Presentation Zen: Making presentations that stick

You can learn a lot from a child (redux)

The storytelling power of photography

Making presentations that stick

April 11, 2010

Almost three years ago I praised the ideas expressed in the bestselling book Made to Stick. I even featured the ideas briefly in the first book, Presentation Zen. Earlier this month Fast Company Magazine featured a 3-minute video by Made to Stick co-author Dan Heath on their website called Presentations that Stick. Watch the video below or checkout the transcripts and resources on the Fast Company site. As you may recall from the book Made to Stick, if you want to communicate your ideas in a way that makes an impact, then craft messages that embrace storytelling, are simple, concrete, credible, emotional, and have an element of unexpectedness. In the video below, Dan reminds presenters to (1) be simple (without being simplistic), (2) show something, and (3) tease before you tell.

Example: The Girl Effect
Below is the YouTube version of the Girl Effect, the sample that Dan mentioned in the video. (Go here for the high-rez version on the Girl Effect website.

NOTE: Presentation at Apple Store in Ginza (Tokyo) this Tuesday (4-13)

If you are in Tokyo this Tuesday — or know anyone who will be — please consider stopping by my free presentation which starts at 7:00pm, April 13 (Tuesday) in the Apple Store (Ginza) theatre. I'll be talking in English about the ideas in the PZD book, as well as ideas in the third book called The Naked Presenter (out in summer). I'll also touch on "the 10 Ps" of a great presentation, specifically focusing on "the 5Ps" of delivering naked. We'll also look at what good cooking and good presenting have in common. Loads of free stuff to give away such as PZ books in Nihongo, PZD books in English, PZ t-shirts, PZ stress balls, and some free stuff from iStockphoto. It's going to be a lot of fun. We had twice as many people as seats last time in December, so please get there early to get a seat.

I am working with Apple right now to see if I can present in the London store in mid-June. If there is interest in UK, I'd love to swing by. I'll let you know.

Posted at 11:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)

Comments

Wow, timely! I'm in the middle of creating a wireless security presentation and this post just made me rethinking the way I am talking about antennas. I'm now strongly leaning towards scrapping a few boring slides for a simple demonstration using balloons (yes, real balloons).

Thanks for the timely reminder to keep things simple!

Posted by: Dan | April 11, 2010 at 11:31 PM

Yes please. I'll get on a train down from the so sunny Cotswolds to see newdadGarr.

Posted by: Andrew | April 12, 2010 at 08:39 AM

Be delighted if you could make it to London - be nice to be able to show that the UK can do a throng just as well as Japan!

Posted by: Isynge | April 12, 2010 at 06:49 PM

Thanks for simple but great ideas

Posted by: RobertElm | April 12, 2010 at 11:56 PM

London? YES PLEASE!

Posted by: GB | April 15, 2010 at 07:19 AM

Couldn't agree more and that was the exactly subject of a post on my blog, too, just a few days ago. Great books by the Heath brothers.

Posted by: Dick | April 15, 2010 at 11:13 AM

Am sure I'm not alone in wishing you could present in a NYC Apple Store!!!

Posted by: Laurie Bartels | April 19, 2010 at 07:59 PM

London would be great. Is there anywhere we can go to let apple know we'd be interested in you as a speaker?

Posted by: Productive Porcupine | April 21, 2010 at 04:30 AM

Garr - any plans for Melbourne in the forseeable future?
Greg

Posted by: Greg Stewart | April 21, 2010 at 02:16 PM

Just wondering - is the solution to make better powerpoints, or maybe just to throw it out altogether. Recently, in a pitch, a colleague suggested that in Powerpoint, you turn off the lights - and miss the eye contact. He advocated for printed boards.

I'm a powerpoint junky... but I'm giving this some serious consideration.

Posted by: Ric Dragon | April 21, 2010 at 10:05 PM

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Making presentations that stick

April 11, 2010

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