As Doctors , Academicians , researchers and medical students, we have to frequently present in front of an audience. It is a skill to keep the audience captivated and enthralled with our presentation. Matt Abrahams , Professor at Stanford graduate school of Business school, explains four powerful rules to be followed for better communication. The four rules are concise, relevance, accessible and precision.I would go further and say that the slides of presentation should be minimum, each slide should show only the necessary points under the bullet marking and the slides should be attractive. Certain design templates can be used to make the slides attractive and captivating to the audience. The 4 important rules to be considered during a communication/presentation are as follows.
1. Concise: As a presenter ,we should provide the least amount of information which needs to be shared with the audience to get the msg across. E g Billboard essence.On a billboard ,only a few points are highlighted to attract the audience and pass the msg. Similarly use a few words and explain the essential idea first and then follow it up with related information of the presentation. This way, your audience is not bored and is hooked to the presentation.
2. Relevance: The msg should be relevant and important for the audience. As an expert we might have a lot of information to share with the audience. But keeping it relevant will help the audience to focus on the presentation. It is also important to add emotion while communicating. This helps to restore the memory longer in the audience. This can be done by engaging the audience by involving them in the story. These are the various methods by which we can keep the interest of the audience.
3. Accessibility: The research information can be complex with scientific words. This language may not be accessible to the audience. Therefore we have to sympathise with the audience and use simpler terms which the audience can understand and relate to.
Translate the information. Take complex knowledge and make it simple by using relatable analogies. Also, deconstruct the complex knowledge by using infographics and videos during the presentation.
4. Precision: targeting the msg. We have to make sure that we have explained the clear goal. Set expectations i.e objectives at the beginning of the presentation or communication , so the audience has an idea about the presentation. Give structure to your presentation. And at the end clearly state your goals so that it can conclude your presentation well.During the presentation ,get the audience involved and engage them in the presentation. This will keep the lecture lively and will keep the audience hooked to the presentation.
Now I will address the most important question. How to.select a topic ? The topic depends on its relevance to the audience. For an undergraduate or a postgraduate the topic is different than while giving lectures to medical officers or teachers. Also discuss with the organizers the theme of the seminar or CME. This will help you in finalizing the area e.g which system you need to present. So, depending on the lacuna of the knowledge of the listeners you have to select the topic.Gauge the audience 's knowledge before giving the lecture.
During your initial presentations,show your slides to your teacher / mentor and ask their advice. Also present it in front of a small peer group. A practice that I follow in our department is that, our PG students have to present 2-3 times in the department in front of teachers and friends. We , teachers advise changes to the presentation which the students incorporate. We check the following points- duration of the presentation, stance of the presenter, audibility, content of presentation, introduction and conclusion,design of the slides and the most important grammar.
Conclusion: The above 4 rules have to be kept in mind while preparing the slides and presenting in front of an audience. To be good at anything one needs practice. Even though the initial couple of presentations may seem challenging , with practice one can be an expert at presenting.
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