Monday, February 11, 2013

12 Brain Rules for Better Presentations

Most people have some trepidation about giving lectures and live presentations. Even after years of being in front of every kind of group you can think of, I still get butterflies and I'm always looking for ways to do it better. Here are some interesting tips from author John Medina that can at least give you the assurance that you've done your best to be prepared. His thesis?...knowing how the brain works can help you create and deliver more effective presentations. John Medina's Brain Rules really gave me some things to think about to make my presentations better...
1. Exercise boosts brain power. Got writer's block? Get your body moving and your brain will perk up.
2. The human brain evolved to ensure our survival. It works better when we feel safe. Put your audience at ease and they'll listen.
3. Every brain is wired differently. You may need to say things in a variety of ways to reach all the different brains in your audience.
4. We don't pay attention to boring things. And we're easily distracted. Add an emotional element and we tune in better.
5. Repeat to remember. Your audience is more likely to remember repeated elements.
6. Remember to repeat. Remember to review important information at the end of your talk to stimulate your audience's memory.
7. Your brain needs sleep to function properly. Get a good night's rest before you present, and don't be afraid to take a nap.
8. Too much stress makes brains less effective. Having a happy home life can actually make you a better presenter!
9. Stimulate more of the senses (especially smell), and people will remember more.
10. Vision trumps all other senses. We're more likely to remember pictures than words. Time to revamp your PowerPoints!
11. Male and female brains are different. You may want to tailor your message to the main gender of your audience.
12. We are natural explorers. We learn more by experimenting than by listening passively, so try to get your audience involved.

Intrigued? Presentation guru Garr Reynolds was so inspired by Medina's book that he created a whole Brain Rules presentation about them.
Check out more details about successful presentations at Garr's blog: http://www.garrreynolds.com/Presentations/index.html


http://www.garrreynolds.com/Presentation/index.html

1 comment:

  1. Great tips!! I enjoyed every moment while reading this article.Every line is full of new ideas and thoughts.The best thing about the article you have expressed your words .I found this article interesting to read.This is informative and helpful post.I found this article interesting to read too.Keep posting:)

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