Effective Presentations

Presenting a topic in front of an audience can be an extremely daunting task for most people.  This kind of experience tends to evoke feelings of fear because, essentially, it requires you to put yourself forward in front of an audience to deliver a specific piece of information.  This kind of experience makes you feel exposed and vulnerable.

But presentations do not need to be a scary or stressful experience.  All you need to do is follow these few simple guide lines:

•  Organise your information in a logical manner.  This means have an introduction (to inform the audience about what you are going to speak about), a main body (the information on the topic you are delivering), and a conclusion (to recap on the information you have just covered).
• Practice! Practice! Practice! By undergoing essential preparation you will fully learn your topic and script and become confident in delivering the material.  Also the audience will know immediately know if this is the first time you have presented the topic.
• Cue cards can aid your memory and knowledge of your topic.  Also if your mind simply goes blank when you are standing in front of your audience cue cards can provide you with a starting point!
• Use clear and concise information and try to keep language "jargon" free.

When I had to do a presentation in front of my class I was extremely nervous but the following video really helped me by highlighting a few other things to bear in mind when presenting to an audience:

Presentations should not be a source of panic or worry if you follow the guidelines set out above.

Good Luck!! :)