Story, then slides
What's the one step most people miss when writing a presentation? Most people load up slide software and just get into it. Two problems with this:
It's easy to add more slides as you come across more information
It's easy for that slide mix to create the illusion of a narrative
You have stuff. You don't have a story. The assumption is ‘slides, then story’. But this creates, as George Bernard Shaw said, the illusion that communication has taken place. What we say is not what people take away.
But there's a simpler, more effective and calming way to do it. Follow the opposite principle: ‘story, then slides’. So how do you do that?
Go crazytown on your research. Screenshots, random notes, photos, whatever. Make your desktop hate you for a hot minute. Chaosssss!
Now paste the ones that seem to say ‘something’ into a Google Doc, or Canva board, or whatever you prefer. Nothing fancy. Drop it all in. With some filtering but not much. This is your source of all knowledge.
Then – important – step away from the screen. You want perspective and distance. Go on a walk. Take a shower. Read a comic book.
Now, get some paper (or another doc, or record it as a voice note) and write down the flow as you remember it. Don’t check your original stuff. You want to follow the principle of ‘first to mind, first to find’.
Go back into your mega draft and see which pieces fit the flow, and which don't. Then adjust accordingly. It won’t be perfect, but it will be your version of a shitty first draft. And it’s far easier to build on those.
The reason I like this process is that it primes you to only stick to the memorable stuff. Before memorable comms, you need memorable briefs. Before that, memorable presentations. Go with what you remember best.
After all, if you can't remember the contents of what you're saying, why should anyone else? Plus, this ensures you not only know the contents of your presentation, but you genuinely feel them. Because they are now part of how you see the world, not just how you present some words to people.
