In my previous article, I discussed how we encounter several different types of bad presenters. I covered the first five presenter types in Part I, and now I’m going to profile the next five naughty presenters. As I mentioned in the last article, conduct a little self-evaluation and survey of your peers to ensure you don’t fall into one of these “bad presenter” types.
Take a deep breath!
The Firehose
This presenter has decided to give you everything they know about their topic – all at once with no detail being too small or insignificant. You are left feeling as though you’re sipping from a powerful firehose of semi-useful information. At the end of the presentation, you’re drenched but still thirsty. If only this presenter had taken the time to identify some key points from his vast experience and expertise that could have been beneficial to his audience. A carefully poured glass of refreshing insight was all you needed.
The Time Mismanager
Some presenters are not bothered by time constraints or rehearsing the pacing of their slides. An audience can be held hostage until this type of presenter has completed their unrehearsed runaway train of thought. A subset of these presenters may be a little more conscious about ending on time, but they misjudge how much time they need and end up rushing through many of their PowerPoint slides to finish on time. Either way this disorganized presenter cuts into the next time slot or inadequately covers material that could have been helpful.
Sorry you came to this presentation
The Apologist
Whoops! You shouldn’t have come to this presentation. This presenter clearly hasn’t thought through how his presentation will flow or appear to his audience. Quickly the apologies start to fly – “sorry, you probably can’t read this slide”, “I apologize about not having an internet connection to show this video”, “my bad, I should have removed this slide”, “ooops…I didn’t create these slides”, etc. The presentation may feel like a confessional by the end, but you can’t forgive his sloppy presentation sins. You’re sorry he just wasted 60 minutes of your time, which you can never get back.
The Wanderer
Within the first five minutes, you realize this presenter’s PowerPoint slides are simply a formality or an inconvenience. As this presenter begins to wander more and more off topic, you wonder what value you’ll receive from her “presentation”. You may be in for a treat if this meandering presenter can still piece together two or three coherent ideas. However, it’s more likely that you’ll end up with a jambalaya of useless facts, random opinions, and incomplete thoughts. You had an appetite for what this presenter was supposed to cover, and you’ll probably leave the presentation underfed or maybe even nauseous.
Buckle up and keep your hands down
The One-Way Ticket
Strap yourself in. This presenter has a destination in mind and is determined to get there in time. Keep your hands down at all times because questions won’t be answered until the end of the ride (if there’s time remaining that is). He views presenter-audience interaction as a distraction from the destination. You may enjoy parts of the ride, but you’re left with questions that you wish could have been answered by this speaker. You wonder if the ride couldn’t have been vastly improved by allowing the audience to participate and contribute along the way. An opportunity missed, and a presentation forgotten.
Make sure you, your co-workers, and loved ones don’t fall into one of these 10 bad presenter types. Seek out honest feedback on your presentation style and be willing to make adjustments where needed. Your future audiences will thank you.
