One of the unavoidable things about college, and increasingly work life, is PowerPoint. Most of us have, at one point or another, had to slap some slides together and give a presentation to our friends, family, class, co-workers, or boss.
Good PowerPoint presentations are more fun, more impactful, and more impressive to listen to. And all they do differently is follow a few simple guidelines.
The New 10 Commandments of PowerPoint Presentations
1. Thou shall be seen.
Ensure your text is large enough to be read easily by those sitting in the back of thy presentation room, suggesting 36 point font as your minimum. Use text, graphics, and colors that have high contrast with the background that are appropriate, complementary, and visually pleasing.
2. Thou shall make points, not paragraphs.
There is no reason to ever have more than a few words per slide. Follow the 6 by 6 rule, which is using no more than six words per line and no more than six lines/bullet points per slide. Or, think of it like Twitter: If you can’t get your point across briefly, you need to further narrow your point.
3. Thou shall not only use text.
Pictures say a thousand words and videos are usually more interesting than you are. Images, video clips, and sound bites vary the tempo and feel of the presentation. However, limit video and audio to no longer than 10-20% of your total presentation time.
4. Thou shall not bullet.
A bulleted list looks like something I’m not going to want to read. Think like a graphic designer and use colors, fonts, and spacing to make your presentation more appealing to the eye. Organize your content well and try to avoid using the big black dots.
5. Thou shall not over-clutter.
Generally speaking, an audience wants one or two things to focus on per slide, whether it’s a point of text or an image. You need to balance your content with white space to ensure an uncluttered, aesthetic composition and a logic to your arrangement that audiences can easily follow.
6. Thou shall not use transitions.
Transitions are the optional animations between slides and really should be deleted from PowerPoint entirely! No transitions ever, ever, ever. Keep it simple. But, do use “black-out” slides in your presentation at times when you want the audience to focus exclusively on you without distraction.
7. Thou shall cite thy work.
You must cite sources for any image, graphic, or text on the slide in which that material is presented. Also, your presentation should include a works cited slide(s) visible immediately after your conclusion.
8. Thou shall not read the slides.
Your slides are a visual aid to enhance your speech, not replace it. Use slides as a jumping-off point for other things. Establish and maintain eye contact with your audience, not the screen. You are the presenter, not PowerPoint.
9. Thou shall rehearse.
Things can go wrong sometimes. You may easily find a typographical error on a slide or some slides may be in the wrong order than what you thought. Rehearse your presentation at least once — it’ll automatically make your speech better-sounding and better-timed when you do it for real.
10. Thou shall know less is more.
The key to a good presentation is how short it is. Try not to ramble or add unnecessary information. Design presentations that are visually interesting, integrate well with your message, and engage the audience. A great presentation should leave your audience wanting more!
Copyright 2009 Matt Rygelski. May be reprinted for educational/instructional use with appropriate citation.
i am eager to know more.