8 ways to stick a rocket up the arse of that presentation you're about to give

Big meeting tomorrow? Got to spice up your presentation? Here you go tiger, 

1. Ditch that dull intro. 

Opening lines? Probably corny. Thanking people for the opportunity to speak? Boring. 

Launch straight into a story and grab the audience as quickly as you can. Henry Rollins is the master at this, opening his 2 hour plus shows by simply bounding into the spotlight and launching: “So, I was in Vietnam and I was convinced I was about to die…”

2. Reduce the text so much it makes you uncomfortable. 

Too much text on a PowerPoint deck puts everyone on edge. 

The audience race to read it before you can. You become reliant on it. No need to truly understand what you’re talking about if you can just remind yourself in real time, right? 

Strip the text as far back as you can. Then get rid of another 30%. 

Swap text for impactful imagery which brings your point to life and fires the imagination of your audience. 

 3. Nail the next steps

Make sure you have some solid action points for your audience to take away. 

It may be to get in touch with you for further information. It may be to conduct an audit of their content. Maybe you’ll ask them to include you in their will – it doesn’t matter, as long as your presentation climaxes on an actionable outcome. 

They’re hopefully inspired to action – don’t let that go to waste. 

4. Stick that joke back in

Don’t second-guess yourself. You had a joke in there. It was rubbish. You took it out. Time to pop it back in. 

Even a crap joke is better than no joke. If it dies on its arse? Admit it was awful and you’ll get a laugh anyway (probably). 

You get marks for showing your personality - anything you can do to prevent your presentation from being yet another anodyne list of things not to care about is a bonus. 

Go with your gut. 

5. Question everything

And while you’re putting that joke back in, stick some questions in there too. 

Keep the audience on their toes by occasionally throwing out a question that will stop them wondering who’s going to get the boot from Love Island. 

Responding to questions turns strangers into an audience, gets people’s mental cogs grinding and keeps them alert to the next potential threat.

6. Focus on meaning, not facts

Sure, your deck is crammed with enough stats to make Stephen Fry’s eyes spin. But facts in a vacuum create a … factuum… a vact? 

Doesn’t matter. 

People don’t care about your stats. They care about what those stats mean. 

How do the facts you’re presenting impact your audience? What is their impact on the future? Why should people care? 

Here’s where you harness the power of storytelling to make your facts matter. 

7. Rehearse

Run your pitch through with someone who doesn’t like you that much. They’ll soon notice any glaring typos or disjointed segues. Be sure to make sure you vary your pace, gestures and tone to stop them glazing over. 

Ask them for constructive feedback. 

Ignore them if you think they’re wrong. 

It’s your presentation.

8. Focus on the feeling 

If there’s one mixed blessing to bear in mind, it’s that people won’t remember 90% of what you say. 

They’ll remember how you left them feeling – whether they enjoyed spending time in your company, whether you provoked them to think, whether you stirred them to happiness or anger. 

Decide how you want to leave your audience feeling – then make that your priority.