Slide Presentation by Eric Watson

I stayed on at Southbourne Literary Society for the second half of last week's programme: a presentation with slides on 'The History of the Bournemouth Fire Brigade' by Mr Eric Watson, one of this area's most respected speakers.

Now, the mere mention of any kind of slide show can produce negative feelings in many people! Perhaps they have found themselves sitting through a neighbour's proud projection of seemingly endless, boring holiday snaps or some dry lecture interrupted by a series of technical hitches with the visual aids. They may even have been subjected to a spectacular but ultimately bafflng modern power point presentation which added nothing to a training day.

All I can say is that Eric Watson's slide shows are extremely well-received, in fact next year will see his 1,000th speaking engagement since 1993!

He started his presentation by donning a fireman's helmet and reciting a humorous poem about what the job was like - a light-hearted introduction to what would, at times, be a very serious subject. He then told the audience that although they may have seen a well-known book by another retired local fireman, he would be showing a different range of pictures. Throughout the talk, he was able to draw upon his own experiences from nearly 30 years spent driving many of the fire appliances featured in the slides and he also mentioned his regular meetings with other, much older, retired firefighters. Therefore, right from his opening remarks, he had authority (although it has to be said that the fact that he is 6 foot 8 added to this!)

Public Speaking Tip #86: You cannot put a decent presentation together from just one book and a bit of extra material from Wikipedia (unless, perhaps, you are the author of the book!) You have to draw your material from a number of sources and viewpoints. Personal working experience connected in some way with your subject gives your talk particular credibility.

When the lights were dimmed, Mr Watson's voice  didn't go down with them but remained perfectly audible. Many speakers using slides speak much too quietly when the room gets darker and they can no longer see the back row of the audience with the result that a presentation full of stunning visuals is constantly interrupted by calls of 'Can't hear you!' Using a projector doesn't mean that you should stop projecting!

Publing Speaking Tip #87: Visual aids are just that - aids for a speaker, not a replacement for him/her. Speak at the same volume when the lights go down for your slide show as you were beforehand.

Remember, also, that even though you cannot see your audience, they can still see you in the half-light so you will still need to pay attention to your stance, etc. Continue to make some eye contact in the direction of your audience - don't just look sideways at the screen.

There was one technical problem when the projector bulb went, but, like the professional he is, our speaker had brought a spare one which he quickly fitted. While doing this, he asked the audience if they had any questions up to that point.

Public Speaking Tip #88: Be prepared for technical hitches, for example, by bringing along any replacement parts you might need. And if your presentation does grind to a temporary halt, try to make good use of the time, for example, by inviting questions from the audience while the problem is fixed; this ensures that they remain involved and interested.

There were some fascinating stories, references to a large number of well-known local buildings (most long demolished) and Mr Watson wasn't shy when it came to mentioning his own feelings about the changes which came about when the Bournemouth Fire Brigade was swallowed up by the Dorset Fire Service as part of the county boundary changes in 1974 - informed opinion from someone with first-hand experience of working under these conditions.

Public Speaking Tip #89: Personal opinions in a presentation carry a great deal more weight if they are supported by lengthy personal experience.

The audience really appreciated the talk. He said it was one that wasn't booked as often as many of his others but his delivery was very polished.

I was delighted to meet - and hear - Mr Watson at last; for many years we have been recommending each other for talks purely on reputation!

It was a very good way to finish yet another enjoyable evening at Southbourne Literary Society.

Southbourne Literary Society

Last Wednesday, 21 November, I delivered my new presentation, 'I Must Write That Down: A Commonplace Book', for around 35 members of Southbourne Literary Society here in Bournemouth.

This was my seventh appearance there so I know the drill pretty well! They have two talks, slide presentations or musical entertainments at each of their monthly meetings, the first starting at just after 7.30pm and lasting for nearly an hour.

As this was a new presentation for me, it might be useful if I explain how I prepared my material to fit the allotted time.

My talk was all about commonplace books, i.e. what they are, how they originated, examples of famous commonplacers through the centuries and how many of today's blogs continue their tradition but the lion's share of the material consisted of quotations, readings and anecdotes from my own commonplace book (if you are don't know what a commonplace book is, see my previous post. As I have said, they are a fantastic resource for speakers). These anecdotes and quotations included a few that I had used elsewhere in other  talks but I would estimate that I was delivering about 80% of this material for the first time.

