1. StorieS and exampleS are the building blockS of a preSentation

Ifyouuseonlyonetip,thisistheone.The#1mistakewe’veobservedinpresentations—andthereisnoclosesecond—isthatthemessageistooabstract.Thepresenteroffersconceptsandconclusionsbutnotevidence.Hetalksatahighlevelaboutthebigpicture,butgivesnoconcretedetailsthatmightmakethebigpictureunderstandableandplausible.Hemaysprinkleinafewstoriesorexamples,buttheyaretreatedlikegarnish.Mostpeoplecommunicatewith,say,3partsexpositionto1partexample.That’sexactlybackwards.Inacompellingpresentation,examplesaren’tgarnish,they’retheentrée.

Apresentationisasequenceofconcreteexamplesandstoriesthatsnaptogethertoformacompellingargument.Forinstance,thinkoftheexamplesthatAlGoreusedinhismovieAn Inconvenient Truth:ThebeforeandafterphotosofMt.Kilimanjaro,showingthevanishingsnowcaps.ThesimulatedsatelliteimagesofManhattanfloodedbyrisingsealevels.InMichaelMoore’sSicko,hedoesn’tmakeconceptualpointsaboutthehealthcaresystem—hemakeshiscasethroughthestoriesofindividuals,likethecarpenterwhoaccidentallycutoff2fingers,andthenhadtochoosewhichfingertoreattachsincehecouldn’taffordtodoboth!

AsocialenterprisecalledVisionSpringprovideseye-glassestothepoor.Therearehundredsofmillionsofpeopleinthedevelopingworldwhoneedglasses.ButwhenthefounderofVisionSpringmakesapresentationtopotentialdonors,heiscarefultotellthestoriesofindividuals.Forinstance,he’lltalkabouta35year-oldweaverinIndia—amastercraftsmanwith20yearsofexperience.Heearnsagoodlivingforhisfamilyandusessomeofhisincometosendhiskidstoschool.Then,ashiseyesightbeginstodegenerate(aseveryone’sdoesatthatage),hefindshim-selfincreasinglyunabletoaccomplishthe“up-close”workthat’stheheartofweaving.Hesimplycan’tseewellenough.

Hebeginstorelyonhischildrentohelp,whichmeanstheymissdaysatschool.Ashiseyesightdeterioratesfurther,hisincomesuffersandhebecomesincreasinglyreliantonhiswifeandkidstosupplementit.Here’samanwhoisattheheightofhisskillsbutcannolongerprovideforhisfamily—andthesolutionisassimpleasagenericpairofreadingglasses,thekindthatyouandIcouldbuyatadrugstorefor$5!Withoutunderstandingthatstory,youcan’tappreciatethefullvalueofwhatVisionSpringdoes.

Weknowmanyofyouhavetopresentdatainyourpre-sentations.Butbecausedataisprettyabstract,youshouldresistyourtemptationtoleadwiththedataortoletthedatastandalone.Whichismorecompelling?Sayingthatthereare“900,000pooradultswithdecliningeyesightinMumbai,andweneedyourhelptostartsolvingtheprob-lem.”Ortellingthestoryaboveaboutthe35-year-oldweaver,andthensaying,“Ourresearchsuggeststhatthereare900,000storieslikethis,inMumbaialone,andweneedyourhelptostartsolvingtheproblem.”Dataarejustsummariesofthousandsofstories—tellafewofthosestoriestohelpmakethedatameaningful.

For more on this point, we strongly recommend the story in Made to Stick about Gary Klein’s attempt to capture the takeaways of a conference. See pages 235-237. And consider how Stephen Denning used stories to change the attitude of his colleagues at the World Bank toward “knowl-edge management” on pages 231-235.

