Jim --
Thanks! Your are obviously an experienced presenter, and you said the right words so I know that is true. As a general outline for those of you who are not experienced presenters and find yourself in a presentation mode, listen to Jim and a few additional tips.
> First, take as many
>actual airplanes as seems reasonable.
>1/2A's with exposed controls that
>you can pass around are
>good.
Jim, you nailed that one! Regardless of the subject of the presentation, handing things around is far, far better than words. As the old saying goes, "A word is worth 10 to the -3 pictures." It gives the presenter something to talk to, instead of to talk about.
>Secondly, Limit
>your talk to CL
>and talk about it from
>your personal experience and point
>of view.
Yeah, for sure. Amateurs tend to want to start with way, way too much detail. A gardener should not start off with soil types, but simple plants that grow. In my case, I need not talk of RC, Free Flight, etc, but focus on MY subject.
>can make three points in
>20 minutes, I take my
>hat off to you.
Yeah, your second point is the most valid. Make one point. Maybe two if you are really, really good. Leave the crowd with your most important thought.
>Thirdly, don't show more than
>ten minutes of video.
>Five would be better.
>Even so, you'll see some
>in the audience flexing their
>hands to click their remote.
Using video in a presentation is OK (my experience) if you pause and get the crowd involved every three minutes or so.
> Fourth, leave time, at
>least five of your 20
>minutes, at the end for
>questions, and the "take home
>lesson". This last is the
>most important piece of advice.
I disagree slightly. Not questions, but comments. I never pretend to be an expert in a presentation, but a knowledgable person who is more interested in comments than questions for an expert to answer.
>I'd suggest that you run through
>your presentation a couple of
>times with a tape recorder
>and a stopwatch. Start out
>with an outline, revise it,
>and practice enough that you
>don't need it.
I taped a lot of my professional presentations, and have fallen off the couch laughing watching some of them. My favorite was caused by a too literal interpretation from a good friend who tipped me off to using light pencil marks on a flip chart. He was 6-4 and I am 5-7 and wear bifocals. The "trick" is to write light notes in pencil near the top of the chart so the crowd doesn't see them, but serve as reminders. Well, I dutifully wrote my notes at the top of the flip chart. Now, in the video I see myself looking at the ceiling in an effort to bring the notes into bifocal focus. Absolutely hilarious!