Your Presentation Best

Frame It, Baby! What's Your Frame? How you frame something in your presentation can make all the difference in the world. Frame it in a powerful WIIFY way and you will connect with your audience. Frame it in the normal, boring way and you will lose your audience quickly. (And once you've lost them, they are difficult to get back) Take an example from American politics:  How do you successfully frame a higher gasoline tax? Normally, it's political suicide in the U.S. to propose this, as version one illustrates.   But if you frame it in a patriotic WIIFY way: Version One: Q:  Do you favor a gasoline tax? A:  85% No  /   12% Yes Version Two: Q: Do you favor a gasoline tax if it reduced dependence on foreign oil? A:  55% Yes  /  37% No What a difference!   So find the right WIFFY frame and it becomes much easier to sell even difficult issues.

Are You Creating More PowerPoint Zombies? A common question I get during my presentation workshops, is:  How do I get and keep my audiences attention?  How do I keep them from turning into PowerPoint Zombies? I think the best answer has always been:  Give them a reason to listen!  This usually means addressing their priorities, needs and/or problems in some concrete way. I would add to this a truly radical idea in the corporate world:  give your presentation WITHOUT PowerPoint.  That's right, no PowerPoint.  You will totally capture them right from the start because presenting without PowerPoint rarely happens.  You will be a freak, and freaks always get people's attention. They'll listen to you just to see "What the hell is this guy/lady doing?!" They'll stay tuned in becase you will be so much better able to plug into them (and they to you) if you don't have to compete with your slides. If you have done you homework and are presenting a mess