Frau fürchtet sich vor der Präsentation

The thrill of success: Master your nervousness in business presentations with these 10 tips.

/in , /by

You can make a positive impression with a convincing business presentation. It sounds so simple – if it weren’t for the nervousness that throws a spanner in the works. Here are 10 proven tips to help you handle your own nervousness with confidence.

1. preparation is the key

Preparation is always forgotten, underestimated or not prioritized enough. Solid preparation gives you confidence and reduces nervousness. Rehearse your presentation thoroughly and prepare for possible questions.

2. develop a positive attitude

Zig Ziglar, an American motivational and sales trainer, coined a term that has been with me since I was a teenager: “stinking thinking.” Instead, look at the presentation as an opportunity to showcase your knowledge and skills. Consider it a privilege to present your knowledge to the audience. After all, not everyone gets this chance. Therefore, try to turn your nervousness into excitement and energy.

3. breathe deeply in and out

This is what I learned years ago in Aikido training: pay attention to your breath. This also applies to business presentations. Focus on your breathing before the presentation. Slow, deep breaths help relieve stress and calm the body.

4. visualize the success

Do as the successful athletes do: vividly imagine yourself performing with confidence and poise. This mental image helps to increase self-confidence and reduce nervousness to a tolerable level.

5. keep eye contact

During the presentation, seek eye contact with the friendly looking audience. This creates a connection and diverts your attention from the nervousness.

6. speak consciously

Make sure your pronunciation is clear and distinct. Take your time when speaking and avoid speaking too fast. A calm and controlled voice has a professional and reassuring effect on you and the audience.

7. taking breaks helps against nervousness

Deliberately build pauses into your presentation to collect yourself and relax. Use these moments to take a deep breath and organize your thoughts. Take a sip of water. You will automatically breathe properly before and after drinking.

8. interact with the audience

Ask questions of the audience or ask for feedback. This creates an interactive atmosphere and diverts attention away from you and your own nervousness.

9. posture and gestures

Stand tall and confident to have a positive aura. Use your hands and gestures to support your words. An open body posture looks self-confident. Body and mind work in sync. When you put your body in a confident posture, you immediately feel more confident. Try it out right away. Take a bent posture once, then an upright one. Can you feel the difference?

10. accept nervousness as normal

Remember that nervousness is something normal that many people experience before and during presentations. Accept and embrace your nervousness instead of fighting it. After all, a presentation is not a walk in the park.

Book recommendation

For more in-depth tips on dealing with nervousness, such as the current grip, I recommend the following book:

Reto B. Rüegger, Thomas Skipwith: The Worm Must Taste the Fish. Scoring as a speaker with Power Presentations

If I can support you for a speech or presentation, please let me know (+41 41 630 39 90).

If you would like to have tips and tricks regularly by e-mail (in German), then sign up to the Trainingletter – but it’s confidential:-).

Einstieg in eine Präsentation

Inspire from the start: 10 ideas for a convincing presentation introduction

/in , , , , , /by

10 ideas for an attractive opening

Business presentations are often boring like hell. Many times, you can tell right right from the beginning of the presentation. Read here how to make an attractive opening.

1. an interesting quote:

Design the introduction with an inspirational quote that fits the theme of your presentation. A good quote can immediately grab the audience’s attention. E.g. brainyquote.de and gutezitate.com.

2. an anecdote:

A short, funny or interesting anecdote can help the audience identify with you and your topic. E.g. Recently I was traveling on the train. There was a young man in a suit and tie, full hair and glasses sitting one row in front of me with his laptop on his lap. He was looking at a business presentation. I could read along! …

3. A question:

Ask a question that makes the audience think and points to the topic of your presentation. E.g. How many times have you …?

4. statistics:

Start with an impressive statistic that supports the theme of your presentation and captures the audience’s attention. E.g. 2300 cubic meters of water flow down the Rhine per second. This is equivalent to 51,500 commercial bathtubs.

5. a visual element:

Open your presentation with a visual element such as a picture or graphic that fits the topic and visually appeals to the audience. E.g. Create an image on the theme of your presentation with Midjourney or Nightcafé.

6. a personal reference:

A short story or personal experience can help the audience identify with you and generate interest in your topic. E.g. I still remember well …

7. an interesting fact:

Start your presentation with a surprising or interesting fact that supports the theme of your presentation. E.g. Nutella has sun protection factor 9.7 (from the book of the same name).

