How to Make a Good PowerPoint Presentation

Ever suffered through a PowerPoint presentation that almost made you question the will to live?  Many people think they have to use PowerPoint in order to be taken seriously (a myth), and too often, these people make simple bullet points out of what they have to say and then spend far too much time finding “just the right” background, transitions, and sound effects.  Unfortunately, these bells and whistles do nothing to fix poor content and delivery.  Nancy Duarte does a great job of using Al Gore’s global warming PowerPoint presentation to demonstrate a number of great tips, including thinking about your audience and not automatically assuming PowerPoint is appropriate, as well as tips on mechanics like font size and eye contact.  I heard a key note speaker who had consulted with Microsoft in the development of PowerPoint argue for the use of a completely white background, no transitions, and no sound effects.  This speaker encouraged presenters to find one central idea to get across to the audience, break that into three key points, and then think about what absolutely has to be visualized for each point.  Don’t show a slide unless something has to have a visual aid in order to be understood.