Work on your soft skills

For my colleagues (and any other person that finds it useful).
It is important to learn the art of presentation. A lot of people have great presentations but mess it up with the delivery. The aim of a presentation is not to teach the whole topic but to give enough to whet the appetite. Are you presenting in a way that people will remember you weeks after presentation? Or are you doing it in a way that people groan once they see your name on the program? How do you deliver a great presentation?

Please don’t make your slides busy. This can cause a tension headache. You’re supposed to use the slide as a guide. You shouldn’t have more than 6 points on a slide. It’s not supposed to be a mini Harrisons.

Use illustrations and pictures as much as possible but it is not ‘Paw patrol’ or ‘Bob the builder’. Easy does it. Pick a design that is not too colorful and will take the attention away from your presentation. Don’t write with light colors on a pale background and end up worsening presbyopia for some people please.

Look at your audience. Not just at your slides throughout. Find some familiar faces that you’re comfortable with in the room in all angles and use that as your focal points. Don’t look at the HOD’s face if that will destabilize you.

Please practice. And practice again. It might be a dermatology presentation but you don’t want to be pronouncing skin conditions like you’re eating bitter leaf that you want to spit out. The presentation is not an impromptu one. There’s no excuse for not being able to pronounce anything on your slide.

Don’t put things on your slide that you cannot explain. “Explain this statement Dr. Ola”. “Sorry sir, I saw it on the internet”. Not acceptable. You put it there. So you should be able to explain it.

Please manage your time. That’s why you should have learning points before you start. You’re asked to present pathogenesis and you spent half the time talking about epidemiology and clinical features. Time management is a part of presentation. People drift off when you start doing that.

Put some humor in it if you can. But not lewd jokes please. If you know you don’t have a funny bone in you…please skip this part before they stone you with ‘pure water’

These are just a few basic tips for having a good presentation.
Ultimately….your aim is to make them remember you. And remember you they will if you put up a good presentation..

Remember there has to be a balance between the two. If you have a good presentation but badly prepared slides or good slides and a poor delivery, it may still not turn out right.
P.S…Don’t think it’s not necessary to have all these skills as a doctor. The more your soft skills, the better for you.
Develop those soft skills….you will be outstanding!

All pictures from Google images.