what actually is a seminar

8/10/2019 What Actually is a Seminar

1/5

What actually is a seminar?

A Seminar can be a tough ask to the majority and on the other hand to a few smart and diligent

people it can be a platform to showcase their talent. Seminars are conducted at all levels, a student

preparing for the Class 10 exams has to go through seminars as an architect has to in order to

showcase his designs to his clients. After the launch of Microsoft PowerPoint bundled with MS OfficeSuite in 1990, presentations have risen to a new level. Earlier there used to be seminars of course,

but with the help of charts and graphs or using blackboards and even projectors. In the early 90s the

trend of using PowerPoint for seminars was mostly in the U.S, but eventually it became a trend for

all. In today's world, if you do not use Microsoft PowerPoint for your presentation, you are

considered below par and maybe a friend of yours with a lesser knowledge in the subject matter but

using PowerPoint will score better than you. So always do remember to present your seminar in

Microsoft PowerPoint, even if it means learning PowerPoint for the first time.

So in which group would you like yourself to be included, people who are scared of seminars or

people who love to showcase their talents? Probably the second group, otherwise you would nothave been spending your precious time reading this article. To mature yourself as a seminar

presenter and make yourself smart enough to face the crowd you have to follow some basic yet

essential steps so the next time you step out for public speaking, you would be more confident than

ever.

Before the presentation

1. Choose your topic well

Choose the topic well. If you are expert in "Electronics", never go and choose "Theory of Relativity"

of which you do not know much. Do not listen to anyone who advice you to choose a tough topic so

as to get more attention. Attention, and ultimately impression depends on your performance, not justthe choosing of a tough topic.

2. Prepare the project yourself

Suppose you have a week's time to prepare the project, do not sit for tomorrow, start today. Do not

give a friend or your brother or sister to write for you; if you do so you will surely repent at the time of

presentation. If you have a bigger project and you are a group of two or three, try to do most of the

things yourself. It will enhance your knowledge, refresh your mind and make you feel confident at the

time of presentation.

3. Take the help of the Internet

Do not copy-paste directly from the book, it will mar the cause for such a learning platform. Google

anything you want to know about. There are many websites where you can find information related

to your topic. Note down what you require to make the presentation more interactive. Add

illustrations, images and graphs to your project. If a video can make your project come to life, never

think twice; add one.


2/5

4. Study in details

The presentation itself may not require you to deal with the subject matter in great detail, still you

need to write every single detail of the project in a notebook (for your own reference). This will

tremendously help you when you are asked any question.

5. Practice, Practice and Practice

Practice your presentation. Practice alone, practice in front of the mirror, practice in front of your pet,

pull your siblings beside and practice in front of them. Everyone knows that practice makes a man

perfect, so if you practice hard, you will be ready to face the crowd.

During the presentation

1. Speak loud and clear

Speaking loudly is in no ways similar to shouting. Your voice should be clear. If you think people will

laugh at you, you are wrong. They won't laugh. They have come to listen to you and at that moment

you have to consider that you know the topic better than they do as you have spent a week

researching on the same. But do not whisper, it is believed to have a negative impact on the

listeners.

2. Do not Memorize

Never ruin the presentation by memorizing. All the slides will be in front of you, you just have to

present them in a conversational and interactive way. Memorizing a quote or definition is well in the

limits, but memorizing a whole extract is not good.

3. Make eye contact with your audience

No matter how shy a person you are, during a seminar presentation you are strongly advised tomake a eye contact with your audience. This shows your level of confidence. I know its hard, but if

you have prepared the presentation well, believe me you can do it with ease. So smile and look at

the crowd.

4. Smile and show your enthusiasm

Show how enthusiastic you are about the presentation. Be jolly, it will lower your nervousness.

5. Ask people to interact

Ask the audience whether they are understanding your words. Ask them a related question and

involve them in your discussion. It will make you feel free.

6. Take a break

After explaining each slide take a break for a couple of seconds. It will give your audience a chance

to visualize the last slide. Moreover this will give you some time to recall details about your next

slide.


3/5

After the presentation

Be prepared to receive compliments from your friends, colleagues, teachers or clients. Yourconfidence during a seminar presentation can win you your clients or make you the most praisedstudent in your class. It all depends upon you; it is you to decide how seriously you take a seminar.Robert Frost rightly said "The best way out of difficulty is through it".