Presentations usually take longer to deliver 'on the day' but timing the material in rehearsal will give you a fair idea of how long it will take to put across and whether you need to add to it or make cuts. I use a stopwatch for this (as I have done since preparing for my very first speaking engagement nearly 12 years ago).

Public Speaking Tip #79: A stopwatch is an inexpensive but invaluable aid to speech preparation.

I timed the individual segments of the talk as I compiled my notes. The anecdotes I knew very well but the readings needed to be set out in large clear print. Although the talk was mainly about my own commonplace book, I could hardly mark and flick through all the pages of a small notebook so the passages I was using from it needed to be transferred to separate, legible pages. I did, however, decide that one last reading should actually be from a page of my commonplace book so the audience could see what it looked like.

My rehearsal was not only to time the readings but also to prepare for any awkward pronunciations, etc. and familiarise myself with the material so that I could look up and make eye contact with my audience as so much of this talk consisted of reading. Repeated rehearsal of written texts also helps a speaker to add some life to their delivery.

Public Speaking Tip #80: If you are reading as part of your presentation, copy the content using large clear print or writing rather than attempting to read it from its original source.

Familiarise yourself with the material so you can research any difficult pronunciation and prepare for (or even rewrite) any 'tongue-twisters', etc.

Getting to know the content also allows you to look up and maintain a connection with your audience through regular eye contact rather than being buried in your notes the whole time.

The more you practise readings, the easier it becomes to put some life into the words.

I made bullet-point notes for the narrative parts of my talk and inserted the readings (each on their own separate pages) in between. I took along examples of a few commonplace books compiled by famous figures to hold up for the audience to see - a small visual element to an otherwise auditory presentation.

Southbourne Literary Society thoughtfully provide a small lectern for their guest speakers. Now, I know there are some speakers who don't approve of these - they feel that lecterns form barriers between themselves and their audiences - but for a talk involving readings from a substantial body of notes, they are an ideal resting place for these, thus leaving the speaker's hands free for expressive gestures or holding props. New speakers who aren't sure what to do with their hands can hold the sides of the lectern (just don't do it so tightly that the audience see your white knuckles!)

Public Speaking Tip #81: A lectern is a very useful aid for a speaker with notes and props. Any potential barrier between yourself and your audience can be broken down by regular eye contact and tailored material.

Southbourne Lit Soc is always a special booking for me because this is where I delivered my first-ever talk (on 17 January 1996). I often took students from my adult education classes along on 'field trips' to hear other speakers there and I have visited myself when I am not busy speaking somewhere else. It's pleasing that this organisation is still going strong after 62 years and even more remarkable that their Honorary Secretary, Mr Tom Hall, has been with them for all that time (although he looks much younger!)

I wanted to close with a saying which summed up how I felt about this organisation and I found a very apt and touching Dutch proverb but I'm not going to tell you what it was; you must find your own quotations and then store them in your commonplace book ready for use in future speaking engagements.

My presentation lasted just under 55 minutes, which left time for the odd question and gave the speaker after me, who was using slides, time to set up ready for his 8.45 start. I made the odd verbal slip but nothing too disastrous (the material will be further honed with future bookings), the humorous parts got good laughs (they're an excellent audience for subtle comedy at this Society) and I wasn't even fazed by having the retired Deputy Headmaster of my old school (whose specialist subjects were English and History!) sitting in the front row!

I am pleased that it went well because I already have several other bookings for this title.The beauty of this presentation is that the content can so easily be changed for different audiences and there is also plenty of scope for a 'Part 2'...and maybe even beyond!

Public Speaking Tip #82: You should give your audience the best possible material for the allotted time slot but bear in mind that, over time, you could add enough additional material, either through ongoing research or new developments surrounding your topic, for you to be able to return and speak about the same subject without repeating your original presentation.

Following on from this, I was really touched when their Press Secretary, Mrs Ros Hall, presented me with a book of anecdotes about New York theatres and their nearby restaurants, a super gift which I know will also contain material which I can add to my Algonquin Round Table talk.