a product, service, trying to secure funding, or just looking to
motivate people, following these

6 Steps to Nail Any Presentation

will allow you to deliver relevant and engaging presentations, become a more valuable asset to
your company or business, and yes, even take some of the fear out of public speaking.
This transformation, like any, will take some practice and preparation. But the importance in
business of being a great presenter cannot be understated. Your improved presentation skills
could get you that next promotion; they could help you to make more sales; they could take your
job or business to a level you had never before seen. Whatever is relevant to your situation,
picture that greatness right now. What does that level success look and feel like?

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