Numbers and Story-telling

So a few days ago, I attended a seminar about a particular project that will be taking place in the region. Although the presenter had good presentation skills, knew what he was talking about, and was quite passionate about the project overall, he, unfortunately, blew it all up when the time came to share some numbers.

He right away apologized for having to share some numbers that might look boring to some in the audience.

I was like "Why in the world did you just say that???"

He was already on a roll and doing a pretty good job getting the audience all excited about the project...and then "boom!" He screwed it all up.

It's so unfortunate that there are people out there who have a misconception about numbers and statistics.

Please don't undervalue numbers during a presentation especially if such numbers are meant to mean something for the audience. By undervaluing numbers, you are resorting to mind-conditioning and directing people to see those numbers as boring before you even start sharing them and talking about them.

Instead, manage expectations by letting your audience know what's coming up next and that you're now going to be sharing some very exciting numbers that will only make the project even "sexier." By doing so, you are making your presentation even more meaningful and impactful. This is where "story-telling" comes into the picture. It's all about how you showcase the benefit of such numbers. When we interpret numbers in a simplistic story-telling and meaningful way and address their benefits, our audience will look at such numbers from a completely different perspective.

So, always remember...if you wanna make a stellar presentation, make sure you know how to interpret numbers in a compelling way! Better yet, you can even start your presentation with numbers! Make a splashy introduction and go at it.