enteRETAINment

Presentation Tips

Presentation Zen is a blog  by Garr Reynolds that I have been reading for some time that I feel is a great resource on presentation design. Learning content designers/developers can take a lot of info from this blog. Yesterday 's "Zen" posting titled BusinessWeek: Rethinking the Presentation mentioned a very brief article in BusinessWeek with tips that can easily be applied to learning whether instructor led or e-learning:

• Prepare in analog. Most professional designers plan on paper, not by opening their slide software.
• Cut the noise. "Noise" refers to elements that distract from the central message of your slide. Minimize the noise by eliminating inappropriate charts, lines, shapes, and symbols.
• Avoid bullet points. Use bullet points only in rare circumstances and only after you have considered other options to display the information visually.
• Picture superiority. Pictures are more easily remembered than words, yet most PowerPoint decks contain far more words than images. Create presentations that have more in common with a documentary film than an overhead transparency.

Reynolds also shares a video clip by communications coach Carmine Gallo on learning how to present from Steve Jobs that includes tips like:

• Create a headline that sets the direction of the presentation
• Make it easy for your listeners to follow your story
• Make numbers and statistics meaningful
• Make it visual
• Paint a simple picture
• Identify a memorable moment and build up to it

Nine Old Men

This past Monday, Ollie Johnston, the last of Walt Disney’s “Nine Old Men,” died at the age of 95. Disney’s “Nine Old Men,” were the pioneering animators responsible for Disney feature-length animated classics including “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” “Pinocchio,” “Fantasia” and “Lady and the Tramp.”

In his April 16th blog posting, Todd Leopold, CNN.com Entertainment Producer said “Today we live in an age of computer animation, technologically spectacular but sometimes wanting creatively. Too many films substitute artistic detail for story, something that Walt Disney didn’t tolerate, especially in the early days.”

Leopold’s comment can be applied to training and education, specifically e-learning where a common weakness is to use new technologies, in your face graphics or animations, and other bells and whistles in an attempt to engage the audience. The lesson we all can learn is to follow the "Nine Old Men" and Walt Disney’s lead and focus on story.

Meet The Greens

While reading the TED conference (Technology, Entertainment, Design) blog I discovered a kids website created by WGBH in Boston called Meet The Greens. The TED conference is a supporter of this website that teaches kids how to live green. They have some short educational Flash animations that use storytelling to teach kids how to care for our planet.

Bringing Visual Art to Life through Stories

I just stumbled across an interesting project/website developed by the Delaware Art Museum called The Art of Storytelling: Bringing Visual Art to Life through Stories developed to encourage and celebrate children's appreciation of the visual arts. The project's aim was to inspire children's interest in visual art through an audio series of narrated stories and featured participating writers, artists and dramatists telling stories about the visual art works.

The Poop Detective

I recently created a web page and brief educational video to educate people on the health issues of not picking up after their dogs. I got tired of walking in my neighborhood and seeing piles of dog poop that dog owners left behind. After researching a bit found out it is a problem in many communities.  It's a basic form of enteRETAINment since it has  a simple story line and no audience decision making or interactivity.

Here is the link to the 2 minute video I created called The Poop Detective addressing the messy problem . . .

www.thepoopdetective.com

The funny thing is that it is starting to gain some wide spread visibility. One example of that is John Kelso, the columnist for the Austin-American Statesman newspaper recently wrote a Sunday column about The Poop Detective video . . . Doggone it, video says, pick up after your mutt

I hope you’ll help spread the word on The Poop Detective! 

Face to Face Communications

While at Learning 2007 a couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of sitting in on Arch Lustberg's session on Face to Face Communication/Presenting. Arch is still going strong at 83 and he sets the bar high for storytellers. His session had the audience completely engaged, roaring with laughter and at the end giving a standing ovation. Here are some of his key points and tips along with links to video clips from Arch's website:

• Become a storyteller (not jokes). Tell stories from your life.
• Don't try to impress with your competence or skill. Just be yourself, be the audience's best friend.
• Likability wins! In a conversation or presentation your mind shows your competence on the subject, your face whether or not you are likable.
  • A closed face (tight, scrunched up eyebrows) means either angry, deep in thought or worried and the other party always assumes anger.
  • Open face (big eyes, raised eyebrows, smile) is key to likability.
• Say little . . . Brilliantly!
• Simple + Brief + Clear + Concise = Easy to Understand
• Silent pauses work! Learn how to pause. Remain silent but keep eye contact with an open face.
  • Many people are afflicted with "intellectual dysentery"  sounds flow out of their mouths with no control . . . ahh, like, ok, you know.
  • Sometimes eye to eye contact is uncomfortable, look for other location such as mouth, nose, etc.
  • Rhythm of eye contact - your mouth should never be moving when your eyes are down or up or looking at any inanimate object.
• Simplify the message. Avoid jargon.
  
  • If using a word that some people may not understand use it in a way that describes the word.
  • Use simple words (we think big words make us seem impressive).
• You are most impressive when you are expressive!
• Speak with pride and enthusiasm.
• Be honest, positive and caring.
• If the question presented to you is hostile, think of how it would be phrased by a decent human being.
• Best presentations are given by a performer (not an actor). A performer shows himself at his best.

Arch summarizes using a Chinese Proverb . . . “Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand.”

                                       

The Hitmen

Brent Weinstein heads a new division at United Talent Agency whose mission is to discover unknown creative storytellers online. In a recent Fast Company article titled The Hitmen, Weinstein's team is tasked with "pioneering an entirely new model: matching up creators of obscure Web videos with the online divisions of traditional media companies, portals, and ad agencies, all of them hungry to try a new sort of storytelling." The goal of these companies and agencies? Entertain and engage the audience while marketing to them so they retain the message.