PK Steffen’s Post

Be that presenter! It just takes a combination of three things. 1️⃣ Be passionate about what you’re talking about. If you have to give a talk about something you’re not crazy about, find a way to make it exciting and fun. If you do, it will be fun for the audience, too. 2️⃣ Know your material cold. The best presenters know their material backward. That’s how they can field difficult questions or stay calm when something difficult happens, like a technical glitch. If you know it well, you could use a whiteboard to deliver your pitch should the laptop stop working or the WiFi drops. 3️⃣ Rehearse! Even if you know the material, rehearsing the delivery means it will be fluid and conversational. That’s what makes a presentation genuinely engaging. So be passionate, know the material, and practice, practice, practice. #presentationdesign #delivery #publicspeaking

Parents are masters of embarrassing their kids—it's practically our duty. I'm pretty good at it, but my mum took the crown. She waved a Union Jack at a Fourth of July parade! She meant well, bless her, with her cheeky streak and all. She waved her flag proudly and smiled at everyone as if they would understand what she was doing. We didn’t. My dad fled across the street, and my brother and I pretended the pavement was fascinating. Thankfully, everyone was very polite and waved back. Exercise your freedom by embarrassing your kids today. 😜 And have a Happy Fourth of July! 🇺🇸

Beautiful end to the day. Hope you had a lovely day! #thankful

Beautiful way to start the day! But it doesn’t always end as expected. Had to get a different ride home after a tyre blow out. Thank goodness for Plan B! Training for three charity rides this year to cure Type One Diabetes. #jdrfride #t1d

A lot of what we do as designers is clean up. Sure, we talk about story arcs and designing the experience, but the average presentation may not have the time or resources to think bigger than getting it done, even when it’s an essential pitch by the C-suite for a new initiative. That's where following the template, using it wisely to maximize variation, and keeping it simple comes into play. Much of what you need to say should be in the talk track rather than in the slide, and if you need to go into detail, use an appendix, preread existing material, or a download to let people dive deep. Designing for a screen comes with practice, like riding a bike. In my experience helping thousands of presenters, the less design YOU have to do, the better it is for you and the AUDIENCE. Focus on *design that matters.* Be *intentional with design.* #presentationdesign

This guy slipped out of my feed because I’ve been focused on posting, but this is great advice, as always Frank Vidal!

“For the public good” is good for all of us. Offering my expertise to non-profits brings me much satisfaction and joy. Helping others builds community, raises skill sets, enriches lives, and pays back a millionfold. I started doing free work as a student in the “Aware” group at fifteen. We did simple things, helping older adults or the less fortunate, like walking someone’s dog, getting groceries, or painting their flat. I’ve continued as my skill sets expanded and have never looked back. If you have a little spare time and a not-so-special or special skill, share it with others. We all need a little help. #probono #community #awareness

The pressure to create something exceptional can stifle creativity. Innovation involves taking risks, trying something new, and being open to failure. Building hundreds of opening keynotes, I saw how presenters felt the need to create something incredible. No one wants to get up on stage in front of thousands with something mediocre or boring. Comparing your presentation to the work of others can be discouraging and demotivating. It can create a sense of inadequacy, making it hard to appreciate your worth. That’s why adopting a mindset that allows you to create imperfect but complete work is critical. Start with concepts that inspire you, but diverge from there. Make your own work of art in your voice. Deep in the process, your idea will come to life. Let it speak to you and allow it to develop naturally from there. I promise you’ll be amazed by the results. #presentationdesign #masterpiece #keynote #pitch

Figma does slides! I just made this quick study in minutes without training. Adding slides, duping slides and objects, and building transitions are easy. I’ll keep you posted as I try out all the features. I’ve just been using “smart animate.” So far, so good!! Share your experience so far in the comments. #figma #figmaslides #presentationdesign