Last Thursday I spoke to the leaders and other employees at ExxonMobil’s Clinton NJ research site. When I took out my computer back at my hotel an hour before I planned to leave for the site, I couldn’t find the power chord! I had left it at ExxonMobil’s Paulsboro NJ site on Monday. When I got to the venue, my client Roy tried to find a chord to borrow, but there wasn’t any that would fit my laptop. Now I would have to give my talks without slides! No big deal. In fact, one of their managers Paul had attended one of my talks in Paulsboro and he thought the talk was better without slides. I had to agree with him.
I don’t use many slides, and most of them are pictures with a few words. So, no more slides (or just a couple that show pics of books I recommend) when I give my “Find Your Focus” Talk.
A real test of how well you know your material is if you can still give a talk or conduct a safety meeting without slides or notes. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use slides, they can enhance your presentation and may even be necessary if you are showing scenes of accidents or some schematics. But they can also be distracting and pull thoughts away from you and your message.
Why not try giving a talk without slides, especially if you are well versed in the subject. It may surprise you how much more you will connect with your audience.
