You'd be amazed at how many people do not know how long their presentation takes. They guess at the length, often by multiplying the number of slides by some magic number. Or they divide the allotted time by some factor that makes sense to them, but bears no relation to reality.

You only know how long something takes if you do it "for real" in a dress rehearsal. You need to practice the presentation exactly as you will do it. Include all the slides, props, activities and audience participation. Once you know how long it takes, check it again. You need to be sure of the amount of time it really takes - your first rehearsal may have been too fast or too slow. Only be rehearsing again will you find out if your first attempt was right or not.

Once you know the time, make sure it is less than your allotted time. Generally it's best to try for five minutes less than your time for a typical half hour presentation. So time your presentation for just 25 minutes, for example. This five minutes lee-way means you can handle any extra questions, or have space for and difficulties that arise, such as the previous speaker over-running.

Audiences hate it when presenters run over time. Get them to like you by running slightly under.

Labels: performance

DIGG THIS STORY

Email this story to your friends: