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Presentation skills – master the art! (View Comments)
Yasmin Taj
Posted On Monday, May 03, 2010 at 06:19:52 PM
It is time to give the most important presentation of your career and you certainly don’t want to be frozen up there. Good presentation skills are imperative in the corporate world these days in order to make an impact. Here are a few tips from experts on how you can hone your presentation skills
Ananya, was all set to give a very important presentation to some high profile clients and this wasn’t the first time. But, as she walked up the podium and faced the audience, she suddenly felt her knees getting weak and her mind going blank! She was frozen right before the most important presentation of her career! Presentation skills are highly important in today’s corporate scenario, no matter which field you are in. Experts say that along with good communication skills, presentation skills too make a huge difference to impact one has on the other person.
Need of the hour
Anand Dewan, senior vice president – business impact group, Kotak Life Insurance opines, “Presentation skills are imperative for any working professional who carries an aspiration to grow in the corporate world. With every step one takes up the corporate ladder the opportunities for presentations also increase. The one-to-many communication need increases gradually and one-to-one interactions decrease needless to say this is integral even as you step from one ladder to next. Perceptions play a very important role in corporate world & each opportunity of presentation also builds perceptions about an individual. For instance right from how you open the presentation to how you take questions or tackles objections and finally how you close to leave lasting impression.”
According to Dr Shuchi Agrawal, associate dean, IILM Institute for Higher Education, “Good Presentation skills define our ability to present information to others effectively. It is a major factor in becoming successful in today's business world. It doesn’t matter how good a person is at his or her job! If that person does not have the presentation skills to explain an idea, a project, a recommendation, a service or a product to others, then nothing will ever happen to that idea, project, recommendation, service or product. Further presentations put the individual on display. Your audience – subordinate or superior need to see confirmation of your decisive planning and leadership so that they are confident in your position.”
Senthil Kumar, vice president & senior partner – operations, Barry Wehmiller International Resources India further points out, “Having good presentation skills can give one an edge over the others because of the capability to project oneself in a clear, understandable and confident manner while getting the attention and interest of the audience. Good presentation skills can make persuasive communication happen. This is an art that only a few enthusiastic people can take off.”
Enhance those skills
So, how does one master the art of public speaking and giving presentations? Dewan says, “This is quite a vast topic of study and is art as well a science one would need a book to justify the answer however I would like to give a few practical tips which go beyond the usual of being well groomed or reaching before time and checking the presentation equipment. Firstly, have information about the audience beforehand; this is called audience analysis. Secondly, using experiential messaging technique also has very high impact. Thirdly, use of short stories and anecdotes is also an effective way to add impact your presentation. Lastly, taking a professional course that helps you in enhancing your presentation skills is worth an investment in today’s corporate world.”
Hence, if you aspire to climb the corporate ladder fast and fulfil your dreams, make sure you master the art of presentation, and hence go great guns in your career!
Agrawal expresses that in order to enhance one’s presentation skills, the following quick points may be kept in mind:
• Identify the points you want to touch upon and start developing your thoughts on them
• Organise your information logically and draft the outline of your presentation
• Use short and crisp sentences
• Tell the audience what you are going to tell them
• Use relevant examples in your presentation to help the audience relate to your talk
• Preferably address the audience by their names
• Reach the venue before the audience
• Practice all the tough questions in advance; Come prepared with solutions
• Keep your calm
• Combine knowledge with charm to be a great public speaker
• Involve the audience and talk to the audience at their level
• Pay attention to grooming, consider the presentation as a stage show
• Have an anatomy to your presentation
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