Flat and Materialistic design (derived from Google’s Material Design guidelines) are becoming incredibly popular. Presenters, Marketers, Bloggers and Content writers are creating visually appealing content decorated with modern shapes based under this principles to engage their audience. MORE

Curved arrows are perfect for making PowerPoint diagrams and to point towards objects and images in presentation slides. There are a number of methods by which you can make curved arrows in PowerPoint by following just a few easy steps. Making Curved Arrows in PowerPoint. MORE

PowerPoint presentations are not usually known for being engaging or interactive. That’s often because most people treat their slides as if they are notes to read off and not a tool to help empower their message. MORE

Usually, presenters use mouse clicks, keys from a keyboard or a remote to switch slides in PowerPoint. However, if you have your presentation well-timed or have to account for every second in a presentation due to time constraints, you might want to make sure that your slides are well-timed. MORE

The documents printed in PowerPoint may wear an unwanted white border space or margin unless we configure the proper page size and scale options. In order to create borderless when exporting PowerPoint presentations to PDF format, you can follow the steps below. MORE

If you have Office 365 (the subscription version) and the Creative edition of Windows 10, you can insert 3D objects into PowerPoint. I explained this feature in an earlier blog post, “ How to Insert 3D in PowerPoint.” MORE

If you are presenting a PowerPoint presentation before potential investors, it’s important to cater for each and every minor aspect of your presentation. MORE

If you don't watch figure skating (and even if you do), you may not understand the importance of the triple Axel in competition. First of all, it's the only forward-facing jump in the skaters' arsenal. All other jumps are executed while skating backward. MORE

I still get nervous about public speaking. But I’ve transformed my relationship with nervousness. It is now a friendly companion, not an evil stalker. There are many aspects to this transformation, and there’s just one that I want to talk about in this post. MORE

PowerPoint 2016 was recently introduced in the market as a Preview release available for Mac users. The UI is pretty close to the flat version featured in PowerPoint 2013 for Windows and most of the features available in the Windows version seems are now available for Mac users as well. MORE

PowerPoint slides sometimes need to be saved in the form of images. This might be the case when you may be looking to extract content like maps, charts, diagrams, photos, etc. MORE

Thanks to David Murray for pointing to a piece from DelanceyPlace.com about President Lyndon Johnson’s relentless work schedule that exhausted most of those who worked for him in the West Wing. This from the book Organizing the Presidency by Stephen Hess He worked a two-shift day, 7:00 A.M. MORE

I recommend using the Tell ‘n’ Show SM method for your slides. That means putting a slide title on each slide that tells the point and adding an image, diagram, chart, etc. to show the point. You DON’T put everything you say on the slide. MORE

For anyone with even a passing interest in executive communications in Silicon Valley, Bad Blood is a must read. Wall Street Journal investigative reporter John Carreyrou delivers a step-by-step history of Theranos, a Silicon Valley startup headed by the young, charismatic founder and Stanford drop-out Elizabeth Holmes. He has written a masterful, suspenseful tale of […]. Business Communication Theranos MORE

PowerPoint presentations are often presented via projectors, where an individual can copy files to a computer which is connected to the projector in the hall. However, sometimes the projector is replaced with a large monitor or TV. There are many ways by which you can connect your computer or mobile device to a TV for presenting your slides. MORE

Introduction. What would you do when you suddenly need to deliver a new PowerPoint presentation by the end of the day? Well, you can jump right in, run your presentation software and use brute force to build a deck from scratch. Or, you can work smarter by: Making a quick assessment of the presentation scenario. Outlining a communication strategy. Using corresponding templates to quickly build professional-looking slides that will help keep your audience glued to your message. Sounds simple? MORE

. Introduction. Any business that is willing to create a powerful brand must engage in a robust storytelling and professional visuals. Stories are an important aspect of the everyday lives of people. People have been telling each other stories since immemorial times. MORE

On Thursday, August 30th the Silicon Valley Speechwriters Roundtable will host Jeff Davenport in a free conference call. MORE

Introduction. The SWOT and the SOAR models are business management tools used as organizational frameworks to enhance business performance. In recent times, many organizations have used both methods while others have substituted one strategy with the other. MORE

Are you thinking about joining the Presenting for Humans Success Circle , but not sure if it's right for you? Perhaps I can help you decide with these points about the benefits of the program to you! MORE

For many thousands of students, the new semester, and academic year, is about to begin. Many professors will be speaking to a rapt classroom with eager students who are consumed with their subject matter. MORE

A common type of animation in videos is a very slow zoom in or out — or a pan — of an image. In this post, I’ll show you how to do this in PowerPoint. First, watch the video. Insert your image. Insert an image that covers your entire slide. MORE

