The Beginning

First impressions are powerful. The beginning of your presentation is the first part of the presenter / audience contact. This will be the first contact you have with your audience in your role as presenter and in their role as your audience.

The first few minutes of your presentation is where your audience form perceptions of your skills, knowledge, and experience. They will make an impression of you, and that impression will profoundly affect how they see you for the rest of the session, and later on as well in any further dealings you may have. This is known as the "halo effect" or the "devil effect", depending on whether your audience sees you in a favourable light or in a negative light. Deliver a solid performance here and you will set the stage for the remainder of the session.

As a default, most audiences generally want to like the speaker, and will allow the speaker a few minutes at the beginning to engage them.

"Wow! This guide and handbook made a huge difference to my delegates at my online workshop. They loved everything we did. Thanks to Dr Mandar Marathe's book I developed my presentation skills quickly whilst enjoying all the new concepts and ideas this book offers in a very easy to read and practical manner.
 
All professional speakers, trainers and sales people should get a copy of this book!"
- Ash Ali, Online Marketing Expert & Founder of Sandalstore.co.uk

Table of contents
(Click to view sample pages from the book)

Introduction
About the author
How to use this book
Who needs this book?
Chapter 1: Planning for your presentation
Chapter 2: Preparing the delivery
Chapter 3: Preparing effective PowerPoint® slides
Chapter 4: Preparing a handout
Chapter 5: Rehearsals
Chapter 6: Just before the presentation
Chapter 7: Last-minute tips for confidence
Chapter 8: Delivering the presentation
Chapter 9: 'Any questions?'
Chapter 10: After the presentation
Chapter 11: Final Thoughts

About the author

Dr Mandar Marathe graduated from Southampton University with an honours degree in Biomedical Sciences in 1998 and a Bachelor of Medicine degree in 1999. He holds advanced qualifications in Emergency Medicine and in Toxicology.

He juggles a career as a doctor working in Accident & Emergency, while raising three children with his wife, writing books, and endlessly surfing the internet looking for the next "big thing".

With almost two decades of public speaking experience in both academic and professional arenas, he is today an enthusiastic and popular educator who is well qualified to share his ideas about what makes a successful speaker and a powerful presentation.

Dr Mandar Marathe is the course director for the FCEM Course.