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50 faces look at me expectantly. Their notebooks are open to a fresh page. They are ready to learn how to use storytelling to propel their work forward. The only thing is… my slides are not projecting.
I squeeze my toes anxiously in my “presentation shoes” (the ones I change out of immediately afterwards) and take a deep breath.
As always, I arrived in the ballroom an hour early to soundcheck the mics, set out workshop materials, and test my slides. Between 8 and 9am, it went from 1 Hilton tech guy to a team of 5 trying to get the equipment to work, but there is no sign of my carefully planned and customized PowerPoint. If my teeth started to fall out, maybe it would turn out to be a nightmare.
Instead, when the clock strikes 9am, I decide all I can do is start my workshop. I have the first session of the first day. It is too early to start running late. I take in the audience, smile, and start a conversation with themabout storytelling.
I am a fierce advocate for presentation prep, but sometimes everything goes wrong. Strike that. Reverse it. Sometimes everything goes wrong, which is why I am a fierce advocate for presentation prep.
That day in the Hilton, our group of 50ish people had a great session on storytelling, because I follow a few important guidelines (Platinum Rules, if you will) about presentations. The following tips and tricks not only make your presentation shine when things run smoothly, but they save the day when the road is rough.
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