You didn’t write it, but now you are to present it.
You didn’t make the slides, but now you are to teach it.
It’s not written the way you would write it, and the author clearly thought about the topic differently than you do. It is not wrong – it is simply different than how you would present it.
Where do you begin? Then, how do you own it, deliver it in a memorable way, and make it effective workforce training?
Before answering that, consider the following story from Nora Ephron about her high school journalism class teacher, Charles Simms, as he faced a room full of bright-eyed students ready to start their careers and take on the toughest reporting challenges.
The Story
The teacher told the class about an upcoming event and asked them to compose the Lead for an article in the school paper describing it. The facts they were given were as follows:
“Kenneth L. Peters, principal of Beverly Hills High School, announced today that the faculty of the high school will travel to Sacramento on Thursday for a colloquium on new teaching methods. At the conference, anthropologist Margaret Mead, educator Robert Maynard Hutchins, and several others will speak to the audience.”
After telling these and other details about the conference, Mr. Simms gave the class some time to compose the Lead. When they were finished, he picked up each student’s paper one by one and read it aloud, with his assessment of their work:
“Margaret Mead and Robert Maynard Hutchins will address the faculty,” “No!”
“Teachers to travel to Sacramento on Thursday.” “No!”
“Faculty to attend a conference on new teaching methods.” “No!”
Finally, Mr. Simms smiled. Then he looked up and said, “The lead to the story is, There will be no school Thursday.”
The Lead
What does this story mean to us? Simple. For a slide you didn’t write, for a policy or process that is not in your words, or for a presentation or workforce training topic handed to you to deliver, your job is to find the Lead.
Each time you advance the screen to the next slide, most of your audience will read all the bullets immediately. You could be talking in a foreign language for the time it takes them to read it, and many wouldn’t notice. But after an initial moment for them (and you) to orient yourself to the information on the screen, your job becomes to provide them with the Lead. Direct their attention to one, or at the most two, key pieces of information and tell why it matters to them – they will gather the other details from the slide themselves. Most likely there are some bullets on the slide that are fairly obvious and apparent. Respect your audience by allowing them to discover this information for themselves. You help them best by directing them to the parts that need further exploration.
The Lead in Journalism
Below is a description of what a journalist does with the lead. As a presenter, you can use the same approach to guide an audience to the important aspects of your presentation. With a well-crafted lead, you can generate enthusiasm and interest.
“The lead, or opening paragraph, is the most important part of a news story. With so many sources of information – newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, and the internet – audiences simply are not willing to read beyond the first paragraph (and even sentence) of a story unless it grabs their interest. A good lead does just that. It gives readers the most important information in a clear, concise, and interesting manner. It also establishes the voice and direction of an article.” Purdue Online Writing Lab
Preparation with PREP
When you prepare for the presentation, analyze each slide to find the Lead. Then, string the individual Leads together into a coherent, easy-to-follow story. As you do this, you develop transitions and character throughout the presentation that guide your audience seamlessly through the message. Make complex concepts simple with the use of appropriate illustration. By understanding your audience, and what is important to them, and pulling that out of the presentation, you bring your audience to the call for action, the learning objective, or the question requiring a decision, depending on the overall goal of the presentation. A great way to convey meaning to your audience is with the PREP format – see more information on PREP here.
When it comes time to wrap up after questions have been answered, a quick review of the most significant leads provides your audience with a great summary. They will remember what you said and how you explained it to them.
This is how you will make any presentation your own, make it memorable, and make it effective workforce training. Find the Lead and describe its value to the listener. Make it interesting and make it yours. Find the Lead – today’s CommLink. Be sure to look for more Dynamic Speaking Principles from P H Tyson & Associates.
“Perceived lack of preparation is interpreted as a lack of respect for the audience.”