I wish we all had such an amazing memory that we would never need to use notes when presenting. In fact, I strive not to use them as I think that it makes you more authentic and you won’t look like someone following a predefined script.
In certain situation though, the notes are necessary. Sometimes you need to have a really long presentation and you don’t have enough time to remember it all or your speech involves lots of data that you prefer to read or you need to present an analysis of the speech that you heard 5 minutes ago and you wrote all your thoughts in your notebook.
There are plenty of reasons and it is OK to use notes in these situations. Don’t beat yourself up.
The most important is how you are going to use the notes. These are my 4 tips:
If you want to use notes, please use small papers. We (the audience) do not want to see your pretty face covered by a huge A4. Also, it is hard to use gestures if you use a big sheet of paper. Small cards with few bullet points will do the job and you will always have at least one hand with which you can focus on the gestures.
This should be straightforward, but I have seen many people that wrote notes on both sides of a paper. Unfortunately, this distracts the audience as they will try to read from the back of your notes.
See point no.1. A huge paper will not only cover your body but also inhibit any gestures. If you really need to use the A4 format, please opt for placing it on a lectern. In this way, your hands will be free and you will be able to move on the stage.
And what about digital notes or bullet points that you have worked on so hard and put on your PowerPoint slides? I have bad news for you – you should not look at them. It is really distracting if the presenter keeps looking at his own PowerPoint slides. Please do not be one of them. There is a special place for notes in PowerPoint, right below each slide. These notes will be visible on your computer when you start your presentation. Place it in front of you and look at the notes in front of you as needed.
Dear Steemians, I hope that these tips will help you in your next presentation.
Are you normally using notes or do you prefer to keep everything in your head? What is your technique?
Let me know in comments.
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