Ace Presentation Skills in 5 Easy Steps

The professional degrees introduce you to many new things, presentations are one of them. From undergraduate to the top, all academics is filled with presentations, these will also be a compulsory part of your professional life. Hence, it is important to polish them as soon as possible to get the best results from your effort. MAJU is sharing five easy steps you can follow to ace presentation skills.  

Do you have the Skills to Present? 

So, what do you think? Do you have the skills to present your brilliant business idea, your top-notch content, and your daring personality in front of others? Can you connect with them? Or can’t you make them understand what you ought to? — This is all a presentation skill! 

Let’s get it simpler. Throughout your student life, you will have to do subject presentations. By hook or crook, all you have to do is take a topic, and research on it in a specific context to communicate it to the audience, who are typically your classmates and mentors in routine.  

However, this skill of communication, to present in front of others, is a lifelong demand in professional settings. Furthermore, many times in a personal setup, you will also utilise this skill, though differently, through diverse mediums, but still, styles and skills remain the same.  

Spot on!  

Oh, Don’t Be 

Before you know what a great presenter looks like. And what are the must-have qualities for a great presenter? It is crucial to know what a presenter must not be! To be a good presenter, you should have some of these personality strengths! On the contrary, you should not be.  

Research shows the seven sins of a presenter! You must avoid! 

• To act like a human textbook. Don’t read your PPT slides like a textbook.  

• Becoming a monotone robot. Speaking in the same emotionless voice!  

• Working as a Slideshow Overloader. Putting too much information in too many slides.  

• Behaving like a nervous pacer.  

• The eye contact avoidance. Do you look in the opposite direction when asked or interacted? 

• Presentation without Time Limits. Do you continue presenting throughout the day?  

• No prep pro! Presenting without preparation is ain’t cool.  

Don’t worry, we all make these mistakes in presentations. Therefore, let’s see how you can overcome all these weaknesses and ace your presentation skills.  

Presentation Skills 3-2-1 Done! 

Since you are aware of what can ruin your presentation, now do the exact opposite to ensure your presentation skills become laser sharp, even if you are low on confidence or subject matter. The great news is you can learn everything of it. Let’s get into it.  

• Start with Active Listening 

• Optimise Your Body Language 

• Practice Your Stage Presence 

• Learn the Art of Story Telling 

• Work on Voice Projection 

• Don’t Forget the Verbal Communication 

Active Listening 

Active listening is the biggest skill one can learn to get the clues from the audience. It helps align the presentation with your audience’s non-verbal feedback. Furthermore, you will need to work on your relaxed, poised, and professional body language.   

Body Language 

During a presentation, your audience must have trust in your knowledge regarding what you are talking about. With relaxed, open, and calm body language, you can win them over.  

Stage Presence 

With relaxed body language, you can develop a powerful stage presence. The audience must know when the speaker joins them. You may have to incorporate multimedia aids, like a projector, laptops, and visuals. Therefore, a proper, smooth, and timely stage presence is essential.  

Story Telling 

Back in 2019, Forbes told us that the audience takes 10 minutes before they tune out. Therefore, for a great presenter, you will need to align and engage your audience. Therefore, storytelling is your essential part of long presentations. Try to bring the story in between, where it feels like the audience is about to tune out.  

Voice Projection 

Voice is one of the powerful media for a powerful presentation. As we have discussed above, the monotone, robotic voice does not make any impact on the audience. Therefore, it is the way to train your voice with diverse projections. Your voice must have the low and high pitches, and the inclusion of emotions.  

Verbal Communication 

Finally, for good presentation skills, speakers must also ace verbal communication. The ease of connecting with the audience through answering your audience’s questions is the best way.  

Be Your Biggest Critic 

To bring all these challenges to your presentation, the best way is to be your biggest critic. Take the following steps to be more productive in the same.  

• Record yourself on your mobile while doing a presentation practice.  

• Aligning your presentation with the timer.  

• Watch and observe your actions, facial expressions, verbal and nonverbal clues, and voice projections.  

• Note your weak points down on paper.  

• Work on them and re-record the entire process.  

Take Them There 

While you do practice, you can also work on your anxiety levels. Through stepping into your audience’s shoes. Think from their perspective and plan the questions they may ask.  

Learn More! 

Presentation skills are an essential part of a successful career and academics around the globe. Therefore, you should practice it in your graduation years. You can follow these steps and learn more from TED Talks, inline videos, and courses.