Don’t look at the screen!

I joined Toastmasters International a few weeks ago and recently gave my second talk in a set of ten to obtain the CTM (Competent Toastmaster) award. At the request of my club’s members, I talked about PowerPoint (in the allotted 5-7 minutes, yet).

Our talks are videotaped, an invaluable tool for improving your delivery. And I noticed one thing that I did that didn’t work — I looked at the screen!

Reviewing the videotape, I realized that this meant turning away from the audience. Each time I did it, I lost contact with them and my voice diminished as I turned away from the fixed microphone.

If you need to see the slides, look at your laptop, not at the screen. This way, you don’t turn your back to the audience.

Ellen Finkelstein can train you or the presenters in your organization to create high-impact, engaging, professional presentations for training, sales, business, or education. For more information, please click here.