General McChrystal’s looked at this slide and dryly remarked, “When we understand that slide, we’ll have won the war.”

Please heed these rules for your upcoming presentation. Even if you are the CFO and must show your financial picture, you can add in some clear, simple and compelling visuals that corroborate your business story.

RULES FOR YOUR VISUALS*

 1.   K.I.S.S.     6-3-6 Rule:  6 lines, 3 to 6 words per line

 Does it fit on a  T-Shirt?

Millennial Rules (even less stuff on your visuals):

• KEEP IT VISUAL
• NO MORE THAN 6 WORDS PER VISUAL
• MAKE SLIDES THAT REINFORCE WORDS, NOT REPEAT THEM
• NO CHEESY IMAGES
• CREATE A DOCUMENT THAT YOU LEAVE BEHIND WITH ALL THE INFO
• NO DISSOLVES, SPINS OR OTHER TRANSITIONS

 2.   Face the audience, not the screen.

 3.   Stand “stage right” of the screen, which makes it easier on the audience.

 4.   Keep the room as light as possible.

 5.   Use colors that connect with your brand.

 6.   Use the Master Slide feature (in Power Point).

 7.   Bring attention back to you by pressing the “B” key—which makes the screen black, OR

press the “W” key—which makes the screen white.  To restore the image, simply press “B” or “W” again.

DESIGN TIPS

1.  Use bullets and phrases, not sentences.

2.  Use parallel structure.

3.  Leave some blank space.

4.  Add headings that make sense to the audience

5.  Audiences are rebelling against PowerPoint – LESS IS MORE:

Tip:  Remember the Titanic.  Bring a backup (either computerized or hard copy).

* more info in Karen’s book, The Naked Truth about Giving Great Speeches