To All Presenters:
Stop winging it.
We can tell.
Seriously.
Don't you people rehearse? Do you think the actor playing King Lear arrived downstage left in the first scene of the second act waving a sword in his right hand by accident? No! He rehearsed. He reviewed. He refined and made incrementally better.
He sought feedback and adjusted his movements, he found the best place for his props and assured they were there before the performance began. He listened to his vocal pitch and modulation and made changes as necessary to provide emphasis and increase understanding.
Why don't you put the same consideration into your presentations? Does your audience deserve less because department attendance at project presentations is compulsory? Let's pretend you began to treat your presentations like performances, with all requisite preparation implied, do you think your future audiences will respond better to your message? Will their follow through on your call to action be superior to any such response in previously recorded history?
As the de facto spokesperson for said audience I say, maybe!
But heckfire, at the very least following your future well prepared, and dare I say it, presumably entertaining presentation I will at a minimum be awake, alert, receptive and of the mind that you are no longer the boring unprepared bozo who just consumed an hour of my life I will never get back.
So on behalf of we -the implied audience -please review, rehearse, make ready in advance and otherwise come with clue lest I lead a swift and mighty rebellion against your poor presentation skills and the forcing of them upon us.
THE POINT: While it may very well be the first time you present this material, it NEVER has to look like it.
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