How often do you listen to a presentation where the presenter talks at length and when the presentation finishes you ask yourself, so what? What is the point? Most likely the presentation was missing one essential element, a take-home message. When we are presenting it’s very easy to put information… and more information… and this is nice to know… and I should mention this… and at the end we have a pile of information without making any point.
How do you know what your take-home message should be? In the previous blog we looked at finding your intention: what do you want your audience to think, feel, or do differently as a result of your presentation? Once you have found your intention it’s time to think of a message that will achieve your intention. Let’s look at an example. Do you have or will you have kids? If yes, then you have faced or will face the problem of asking your teenager child to tidy up his/her room. Your intention is clear: after talking to your child you want him/her to tidy up the room. What message should you use to achieve your intention? There are different messages. You could say: “tidy up now or you won’t go out on the weekend”. Another message could be: “I feel happier when your room is tidy”. My child is 17…months, so I haven’t faced the problem yet and I don’t know what I would say (I probably wouldn’t say anything!). But you get the idea. Your take-home message is the point you make to achieve your intention. It is what you want them to remember after your presentation so they change the way they think, feel, or behave. Any information you convey during your presentation should support your take-home message. In my next blog we will see how to make your take-home message memorable. From now on, every time you present I hope you will ask yourself, what is my take-home message?