I'm here...um...to....ahh...speak to you...

At the risk of sounding harsh (I guess I can be!), with the benefit of working with staff at all levels across many industries and businesses for over 25 years I have no doubt that the overall standard of presentation skills in industry is somewhere around a 2-4 on a scale of ten being outstanding. Why is this important?

In the presentation skills space, becoming a good solid presenter (becoming a great presenter is an absolute bonus, but extremely unusual) is surprisingly not difficult for most people to achieve. Poor presenters who wants to significantly improve must firstly become aware of what he/she is doing during their presentation; are they projecting effectively, how are they moving, what mannerisms do they have, does their presentation have structure, and most importantly, are they actually connecting with the audience? These are just some of the questions that need answering, there are many others. Until a person is aware of these key things, it is impossible to begin improving.

Having identified what is working and what is not, (and that is usually not possible without impartial and informed input), the next step is to find a coach that understands and can work with you. Not all coaches are the same; a good coach for me might be disasterous for you. Any coach worth his/her salt will watch you perform, work closely with you, utilise video, and follow up and review you to ensure improvements are really happening and being sustained.

Finally, practice, rehearse, prepare, and then prepare, rehearse and practice again. And then repeat. And then do it all again. We cannot, no-one can, guarantee flawless performance everytime. In execution of a plan there will often be an unknown, an X factor that couldn't have been predicted. No, we can't guarantee flawless performance, but what we are in total control of, if we so choose, is to be able to prepare flawlessly. If we do that, we give ourselves the best chance to execute, to deal with that unpredictable event, and still deliver.

Why is this important? The fact is that being able to present well is a differentiator in today's marketplace. If two candidates apply for a job with identical qualifications and experience, almost certainly the candidate that presents best will win the role, the same applies to the sales people pitching for work.

Presentation skills are huge collateral in today's business environment. They are a core skill for leaders and a necessary skill for pretty much eveyone else.