How did we get to the end of the year already? As the final days of the year are upon us, are you scrambling to finish up your 2021 ‘to do’ list? If so, there may not be enough time to finish everything you had hoped to accomplish. That can lead to frustration and disappointment.
Those are the same feelings I have when I don’t get to all the points I was hoping to make in a presentation. I walk away from the experience frustrated that my timing was off and disappointed that my message wasn’t delivered in its entirety.
I don’t script my presentations word-for-word, as I function better working with the main ideas that I want to share and then play off the responses from the audience. It’s an effective way to engage with the audience but it can derail your timing. If that’s how you present, then you may find this tip helpful.
I chunk out the timing of my presentation so that I have general time markers for all of the main points. These are usually 10–15-minute timeslots depending on the material. In my notes, I have the time listed, such as 3:05, that I should be transitioning to a new point. When followed, these time markers keep me on track to complete all the content. I usually write that time in a different color ink in my notes so it pops out at me and reminds me to make any necessary adjustments. It’s similar to the signs along the interstate that tell you how many more miles to your destination; you can do the mental calculation if you are on schedule or not to reach your destination.
This approach allows me to adjust throughout the presentation and avoids cramming all the content in at the end. I can adjust by having less back-and-forth with the audience on a certain point if I need to gain time or I can dig deeper into something with the audience if I’m running ahead of schedule. Speakers who flip through their last few slides at a rapid pace and tell me that we don’t have time to cover this or that leave me feeling like I was short-changed. Chances are the content at the end of the presentation is as important as the content at the beginning and the middle so be sure to allow the proper time to share all of it!