Why do you give that presentation?

Often, I ask this question to people when they ask me to help. The answers are very varied: because it is an important event and I need to speak about our projects; because I'm an expert in the topic of that conference; because I need to present our plan for the upcoming years; because I need to justify our budget; because my organisation is the host of that event; and so on. Of course, all the answers are true, but, let's be honest, they don't give a reason to speak in front of others. Moreover, they can easily lead us to give an average, full-of-bullet-points and fact-and-figures presentation, without further results.

The goal of a presentation is to make sure that the audience does what you want, and that they remember your message. If it is not like this, you can write a letter or an email about your topic, which they can read at any time in their workplace, on the bus or on their sofa. So, you just need to find out what you really want from the audience. Do you want them to give money for your project? Do you want them to change policy to ban single-use plastic? Or, do you want them to work for your organisation with more enthusiasm and inspiration?

This also means that one of the most important parts of the preparation for a presentation is not about data and charts gathering, but rather clarifying who is your audience. In this case, you can save a lot of time and achieve your goals more effectively.