Episode 15: Get to the Point - Best Presentation Tips, with Dave Yewman

A friend of Dave’s 11-year-old son Aaron asked, “What does your Dad do?” Aaron thought for a minute, then said, “He teaches people how not to say ‘um.’” That’s a pretty good elevator speech for a presentation coach. Dave likes to think there’s a bit more to presentation coaching than that — but it’s a great place to start. In the past 10+ years Dave’s coached CEOs, professional athletes, tech startup founders, engineers, creative designers and pretty much everyone in between.

Dave Yewman is a strategic communications expert with more than 15 years of experience. A former newspaper reporter and columnist, he speaks regularly to groups about how to use clear, concise, compelling language as a strategic weapon when dealing with reporters, employees, sales prospects, shareholders, and consumers.

Dave lives near Portland, Oregon.

What you’ll learn about in this episode: Why it’s so important to frame your message to get to the point Crafting a speech that keeps people engaged Why you need at least one hour of prep for every minute of your speech Why your speech is never about you What to do when you’ve lost an audience in a presentation How to adapt your speech on the fly What makes for a truly memorable speech that people can repeat The importance of a big finish in a speech The “three second rule” for PowerPoint slides Why — if you had to limited resources — Dave believes in doing one thing well rather than two things halfway Why you need to record yourself giving your presentations Getting feedback on your speeches (and not from people who want promotions!) UMMO (the app that counts nonwords) Ways to contact Dave: Website: elevatorspeech.com Twitter: @ohgettothepoint Resources: UMMO App Presentation Zen