Tip 32: Plan your presentation on paper first
Before you start making your slides, you must first plan your presentation on paper. You may use a notebook or a large sheet of blank paper. Alternatively, you may want to use a large whiteboard to sketch out your ideas. In any case, use a large enough canvas so that you feel uninhibited and free to be creative. Though you may be using digital technology when you deliver your presentation, the act of speaking and connecting to an audience - to persuade, sell, or inform - is still very much non-digital.
Planning on paper or whiteboard gives you a clear visual representation of how your content flows and inter-connects. It is much easier to stand back and get a "whole picture" view of your story when you are writing it by hand than when you are trying to write a slide.
Also, by outlining the structure of your presentation on paper or whiteboard, you will very easily be able to identify key themes and points which lend themselves to being converted into logical slides. As you write down key points and assemble an outline and structure, you can draw quick ideas for visual elements such as charts or photos that will later appear in your slides.
Planning your presentation on paper or whiteboard stimulates your creativity. There is no software to get in your way and you can easily see how the presentation and your line of argument will go. At this stage you should be dedicating all your attention to the structure, flow and objectives of your presentation, rather than being distracted by how the software works.
To create your slides or OHP transparencies before you have your key points and logical flow worked out on paper or whiteboard is like a movie director hiring actors and starting to film before there is even a script in hand!
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