Before you use PowerPoint…
TheVP
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Presentation planning should begin with planning a good story. The slide and graphics to support the telling of that story come
second.
Many pros suggest beginning with sticky notes, each with one thought written on it. Index cards would do the same trick. Brainstorm various ideas, quotes, facts, graphic and other visual reminders onto these placeholders.
There are at least two benefits to this:
One, you’ll more easily see the big picture, helping you arrange a point-by-point connection between Point A and Point B.
Two, unless you’re a wizard with using computer-based graphics and shapes, it’ll likely be much easier to sketch out visualizations that communicate key points, making it easier to figure out what to do when you open PowerPoint.
Start outside your presentation software. Start on paper.
Lorie Marrero
Hi Roger, I am enjoying your posts! Irene K. on Twitter pointed you out to me. I have found that instead of Post-Its I enjoy using mindmapping software to plot out presentations. It’s the same Post-It concept but you can more easily create it and move things around. Then you can export it to Power Point! 🙂
Cheers,
Lorie Marrero
(@clutterdiet)
TheVP
Touche’, Lorie! Whatever the tactic, I think a key is to have a supportive process – then finding the right tools. As a longtimer in the software biz, unfortunately I see too many people who let tools create their process (and PowerPoint is a poor place to start if you don’t know where you’re going). But great suggestion…mindmapping software is a fabulous alternative.