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A Simple Presentation Tip to Remember When Drawing an or Painting on a Chart Board

The room was quiet as I began to draw a picture showing the difference between a range finder and SLR camera on a chart board. I was speaking to a small group of 20 people. Whereas, everyone seemed to be interested and looking at the picture I made the error of talking to the chart more than I spoke to the audience.

Now, I did not realize this until my wife, who was in the audience, shared her observations with me after the session. As a presentation skills coach she was used to observing audience response and presenter performance.

As an artist and instructor my focus is mainly on drawing or painting a picture while others watched during the lecture portions of my classes or workshops. I had not thought about how the connection to my audience was lost when I “spoke to the visual” rather than the audience.

My wife taught me a simple, yet powerful, tip that I want to share with other people who may be talking to their art or drawings. The tip is TOUCH, TURN AND TALK.

Be SILENT when you draw a part of the image or drawing. Then TOUCH the image or drawing TURN to your audience and then TALK. The results can make a profound connection with your audience.

When you are talking to your visual your energy is directed to the visual and not the audience. Believe it or not, your audience wants to have the full multimedia experience. That means watching your gestures and facial expressions at the same time they are absorbing the information on your chart drawing or painting.

Turning to talk with your audience will also help you to see their facial expressions. You may decide to ask them questions or take questions from them about your technique or information you are sharing.

So now my goal is to be quiet when I am drawing and save my talking for my audience and not my chart board.

Sound easy? Well, actually it is but it takes PRACTICE. So give this simple , yet cutting edge technique, a try.

All rights reserved 2007 Ray Horner Jr.

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In The Present Economy The Project Management System Is The Best Option For Your Business

At the present moment the global economy is still swimming against the course of the crisis which hit it a couple of years ago. Many have fallen in this hard period, but those who are still standing are companies and firms with a very practical point of view regarding the business world. Efficiency and speed help them keep afloat.

Nowadays when many persons are unemployed because companies try to reduce their costs or because they went bankrupt, there is no room for cutting corners. As a business man or woman you must be careful to make only the right choices. But when the pressure seems to be too high you must consider all the options you have.

One thing which could help your business is a project management system. Your company can benefit from an enhanced speed in operations which would otherwise take hours or days. When you are supposed to manage a project this system can offer you an accurate view of the progress each member of the team is making. At the same time, because they have access to the general image of the progress, your team can finish their duties in a shorter time.

If you need to reduce the personnel you can replace some of the duties of an assistant with the advantages of a project management system. Planning your daily schedule will become your duty, but it will be facilitated by the constant reminders of important meetings or deadlines. This software automatically sends you and the team messages regarding the progress of your project or certain events. With a general picture of the project at hand the collaboration between the team members and its leader becomes very easy.

With a good communication enabled by telephones and internet and by a well-thought project management system you can lead your projects to a successful ending. Your business will only enjoy the benefits of using software with such efficiency. Using appropriately your project management system you will be able to go through the daily routine easier, maintaining a clear view on your duties and you will understand how your project manager features can be improved whenever the case.

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Why Your Audience Wants Bad Things to Have Happened to Their Presenter

Today’s audiences are a jaded bunch. In fact, a Gallup Poll shows that just 16% of us have a favorable opinion of business executives. With all of the Wall Street failures and auto maker bailouts that are currently going on, this number will probably keep going down. What’s a presenter to do in order to cut through the fog of cynicism that we are all existing in?

One way that presenters are doing this is by sharing their own stories of adversity. These stories seem to be able to reach out to audiences and somehow make the presenter much more “real” than just another glib business success story.

If this is what your audience wants, what can you do to meet their needs? We all may not have survived a wild bear attack, but we may be able to find other types of material in our lives that will allow us to connect with our audiences:

  • Audiences Love Adversity: The bigger the challenge that you faced, the more they love it. Erik Weihenmayer is a mountain climber who is blind. He over came lots of adversity and ended up climbing Mt. Everest. His story shows his audience how to overcome adversity in their lives.  
  • Tales Of Survival Match Today’s Business Environment: Today’s business environment is harsh and unforgiving and surviving is what most of your audience is trying do every day. Trisha Meili was assaulted and left for dead in New York’s Central Park. She now speaks to audiences about what she had to go through in order to recover.  
  • Find The Metaphor: What your audience is really looking for is hope. They will be interested in your story no matter what you tell them, but it will have a real impact if they can understand that what you went through is similar to what they are currently going through. The fact that you survived (and hopefully thrived) is what is going to give them the courage to keep on trying.  
  • Tie Your Story Into Business: A great story will keep your audience on the edge of their seats – but what happens when you stop talking? John Amatt survived a mountain climb 20 years ago that killed three of his climbing teammates. The only way that he survived that disaster and made it to the top of the mountain was to  make radical changes to his climbing route and tactics. This story is very well received by business people who are facing major changes in their business environments.
  • Use Humor Where Appropriate: These topics can be pretty heavy – life and death struggles are rarely something that anyone wants to joke about. That being said, if your entire presentation is dark and scary, then your audience will just be happy when it’s all over. Instead, use humor at the start and at the end in order to start and end on a lighter note. You audience will appreciate it and this will allow your message to sink in further.

We have not all faced life threatening situations. However, what your audience is really looking for is a good story that they can relate to. If you look back over your life, I’m sure that you can find points in which you were faced with a challenging situation that looked impossible at the time. Then all you have to do is weave a story that will grab your audience’s attention…

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