Add a Little Magic To Your Presentation

What’s the difference between a good speaker and great speaker?

Good speakers don’t bore us too much and pass on useful and interesting information while a great speaker captures our attention, makes us anticipate their next words and makes us say wow!

A lot like a magician….

Which is why I was intrigued about what a magician could teach us about being better presenters.

What Nick Fitzherbert does in “Presentation Magic” is take the 20 rules of Magic and applies them to business presentations and it’s a refreshing change of perspective.

Some of the most useful rules to take from the book are:

Rule 4 – “The brain filters out most information it receives, leaving only what it considers important“
We need to ensure that our message is something that our audience will think is important.

Rule 11 – “Attention is sustained by variation”
We can’t just talk at our audience for an hour, we need to engage them and we can do this by varying the way we deliver information by asking questions, giving them tasks or puzzles, telling stories and even giving them props.

Rule 19 – “People put more reliance on something they have worked out for themselves”
Think about it, which is more satisfying, solving a puzzle or being given the answer? Which way will you remember the answer longer?
Don’t give all the information to your audience, let them work it out for themselves.

If you want a new perspective on presenting then give Presentation magic a try and add some sparkle to your next presentation.