WHS for Health and Safety Committees – NSW Edition
Lesson 3 – Topic 2: Presentation Skills
Presentation Skills
“I’ll know my song well before I start singin'”
from A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall by Bob Dylan
Anyone can make an excellent presentation. With a sound knowledge of the issue you are going to talk about, your presentation should go well. Here are some ideas to help make your presentation as easy and effective as possible.
- Prepare, then prepare, and once you have done that, prepare some more. Investigate your issue thoroughly.
- Try to anticipate the questions you may be asked. Run your presentation as a hypothetical in your head.
- Lobby other relevant people who will be at the meeting. Is your supervisor on-board, other people?
- Also consider lobbying people who may not be at the meeting but who can provide you with information and give you their point of view on your issue.
- Be clear short and to the point
- Present the problem and why it is a problem
- Do you have evidence that could support your presentation. Has the issue occurred elsewhere?
- Present possible solutions
- Clearly outline the benefits AND possible pitfalls of solutions
- State clearly what you want from the people you are presenting to.
- Make clear you are available to do more work and drive solutions.
- Show your passion, be enthusiastic and honest throughout your presentation.
- Consider good body language e.g. open gestures, natural eye contact, possibly move naturally around the stage and maybe among the audience. Body language to avoid includes crossed arms, looking downwards, standing sideways or have your back towards the audience.
Need to make a presentation and don’t know where or how to begin?
The first 4 steps in the Problem Solving sequence can be used as a template to design ANY presentation, regardless whether it is an informal talk to colleagues or a formal presentation in a meeting.
These steps will work every time.
- Describe the problem
- Why is the problem a problem and investigate what is causing the problem
- Specify your desired outcome
- Brain storm for solutions and present
For additional information refer to the Problem Solving topic.
