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Powerful Presentation Primer- The (Cream cheese coffee cake) Power of Grilled Cheese

September 22, 2008 on 9:02 pm | In Cream Cheese | No Comments

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Many folks are quite capable of running substantial businesses with some level of success despite the fact that their knees start knocking when they are asked for the simplest of introductions to their business. Speaking is marketing and many in this boat are hungry to learn how to go from “some” success to much greater success.

Since I am assuming you are hungry for such knowledge, I’ll go with an easy food analogy: making a powerful presentation is as easy as making a grilled cheese sandwich. The 1st piece is the slice of bread. This is your opening. It has to be fresh or you’ll lose your audience. None of this “I flew in from Vegas & boy are my arms tired” hooey. It has to be firm. Strong voice & confident posture. Whole grain bread here- none of that wimpy stuff. You have to catch them in your mouse trap at this point- grab their attention- tell them what you’re going to do for them & why they should listen- in this case, I’m making giving a presentation to hundreds of folks as easy as making a grilled cheese sandwich.

Next is the cheese- this is your content- the whole point of making the sandwich in the 1st place, right? In theory, more cheese is better, but if you ever tried to make a grilled cheese with more than 3-4 slices of cheese max, you’ll know that doesn’t work out so well. Too gooey for the pan & in this case too gooey for the brain. No one can retain more than 3-4 key points- at best. Adult learning is compromised not only by our limited attention but by our limited capacity to sit & be still.

The butter is a key piece and the buttering up of the audience needs to start early. What I mean is meeting & greeting your audience so you know them, what brought them to see you present, what their expectations are; and so you can include them in the context of your talk. It also fosters friendlier faces in the crowd so you don’t have to go thru the whole naked visualization thing.

Finally there is the 2nd slice of bread. It should match the 1st. No really. I’m pretty sure that you make your grilled cheese sandwiches with the same type of bread on either side. Not rye on one side & a hot dog bun on the other. The conclusion should link back to your opening. Many presenters I know end up with more of an open faced sandwich- no clear closing- just sort of the proverbial fade to black. The most clear way to mark your closing is to create a call to action on the part of your listeners.

Here it is. Go make your own grilled cheese sandwich so the next time you are called on to make a presentation it- & you- are ready to step up in such a way that is just likely to earn you more cheese!

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