Presentation Secrets: Do What you Never Thought Possible With Your Presentations

SUMMARY

The key points to remember from this chapter are as follows:

• The plot follows “the S-curve.” The goal and the conflict are two major components of the story. The last component is called the plot, the dramatic sequence. There are many ways to look at the plot, but for most part it follows the “S-curve,” the common change pattern. It starts with an exposition, which is an introduction for the speaker and the hero. It continues with the problem and the solution. It ends with the conclusion.
• Timing matters. It terms of time, the shortest parts are the exposition and the conclusion. The solution is typically the longest and the problem is the second longest. However, if you want to draw attention to the problem, don't be afraid to take more time for it. The conclusion is the most emotional part. Then follows the problem, solution, and finally the exposition.
• The solution is the most difficult part to present. Too often the middle is too long and thus easily becomes the muddle. If this happens, you probably need another unifying idea, just for this part. The most obvious is a timeline, but you can also use visual metaphors and acronyms. For presentations longer than twenty minutes, you should give your audience a way to track the progress. I highly recommend you have no more than four key ideas in the middle section of your presentation.
• If you've constructed your emotional arc properly, in the end there will be an opportunity to change the world. Don't miss it.

1 See Hartley, ...