The Power of Process
In school, I was not a planner.
There was the panic infused, last-minute push to complete a Poly Sci. paper; the blurry-eyed all-nighter to cram for a Chemistry final; and even the deadline-driven process of registering for courses the hour before the automated system closed.
It cost me.
Both in terms of quality and flexibility, the lack of a planned approach cost me.
Having now worked with hundreds of people as they prepare for important presentations, pitches, and speeches, I’ve witnessed the power of process.
In fact, breaking down the preparatory process into stages is likely the simplest step you can take to improve your communication product. While it alone won’t guarantee a phenomenal outcome, it does provide the time and space necessary to get all of the critical ingredients in place and working together.
As Mark Twain famously remarked, “It usually takes me more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech.”
Given the power of process, below is the overview of an approach to prepare you for your next high-stakes presentation.
Session I: Plan your product.
Start by sketching out the rough form of your presentation. Akin to the napkin drawing of a new idea, jot down details of your audience, your central message(s), and the critical details you must include. Identify supporting content and begin thinking of the stories you can tell to enliven and illustrate your ideas.
Session II: Write a draft.
Whether you write a complete script or opt for an outline, now is the time to begin putting the pieces together. Focus first on ordering your content areas and then craft the transitions you will use to seamlessly move from one topic area to the next. Next include your core content, and then finish up by developing your introduction and conclusion.
Session III: Review for clarity.
Best laid plans don’t always come to fruition, so be sure to budget time early in the process to review the draft of your presentation with a third-party. After hearing your draft, did your reviewer get your main point(s)? Did your stories resonate and have enough detail to be memorable? Did your audience follow along or get lost? Take feedback to heart.
Session IV: Adjust as necessary (and build a slide deck, if desired).
Modify your draft to account for the feedback you received from the review. Tweak language, headlines, transitions, and stories to ensure that your spoken product perfectly matches your intention. When in doubt, simplify.
If you are going to use a slide deck, now is the time to begin putting it together. Why so late, you ask? Because if you develop your slide deck before the content is refined, you’re most likely to get a deck full of content ideas—not a finished product.
Session V: Dry run for performance.
Now is the time to focus on delivery. Practice your pacing, your intonation, your use of ‘pause & punch,’ and your other performance tools. Get comfortable moving and using gestures. While practicing, mentally visualize how it will look and feel presenting in the actual space. Iterate until its familiar, comfortable, and refined.
Session VI: Crush it!
There is a power to process, and planning becomes even more essential if you have co-presenters. For tips on multi-presenter presentations, review our Speaker Soundbite, Get Together from June 1, 2018.
I can appreciate that all of the above steps can look daunting, but they are important to a great presentation. Divided across a few 30-45 minute work sessions, it’s also a very manageable process.
On the other hand, waiting until the last-minute compresses everything into a stressful marathon that will ironically take longer and yield less refined results.
Whether your work is distributed across four-days or four-weeks, working incrementally is the key to a more successful presentation product.