Data – a term used to classify the facts and statistics collected together for reference or analysis. As short and crisp the word may sound, today it has a full-fledged study that revolves around it. MORE

What lengths would you go to in order to become a master orator, or to take your public speaking to the next level? Stand barefoot on blacktop while reciting your speech to test your patience and create proper cadence? Practice on a tightrope to master balance and control over motion? MORE

Using alternative bullet points delivers a powerful impact on your audience. Stamping out bullet points from the presentations is one of the most challenging task while preparing business presentations, as bullet points use high-value keyword phrases within bulleted content in a structured manner. Yet, at the same time using the basic, black font bullet points will leave a little room for creativity. MORE

At the beginning of term, a ceramics teacher divided his students into two groups, Group A and Group B. To Group A he said: “I want you to make as many pots as possible. At the end of the term I’ll grade you on the weight of your pots.”. To Group B he said: “I want you to make the best pot possible. At the end of the term I’ll grade you on the quality of your pot.”. MORE

“I was so happy with how Freaks and Geeks came out, that in my head I thought 'my career is basically over.' I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish, and everything else is gravy. And so nothing else matters. I can experiment. I can do anything. MORE

What’s the difference between telling, teaching, and training? And which should you be doing? They really ARE different — although related — and which one you should do depends on your goals, your audience, and your situation. MORE

If you’re a start-up, then you probably already heard the term “pitch deck.” ” A pitch deck is a PowerPoint presentation and it’s intended to showcase your company’s product, opportunity, team to potential investors. Pitch decks are your companies elevator pitch in a presentation. Often used to help convince investors to raise capital. MORE

Introduction. The Porter’s five forces analysis framework is one of the tools that is used for analyzing the competition within a business industry. It is a simple yet powerful tool that most businesses utilize in identifying their strategy’s potential profitability. One of the biggest threats to startups or established businesses is competition. The five forces analysis framework model usually assumes that there are five forces that influence any chosen sector. MORE

Business means a lot more than just making profits. For the most part, it is a melting pot where unique combinations of processes, concepts, goals and mantras evolve into brands. The most successful brands — those that generate profits in the most efficient way — are those whose stories resonate most with their internal and external audience. For a narrative to attract a positive response, it must first be understood by the people it means to persuade. MORE

When it comes to recording a presentation in PowerPoint a presenter might be looking to record a narration with the slides or to simply create a tutorial with web cam input and narration. MORE

I’ve noted before that the Financial Times — the British equivalent of the Wall Street Journal — isn’t reticent about treating readers as adults and using four-letter words when appropriate. MORE

On Thursday, July 19th the Silicon Valley Speechwriters Roundtable hosted Matt Kivel in a free conference call. Matt is the overall 2018 Cicero Speechwriting Award Winner for his speech The Power of a Story delivered by Gregory L. Fenves, President, the University of Texas at Austin. MORE

My clients will frequently say to me, "I don't understand why I'm so nervous. There must be something wrong with me." Well, if it's wrong to be human, I guess we all have something wrong with us! What we forget is that, while we are indeed human, we are also animals. Human animals, but still animals. MORE

PowerPoint not only rules the presentation industry, it also helps make content marketing much easier. For one thing, a lot more people — hundreds of millions at least — know how to use PowerPoint better than other visualization tools like Photoshop, After Effects or JavaScript. In fact, you may be among the large number of people who discovered their modest digital design skills while playing around with this venerable software, the industry standard since launching in 1990. MORE

If you are thinking to make a switch from Microsoft PowerPoint to Google Slides Google Slides (formerly known as Google Presentation), here we will show you how easily could be to start a new presentation in Google Slides by reusing an existing PowerPoint template. MORE

Writing a thesis is stressful but preparing an oral defense can be even more painful. But it doesn’t have to be, with proper preparation and a good presentation you will be able to better equip yourself come time to present your thesis defense. But what makes a good thesis defense? A proper presentation helps you with your thesis defense because it helps you to capture the panels attention and give you cues and reminders on what to say as well. MORE

As our content catalog has grown, we have started to publish free PowerPoint slides every new week. Our free slides have had a very good adoption and we could also notice the number of free downloads is increasing over time. MORE

Before a PowerPoint presentation is to commence, you might be willing to print out your slides for review or to aid you during your presentation. Moreover, if you have speaker notes added to those slides, you might want to have your notes handy with the printed slides. MORE

Many presenters resort to looking for a single PowerPoint Template which can be sufficient enough to cover their entire presentation. MORE

Viewing PowerPoint files using an Android device has become easier than it was just a few years back. There are a number of easy methods that you can use to open a PowerPoint presentation on Android. MORE

This Saturday I attended the annual Presidents Day meeting of the National Speakers Association Northern California Chapter. MORE