A PowerPoint Nightmare

Some years ago I was invited to speak to a group of seniors about estate planning, something I did quite a bit back in the day. There were two speakers, the other one being “an expert from Toronto”. I was the second act.

The headliner was going to teach these seniors the rather complex math of a certain tax-planned investment strategy. Perceptive readers will have their first inkling about where this story is going.

As is typical with seniors’ events, it began at a “respectable hour” and started by filling the attendees up with plenty of rich goodies. The heat had already been cranked up so they were comfortable. If you didn’t get the first clue, by now you can clearly see where this is going to end. If they’d been home it would have been nap time. (Hey, I’m a senior– I know how these things work.)

In any case, out went the lights and on came the PowerPoint. One screen after another in endless sameness, each dense and dark spreadsheet, chart and graph followed the others in grim procession. At the bottom of each dark slide were the speaking notes, which the speaker– back turned to the audience– intoned aloud. Verbatim.

I’ll bet you’re getting sleepy just reading this.

Mercifully for the three of us who remained awake, it ended. Of the math of tax-planned investment I remember nothing, but the big lesson will remain with me forever.

Now, of course, it was my turn, and I had an immediate opportunity to apply the lesson. I put away my PowerPoint– this crowd was in a lynching mood.

Even without PowerPoint, I still had lawyer jokes. It’s amazing how an audience will warm up if you sacrifice a few lawyers onstage.

Next I told a couple of stories about estate planning gone wrong (believe me, I have a bagful of those), then I gave my standard fifteen minute “big picture” outline. Then we did Q&A– they wouldn’t stop for about an hour. But no slides.

Now, don’t get me wrong about PowerPoint. Used properly, it can be a powerful way to make a point, but used improperly it can kill you. And good use is the exception, not the rule.

Here are three key things I’ve learned: Don’t put more than a handful of words on each page, don’t use your slides as your speaking notes, and don’t provide a “deck” in advance. This latter is the equivalent of a magician explaining his trick beforehand.

Good slides are those where a picture truly is worth a thousand words, or which let the audience in on a sly inside joke, or which slam their senses with breathtaking impact. Such slides are works of art.

Never forget that your most important task as a public speaker is constantly to read and respond to the eyes and faces of your listeners. When PowerPoint gets in the way of that, it’s not your friend. But when you can use it to fill those eyes and faces with delight and awe, you’re a master user.