Basic Presentation Notes

Whenever I watch a video of a TED talk or listen to a podcast, I can't help but think about presentation style. Some part of my brain can't simply listen to the topic; I hear how they're presenting it, and pick apart the style.

Consequently if the speaker commits some way-too-common errors in style I find it too distracting to actually hear the message the speaker intends to convey. Obviously if you're trying to communicate a message to an audience anything you do to distract the audience will lessen your effectiveness as a speaker.

I was again reminded of this while listening to a presentation at a recent Skepticon conference by Jessica Ahlquist. If you don't know her name, she was embroiled in a controversy over a prayer displayed in her school culminating in lawsuits and threats against her.

I believe she's 17 years old in this presentation, and it reminded me of when I was working with a school district and thinking that while she made some of the basic annoying mistakes (fillers!) overall she was a fantastic presenter compared to most people her age. And by most, I mean 99% of people in her age group.

The presenter mistakes she did make still triggered my mental list of "Why is this so hard?!" presentation gaffes. The list, in no particular order (and not entirely pertaining to Ms. Ahlquist's presentation) are:

1. Not eliminating fillers from your vocabulary. You know them. Usually they come out as "Um..." and "Uh..." They're a habit you can do without. Following a close second after the monosyllabic fillers are the fill phrases that make me want to reach out and smack you across the face. With an aluminum bat. Phrases like, "You know?," and, "Like, whatever." Speakers onstage not speaking about people with brain damage or imitating youth should never utter such things.
2. Not ditching the gum. Part of this is my own quirk in brain chemistry; I can't stand gum chewers. That may go back to hearing people talk about how fat people can't control themselves and always have to stuff their faces, but this would be coming from a person chomping gum all slack-jawed. I don't need to see and hear the intricate squishing of saliva while you masticate your corporate sponsored tooth- and breath-cleansing propaganda. While onstage, drink water if you need something in your mouth. Otherwise I spend WAY too much time hoping for you to choke much in the way NASCAR fans hope for a crash.
3. Standing as if rigor mortis is setting in. Standing stiff behind a podium is boring. Animated speakers help engage the audience. I'm not saying you need to run around like a pop star on meth, but it would be nice to know that we're watching a live show. Otherwise you could have just sent an audio recording. Make eye contact with the audience. Gesture a little (not to the point where you resemble a windmill at a mini-putt course, though.)
4. Using your PowerPoint as the presentation. If your entire presentation communicates your point just as effectively by printing out your PowerPoint slides and handing them out, there's no reason for you to give a presentation on a stage or with a microphone. People will fall asleep just as readily from the handouts as they will in your presentation, too. So don't do it. PowerPoint is supposed to complement your presentation, not be the presentation.
5. Failing to rehearse your show. You should know what you're going to talk about and the arc of your topic. You can tell the people that don't rehearse; they are the ones that are basically reading the giant screen behind them with their PowerPoint, using it as a set of cue cards. Or worse, basically regurgitating the information from the PowerPoint to you, like some reverse subtitle system. Ideally, you should be able to start your PowerPoint presentation on a timer and hit the beats while the presentation is basically running on autopilot behind you.
6. Starting off a presentation by saying you're not good at these sort of things. That sets a rather poor tone for the rest of your presentation. If you're not good at giving presentations, believe me, the audience will know it.

Obviously these points focus on stage presentations in front of an audience and wouldn't pertain to audio-only presentations such as podcasts. What do you think? Are there other presentation pain points you run across that distract you or drive you nuts?