2. don’t preamble, parachute in

Thefirstmissionofapresentationistograbattention.Andthat’swhyit’sdisturbingthatmanypresentationsstum-bleoutofthegatewithapreamble—alaboriousoverviewofwhat’sgoingtobecovered.Thisproblemisunderstandable.Afterall,we’veallbeencoachedto“Tell‘emwhatyou’regonnatell‘em,thentell‘em,thentell‘emwhatyoutold‘em.”

Youcan’ttalkaboutstickyideaswithouttalkingaboutpresentations.Althoughmostofusdreadpresentations,pauseforamomentandthinkabouttheadvantagesyouhavewhenyou’remaking

apresentation.Unlikeajournalistwhoistryingtogetareadertoreadanarticle,oranadvertiserwho’stryingtostandoutinacrowdedmarket,oraparentwho’stryingtoshoutamessagetoateenwhoisrunningtoafriend’shouse,you’vegotitmade:You’vereceivedaninvitationtomakeanideastick.Youhaveadedicatedsliceoftimeandanaudiencewillingtositstill.That’sapreciousopportunity.Howdoyoumakethemostofit? Webelievethereareafewbasicrulesthatshouldgovernanykindofpresentation,whetheryou’resellingaproducttoacustomer,ortraininganewemployee,ordiscussingyourchurch’soutreachprogram,orexplainingtheSmoot-HawleyTariffAct.

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Butthatadviceisoverstructuredand,frankly,unnecessary.SteveJobsdoesn’tpresentthisway.RonaldReagandidn’tpresentthisway.

Tossoutthepreambleandparachuteintotheaction.RebeccaFullerwasgivingacriticalpresentationtoagroupofmuseumdirectors.FulleristhefounderofRAFModels,agroupthatcreatestactilemuseumexhibits,suchaslandscapesforhistorymuseumsthatguestscantouch.Hertactileexhibitsareparticularlygreatforvisuallyim-pairedguests.Fullerwantedtohelpthemuseumdirectorsseehowimportantitistopushbeyondvisual-onlyexhibits.Soshestartedthepresentationwithabang:Shehadacolleaguekillthelights,abruptly,leavingthepresentationroomindarkness.Fullersaid,Thisiswhatit’sliketobeablindpersoninmostmuseums.There’snothingtolearn,nothingtoexperience,becauseallthegoodstuffisinamediumthatisofflimitstoyou.Withinsecondsofstartingherpresentation,shehasfocusedheraudience’sattentionontheproblemshewantstosolve.

WhenScottCookwasleadingtheroadshowforhisfirmIntuit,heusedtostartbyaskinghisaudienceaques-tion:Howmanyofyoubalanceyourowncheckbooks?Lotsofhandswouldgoup.Thenhe’dask,OK,howmanyofyouenjoyit?Andallthehandswouldgodown.Inlessthanaminute,he’destablishedthecorevaluepropositionofQuicken,Intuit’stopproduct.

Clearlyneitherofthesepresentationswouldhavebeenimprovedwithawarm-up.“TodayI’mgoingtogiveyouanoverviewofthechallengesfacedbythevisuallyimpairedinvisitingmuseums.”“I’dliketobegintoday,byindulginginabriefsurveyofexistingtechniquesforfinancialplanning.”Ifyoubringusface-to-facewiththeproblem,wewon’tneedalotofupfronthand-holding.

For more on grabbing attention, see the Unexpected chapter of Made to Stick, and review the story of the high school journalism teacher whose first lesson was still vivid in his students’ minds two decades after graduation. Or see p. 120-123 for an unexpected pitch by an entrepreneur that lined up millions in venture capital.

3. let your main pointS hog the Spotlight

Ifyousay10things,yousaynothing.Youprobablyagreewiththatstatement,andyetit’sahardruletoliveby!You’veputatonofresearchintoyourpresentation—you’vedonetheresearch,you’veanalyzedthedata,you’vestruggledwiththeconclusions.Allofitseemsimportant.Cuttingthatthirdbulletpointonslide17feelslikeawound.

