How to Deliver an Authentic and Meaningful Presentation

We all have to deliver presentations throughout our careers. Whether it’s an All Company meeting, a presentation to our team, a strategy overview to the board, or an external keynote presentation at a conference, we have to face our fears, put in the work, and deliver something that is authentic to us and meaningful to our audience.

So, how do we do that?

I’ve been speaking in various forums throughout my career. Every panel, fireside chat, live interview, and now podcast (!) is still challenging, even after twenty-five years of practice. But as with a lot of things I do, I keep speaking because I learn and grow every time I do it. And, based on the feedback I’ve gotten, people learn a few things as well.

It’s been awhile since I’ve delivered a keynote. So, when I recently dusted off my presentation playbook for a keynote at the #ExLearn2019 conference, it was both invigorating and daunting.

Here are three things I learned from preparing and delivering that keynote:

1. Practice Vs. Powerpoint

In December 2018, Sharon Boller, owner of Bottom Line Performance (recently acquired by Tier 1 Performance) and the conference’s sponsor, asked me to do the keynote, which would be given in September 2019. I had nine…