8. a short joke:

A well-placed joke can make the audience laugh and help them relax and focus on your presentation. Recommendation: The joke should have something to do with the topic.

9. a metaphor:

Use a metaphor to describe the topic of your presentation and help the audience understand it better. For example, camel becomes “desert ship”. Metaphor can be used to make an expression more figurative, vivid, and understandable.

10. a clear statement:

Begin your presentation with a clear statement that summarizes the topic of your presentation and prepares the audience for what follows.

Book recommendation

For an attractive start, I like to recommend the following book:


Michael Rossié: How do I start my speech?: 100 ideas for 1000 own starts
 (Order at Amazon: Affiliate-Link)

If I can support you for a speech or presentation, please let me know (+41 41 630 39 90).

If you would like to have tips and tricks regularly by e-mail (in German), then sign up to the Trainingletter – but it’s confidential:-).

Künstliche Intelligenz

From the idea to the perfect presentation: AI technology in action

/in , , , , , , /by

Possibilities

Yes, AI tools are a real support for daily work. Even when it comes to creating a presentation. Do AI tools do all the work for you? No. Nevertheless, they are incredibly useful. There are several ways you can use AI for your presentations.

  1. Automatic text generation: In my opinion, currently (April 2023) still by far the most useful application. You can use AI tools like GPT-3 or GPT4 to automatically generate text for your presentations. This can be especially useful if you want to give an overview of a particular topic and don’t have enough time to write everything yourself. The AI tools (first and foremost ChatGPT) is a wonderful sparring partner and idea provider.
  2. Automatic translation: AI tools like Google Translate and – my favorite – DeepL translate your presentations almost perfectly into different languages. For example, it has long been unnecessary to translate a presentation from a human into the language in which you will be presenting. This way the effort is very manageable to have the slides in the same language as the language you are presenting in. This makes it easier for you and the audience during the presentation.
  3. Automatic subtitles: If you record your presentation on video, AI tools like YouTube or Google Slides can generate automatic subtitles for your presentation. This can be helpful for deaf people or people with hearing problems who have difficulty following the spoken word. Or for all others who are not proficient in the spoken language. For example, you can speak in German in your presentation, but the subtitles are in English, French or Chinese.
  4. Automatic slide layout: You can use AI tools like Slidebean, PowerPoint Designer or Beautiful.ai to automatically generate layouts and designs for your presentations. This can be especially useful if you are not a designer or do not have time to create a custom design.

Warning

It’s important to note that while many applications and tools are based on AI technology, they still require a fair amount of manual customization and review to ensure that the presentation you create meets your needs. So we can’t turn off the brain completely yet!

Full automation possible?

Currently, the AI tools still often require you to switch from one tool to another, so for example, you have to copy the text generated in ChatGPT to PowerPoint or Keynote using Copy-Paste. Or the application would help you for the design, but you are bound to the company template. In this case, the design suggestions are of limited use to you. For the latter, I wish I could use the company template in the AI tool as well. Surely this will come soon (or is already possible and I don’t know about it yet :-)). Currently, I stay in PowerPoint for the design and get inspiration from PowerPoint Designer from time to time.

Gamma.app: The egg-laying sow?

Gamma.app is already one step further. The prompt is integrated into the app. So there is no need to switch between applications. The order in which the app creates the presentation is interesting. After entering the prompt, the app asks how you want the design to look. Meanwhile, the app creates the content of the presentation. As soon as you have decided on a design, the app spits out the complete presentation including images. I tried this out using the example of “ESG for the construction industry”. The results were surprisingly good. However, I recommend reducing the whole sentences that are now on the slides to key words. Otherwise, the presentation becomes a pre-reading instead of a presentation.

At the moment, the Gamma app is still free. It only requires registration. Unfortunately, at the moment it is not possible to export the presentations to PowerPoint. The presentation is in a cloud – with the advantage that I and others can access it at any time.

To see what Gamma currently offers, I highly recommend trying out the Gamma.app.

More tips

For more tips and tricks on online presentations and online meetings, you can order the book “Online Meetings” by Thorsten Jekel and me.

If I can support you for a speech or presentation, please let me know (+41 41 630 39 90).

If you would like to have tips and tricks regularly by e-mail (in German), then sign up to the Trainingletter – but it’s confidential:-).

Rehearsal / Proben

From rehearsal to perfection: how to rock your online presentation with Rehearsal.

/in , , , , , /by
Read more