Ah, yes – the dreaded presentation where the presenter thought it was vital to put every word from their presentation onto the screen. Presentation – FAIL! Here’s usually what happens next – instead of the audience anxiously anticipating what the speaker will say next, they skip ahead on the screen and ultimately end up tuning out the presenter. What’s the point of listening if it’s all right there in front of you?

Here’s a few tips to make sure that you’re actually heard in your next presentation:

1. Focus on the key points. What are the main ideas that you want your audience to take away from the presentation?

2. Illustrate rather than spell out your points. Do you have a dramatic statistic that you’d like to focus on? Don’t hide it in copy or another boring chart, instead find a dramatic photo and use it as a callout.

3. Add some humor. Think about it – humor can loosen up any crowd and help keep your audience’s attention. Just make sure to keep it business appropriate!

I challenge you to go ahead and break the vicious cycle of copy heavy presentations! Only you can prevent snooze-fests! And let me know if you have any other suggestions on how you make sure your audience hears you during presentations.