Butitshouldn’t.Thinkaboutyourselfasthedirectorofaplay,andyou’reallocatingspeakingpartsamongyourmainpoints.Youcancreateagreatmonologueoragreatdia-logue,butifyou’vegot22charactersspeaking,youhaven’tdevelopedanyofthemproperly.Sodon’tdwellonthepainofcuttingthebulletpointonslide17,thinkabouttheextraattentionyou’veallocatedtoyourmaincharacters.

Avice-presidentofalargedepartment-storechainwasleadinganefforttohelpfront-linestoremanagersreclaimtheirtimefromunnecessarytasksandprocedures.Hehadplentyofexamplestodiscuss,buthewiselydecidedtofocushispresentationbyhighlightingthesinglemostglaringexampleofwastedwork:Kickingoffhispresenta-tion,heslappeddownontheconferencetableanunrulystackofpaperwork(519pagesofit).Andthenheannounced,tothehorrorofhissuperiors,“Thisis2 weeks worthoftheauditdocumentationthat’srequiredofourstores.…You’veallheardthephrasethattheroadtohellispavedwithgoodintentions?Well,thisistheroadtohell.”

Areyougivingthespotlighttoyourmostimportantpoints?Herearetwoquicktests:Whatpercentageofyourspeakingtimeisgoingtothosepoints?Andwhatpercentageofyourslidesarededicatedtothem?Ifyou’renotspendingatleasthalfofyourtimeandyourvisualsonthecoreofyourmessage,you’reprobablytryingtoaccomplishtoomuch.

For more on prioritizing your main points, take a look at the Simple chapter of Made to Stick and think about how journalists learn to highlight the leads of their stories.

4. teaSe, don’t tell

Beforeyouraudiencewillvaluetheinformationyou’regiving,they’vegottowantit.Demandhastocomebeforesupply.

Mostpresenterstaketheaudience’sdesireforgranted,butthat’sabigmistake.Greatpresentationsaremysteries,notencyclopediaentries.Anonlinevideocalled“TheGirlEffect”startsbyrecountingalistofglobalproblems:AIDS.Hunger.Poverty.War.Then,itasks,Whatiftherewasanunexpectedsolutiontothismess?Wouldyouevenknowitifyousawit?Thesolutionisn’ttheInternet.It’snotscience.It’snotgovernment.Curious?See,itworks.(Gotogirleffect.orgfortheanswer.)

Curiositymustcomebeforecontent.ImagineiftheTVshowLosthadbegunwithanannouncement:“They’realldeadpeopleandtheislandisPurgatory.Overthenext4seasons,we’llunpackhowtheygotthere.Attheendwe’lltakequestions.”We’veallhadtheexperienceofbeinginthe

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audienceasapresenterclickstoaslidewith8bulletpoints.Ashestartsdiscussingthefirstbulletpoint,wequicklyreadall8.Nowwe’rebored.He’slostus.Butwhatiftherehadbeen8questionsinstead?We’dwanttostaytunedfortheanswers.

The“teases”don’tneedtobeparticularlydramatic.Forinstance,DavidFosterofSt.Timothy’sEpiscopalChurchinMountainView,CAwasaskedtomakeapresentationonthechurch’sfinances.Usually,notmanypeopleshowuptothemeetings.SoFostertriedsomethingdifferent.

Heputaquizinthechurchnewslettertheweekbeforethemeeting,inhopesofsparkingsomecuriosity.Heaskedquestionslikethese:

HowmuchdoesSt.Timothy’sspendtohostcoffee-hourafterservicesinayear?(a)$3,500;(b)$8,000;(c)$8,750;(d)$9,250

Ifincomeandexpensesareontrackwiththebudget,attheendoftheyear,wewillhave:(a)alargesurplus;(b)alargedeficit;(c)breakeven;(d)asmalldeficit.

Fostersaysattendancemorethandoubledthisyear,despiteitbeingayearwithnomajorfinancialnewstoreport(i.e.,abudgetcrisis).Alittleteasinggoesalongway.

