Keep in Mind

         Follow an Outline

         Use Specific Visuals

         Verbal vs. Visual

Talk Prep:
Keep in mind

     Your written paper is published in the proceedings of the conference, and is available to your audience prior to your presentation. In it, you have presented your contribution in detail, including a lengthy introduction to the subject, a description of your work with proofs and detailed results, and a list of references. Many of those in the audience will have already read or glanced through your paper. During your presentation, they will expect to hear you introduce the problem, talk about your approach and support your conclusions. You can be less formal than in the written version, less analytical in speaking about your subject.

You must make every word count!

     Avoid repeating material that can be found in the written version, avoid acknowledgment (they should be in the written version), and avoid spending too much time describing the structure of your talk - get straight to the point. Don't simply transcribe the flow of your paper to your talk; provide a more intuitive and less detailed (though still specific) description of your work and try to get across a few key ideas. You have been working on the subject of your paper for months now. What is perfectly clear to you must be made clear in minutes to people not so familiar with the subject. Do not assume that they know what you know. Rehearsal in front of others will help, as described later.

  • Spend at least 30 seconds on each slide
  • Give the audience a chance to read the slide
  • Speak across slides

     Let your conversation flow across a slide boundary to the next slide. Lead in to it, as if you know what is coming (you'd better!). Pauses between every slide make the talk a "slide show" rather than an integrated presentation.

  • Avoid talking "at" your slide
  • If you feel the need to flash by a slide quickly, then take it out! It isn't adding anything to your presentation
  • Only include outline slides at the beginning of a section if the sections are more or less evenly distributed, otherwise explain in words when you are moving on to a new area, with a brief pause to avoid the distraction of a fast slide.
  • Duplicate any slides that are to be used more than once.

     Avoid phrases like "this slide shows" or "on this slide". Talk about the material on the slide, not the slide itself. Again, it becomes a "slide show" if you do.

  • Be careful how you use the pointer

     You will have a laser light pointer to identify features on your slides. Don't wave it around when you are not using it and only push the button to turn it on when you are actually making a point on the slide. Don't wave it around on the slide either, or it will distract your audience. Point it at the screen, where you want it, and hold it there for a few seconds. Then turn if off. If you might be nervous, rest it against the lectern.

  • Try to avoid nervous habits

     Don't bounce on your feet from side to side or wring your hands. If you feel nervous or don't know what to do with your hands, hold the lectern.

  • Conclude your presentation with a point of punctuation

     Say "thank-you" forcefully, for example. This keys the audience that you have finished and they should applaud or wait for the session chair.

  • Repeat the question

     There will be microphones in the aisles for questions and this task really belongs to your session chair, who should make sure the question is well understood by all before you answer. If the chair forgets, then you should repeat the question before answering