S*T*O*P to Create a Powerful Presentation Part 4

Participation

People should not just sit there during your presentation. They need something to do. Have hand-outs. Ask them questions. Let people take part in presentation. I always have hand-outs for the audience to use for notes when I am speaking. I want them to take their notes home and refer to them over and over. How are they supposed to apply the material to their lives if they have to rely on their memory alone? I also believe the more you engage the audience, the more memorable your presentation will be for them. They are already engaged by watching you and hearing you. If you give them something to do, you engage them even more. People process information by seeing, hearing and doing. So often, we only use seeing and hearing. Multiple the impact of your presentation by having them participate, even if they are only writing. This applies even if you are speaking to a large crowd. There were no handouts for the huge event the other day. People had to take their own notes. That’s great but I like to make certain they catch all my pertinent points. It would have been easy to post a link in their ad where attendees could download the handouts to bring to the event. This would not have cost the promoters a cent since the attendees would be using their own paper. If they didn’t want the handouts, they wouldn’t have to print them out. No wasted paper. Make it easier on yourself and get the audience involved in your presentation. This takes some of the strain off you.

I believe we should motivate our audience every time we take the platform. Take time to include these 4 ingredients in all of your presentations and you have the opportunity to change lives every time.