Don't waste your audience's time!

One of the issues that many of my clients have is how much content to include in their presentations. Many people worry that they include too much information (and indeed, this happens a lot). Others worry that they’re not including enough detail and as a consequence, the audience might think they’re not such an expert in the subject matter.

I’m going to tell you how to make sure the amount of information you include is just as it should be.

The ‘big picture’ message is that it’s always about the audience. So, find out what content they need and give only that content to them. Forget about trying to show how much you know.

Let’s now get down to the ‘nitty-gritty’ (the small picture)

Know that consciously or subconsciously, every member of your audience is thinking:

• Please don’t waste my time
• Please tell me something I don’t already know
• Please give me something to make my life easier

I love these three statements because they are SO to the point and easy to understand. They really encourage you to focus on what’s important for any audience.

They also provide a great checklist you can use to make sure your content is concise and memorable.

So, next time you have to prepare a presentation, ask yourself if you’ve included new information or a new perspective which is going to benefit your audience so that you’re not wasting their time.