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should put yourself in the shoes of the people who will be listening to
your presentation. The next phase towards improving your effective
oral presentation skills is organizing your thoughts. There are a
number of steps to this process:

Step 1 Brainstorm main ideas. Use index cards or post it notes and
only use one idea per card.

Step 2 State the sub points. Ideally there should be between 2-5 sub
points in your presentation. Be specific using explanations, data and
evidence to back up your points.

Step 3 State the benefits. Specifically state the benefits before and at
the end of the body of your presentation.

Step 4 Develop handouts. Handouts should reinforce important points,
summarize action items and include supporting data.

Step 5 Develop visual aids (PowerPoint slides, charts and graphs).
Visual aids should be used to focus the attention of your audience,
reinforce the verbal message and to stimulate interest. Keep in mind
that effective presentations are people-centered, not media-centered.
Too many presentations rely on the media to carry the message. While
the media can certainly help, it's your interaction and rapport with the
audience that makes the difference between an effective or ineffective
presentation.

Step 6 Main idea preview/review sentence (i.e. Tell them what you're
going to tell them, tell them, then tell them what you told them).

Step 7 Develop the introduction. Get the audience to focus their
attention on you, provide background information and introduce
yourself - who you are and why you're qualified.

Step 8 Develop the conclusion. Your conclusion should be persuasive
like a "call to action". Spell out what specifically they need to do,
when and how.
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