Thebestpresentersdon’tstructuretheirpresentationsbythinking,“What’sthenextpointIshouldmake?”Instead,theydecide,“What’sthenextquestionIwantthemtowrestlewith?”

For more on sparking curiosity, see the discussion of “curiosity gaps” in the Unexpected chapter of Made to Stick.

5. bring reality in the room

Youmaybetemptedtostressoutaboutthelookandfeelofyourpresentation.Atsomepoint,allofushavesurfedthewebobsessivelylookingfortheperfectimagetoreinforceourpoint.Atmidnight,youcalloveryourspousetoweighin:“Honey,whichonebettersays‘innovation’?Thebunnycomingoutofthemagician’shatorthesmileyguywithalightbulboverhishead?”

Relax.Weneedtoendonceandforallthecultofclipart,aswellasthesplinterchurchofstockphotography.

“Show,don’ttell”doesn’tmeanthatyoutakeyourslideabout“thinkingglobally”andaddaclip-artworldmap.That’sdecoration,notcommunication.Agoodideadoesn’tneedvisualdrapes.WhenJamesCarvillesaid,“It’stheeconomy,stupid,”hedidn’tpausetosendhisdirectreportsoutlookingforpicturesofduncehats.(“Sorry,James,wecouldn’tfindaduncehat,butisakiddroolingonhisdesk

‘stupid’enough?”)

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“Show,don’ttell”canbeeasierthanitsounds.Justbringalittlerealityintotheroom.TomDuncan,thepresidentoftheU.S.divisionofPositecPowerToolGroup,hadasalescalllastyearwithakeyaccount.Atthelastminute,heabandonedhisPowerPointpresentation,filledwithapredictablehomagetothevirtuesofhistools.Instead,hesettwodrillsonthetable—hisandhiscompetitor’s.Hedisassembledthemside-by-sidetoshowthedurabilityofhiscompany’sdesign.Thecustomer’sreactiontothissurprisingdoseofreality(andabsenceofPowerPointslides)?“Helovedit,”Duncansays,andheclosedthedeal.

BrianLeinbach,theEVPSystemsDevelopmentforMacy’sSystemsandTechnology,wasarguingthatMacy’sneedtoimproveitsinventorytrackingsystems.HesaidthatwhenyougointoNordstrom,ifyoufindsomethingthatyoulikethattheydon’thaveinyoursize(sayapairofshoesorabelt),theyhaveaneasywayoffindingitontheirsystemsforyouandhavingithome-delivered.AtMacy’s,it’smorecomplicated.Thereare3differentinventory-trackingsystems:Oneforthestoreyou’rein,anotherforothernearbystores,andathirdforMacys.com.Tohelpacustomer,you’vegottolookinallthreeplaces.Andhere’sthecriticalpart:WhileLeinbachwastalking,heshowedscreenshotsofthethreedifferentinterfacestodemonstratetheineleganceofthisprocess.Hemadeitpossiblefortheaudiencetoempathizewiththesalesreponthefloor.That’spowerful.Leinbachbroughtrealityintheroom.

NeitherDuncannorLeinbachworriedaboutclipart.Clipartwillalwaysbeametaphorforreality(i.e.,thelight-bulbas“innovation”).Whynotgostraighttoreality?

For more on bringing reality in the room, see the Concrete chapter of Made to Stick. One example: Think about how James Grant convinced heads of state to change their country’s health policies by using a simple prop.

“Making Your Presentation Stick” is an article written by Chip Heath and Dan Heath, the authors of the book Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, published by Random House in January 2007. Some of the material in this article comes from Made to Stick.

Chip Heath (chip@madetostick.com) and Dan Heath (dan@madetostick.com) are the authors of the book Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die. They blog at http://www.madetostick.com/blog.

Copyright © 2008 by Chip Heath and Dan Heath

“Making Your Presentation Stick” was published on October 20, 2008.

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