Some Useful Hints

Consider your audience.Before you do anything, think about what kind of people you'll be

presenting to. If you're giving an important business seminar, you may want to go as far as

doing a full evaluation of demographics. Knowing your audience will guide you in your

preparation.

Make an outline of speaking points.When it comes to making any kind of speech orgiving a presentation, it's best to have an outline to work from to make sure youhighlight all your key points. Reading from a script often sounds too formal and doesn'tallow for much eye contact.

Start with your introduction. This should inform your audience of the topic on which

you're speaking and its value to them, plus give a very brief overview of the points you

plan to discuss.

Move on to the body of your seminar and make a list of points you want to touch on.

You need at least two points to get your message across; three is better. Under each

heading in your list, write out a couple of details to help guide you when it's time to

present.

Finish with your conclusion. This should be brief but tie in each point you made during

the seminar. It should leave your audience on a positive note and give them some kind

of action to take, if applicable.

Create your visual aids.These can be posters that you set on an easel, brochures you pass

out, an interactive model, an overhead slide or slideshow presentation, pictures or anything that

will help your audience visualize what you're saying. The goal is to get your message across

clearly. The aids also help break up your seminar into chunks so you avoid monotony.

Practice giving your seminar using your outline.You want to appear relaxed yet

professional; you should feel comfortable with what you're saying. Get feedback from others

and make revisions as needed. Also practice your gestures and mannerisms. A mirror can help

with this so you see if you're being too dramatic or too stiff.


4/5

Arrive to the seminar location early so you can get set up.Pass out any materials you want

to use and set up your visual aids. This includes preparing the technology you will use in your

seminar, like a computer or overhead projector. Greet your guests as they come in.

Present your seminar, using your outline.Speak up and speak clearly. Speak slower than

you normally would in a conversation so people can retain the information. Periodically ask if

anyone has any questions and clarify things as you go. Thank your audience for their attention

when you're wrapping it up.

So to conclude - How to Conduct an Effective Seminar

Hosting a seminar is ideal for introducing new services, products, ideas, or concepts. However, the

success of a seminar will mainly depend on the venue and the way it is conducted. Selecting an easily

accessible location such as event venues in Gaston County NC would be ideal. As for conducting an

effective seminar, here are some pointers that will be helpful.

Preparations

The success of the seminar will mainly depend on the effectiveness of the speech and presentation of

the main speaker. When you are the speaker, you need to thoroughly research the topic or product

from all angles, and come up with a convincing speech. Researching and having a good grasp of the

topic is very important, as you are likely to face some tough questions from the participants, and you

need to give accurate and effective answers. While researching you might have to study some

reference material, look up current news about the topic, and consider the prevailing opinions of the

public about the topic.

Designing Presentations

Presentations are very helpful in getting your point across and for making the topic easy to understand.

Presentations should have an introduction, which may include a brief summary or overview of the

topic. After the introduction, the topic can be broken into sub topics, and everything can be explained

with proper visual aids.

Finally, the presentation should end with a conclusion where everything is brought together by

providing a concise summary. The duration of the presentation should be carefully considered, as time


5/5

factor plays an important part in a seminar. Plan how much time you are going to spend in the

introduction and the time you will require for explaining each slide or screen.

The speech or presentation should flow naturally and follow a logical line of thought. Avoid using flashy

slides, and at the same time do not make the presentation very plain. Do not simply put up points onthe screen that you read aloud. Pictures and graphs will form the main elements on the screen, and

you will have to accompany them with relevant comments and explanations.

Practice Run

You will need to go through your full speech and presentation before the event and record it. Listen to

the playback and see how you sound. You will immediately detect things that need to be corrected and

places where you might want to alter your approach to the topic. Make the necessary changes and go

through multiple practice runs until you are fully convinced about your speech and presentation.

Introduce the topic at the start of presentation

Interact with audience

Be aloud and confident

Make eye contact with audience

Stand confidently and use hand movements to help deliver the presentation

Indicate what will follow later in presentation

Have interactive session participants need to pushed to speak

Refers to specific slides in his presentation

Indicates that the presentation is coming to an end

Ends presentation and invites questions

what actually is a seminar

Documents