Presenting When You Didn’t Realise You Were

While we need to maintain a high degree of presentation skills when communicating to a large audience, it is often easy to forget that many of our presentation skills can also relate to team meetings and smaller venues to maintain interest and get your point across.

Even though there may not be a huge PowerPoint presentation in sight, keeping these points in mind will help you deliver a thoughtful and relevant message.

Clear Communication

As a leader, it is important that you maintain clear communication at all times. This goes for clarity of words as well as the overall clarity of the message. You don’t want there to be any miscommunication with your intentions or any unspoken grey areas that may cause issues down the track.

Confident Presentation

Executives need to be confident in their thoughts, actions and words. Body language and eye contact need to remain strong, and any nervousness kept well in check. If you are nervous about speaking then remember this: if you act confident you will come across as confident. Being confident will follow.

Have a Beginning, Middle and End

Whether you are going over last week’s business meeting notes or addressing your team about their latest successes and challenges, knowing how to start, ensuring you cover all the main points and finishing with a solid conclusion is paramount. No one wants to be left hanging wondering whether there is still more to be said on the subject.

Maintain a Conversational Tone

When it comes to engaging leadership, a conversation tone works well to connect everyone – particularly with a smaller-sized audience. No one wants to feel that they are being talked down to regardless of who is doing the talking. Big words can alienate your audience as well as yourself as the speaker.

Personalise It

Abstract themes can leave many an audience member wondering where the talk is going. Personalise it to ensure that everyone has a good grip of the main discussion points. People will remember stories far longer than facts or numbers.

Pass it on

While you are honing your skills as a good leader, make sure that you are teaching the skill of leadership and presentation to others in the workplace. Leadership skills should be encouraged from an early career path, particularly in women to help ensure gender equality and a mix of ideas.

Maintain One Simple Message

Make sure that your talk has one simple message. Try to avoid getting off track to avoid any confusion. Good leaders understand that it is best to get to the point without diversifying too far from the main topic.

Be Passionate

Own your passions and desires and communicate them to everyone around you. Passion can be contagious so be passionate about your topic of choice and inspire others to do the same. Don’t be afraid to be enthusiastic and show your love for the job and your team.

These points on presenting to your team will ensure your lunch meetings and board meetings are memorable and worthwhile for everyone involved. Good communication skills remain at the heart of an excellent leader – and as always practice makes perfect when honing any skill.