PowerPoint and Presenting Stuff

Learn PowerPoint 2013 for Windows: AutoCorrect Options

As you type, the PowerPoint AutoCorrect feature automatically corrects common typos and spelling errors. How does PowerPoint know that a particular word is spelled wrong? Does it refer to some resource as a reference? Also do you find some AutoCorrect options such as the capitalization of some words unnecessary? Several researchers working in different scientific fields actually have to use some words that cannot start with a capital letter, and the first thing they want to do is turn off the automatic capitalization. Yes, it’s possible to make AutoCorrect work just the way you want it to — as long as you know where to change these options.

Explore AutoCorrect options in PowerPoint 2013 for Windows.

Filed Under: PowerPoint 2013
Tagged as: PowerPoint 2013, Text, Tutorials

Strategic Storytelling: Conversation with Jeremey Donovan

    Dave McKinsey is the pen name for Jeremey Donovan who is Chief Marketing Officer of American Management Association International. He is also the author of four books including the international public speaking best seller How to Deliver a TED Talk.

In this conversation, Jeremey discusses his new book, Strategic Storytelling: How to Create Persuasive Business Presentations.

Geetesh: In your new book, Strategic Storytelling: How to Create Persuasive Business Presentations you mention that most presenting books are authored for keynote style deliveries, rather than everyday business situations. Tell us more about this gap you observed?

Jeremey: I have an entire row of my bookshelf at home devoted to public speaking books. I love them all. Some of my favorites are slide:ology by Nancy Duarte, Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds, and World Class Speaking by Craig Valentine. Each one of these books, and the ones next to them on the shelf, does an outstanding job of covering the nuances of content, delivery, and design. The issue with these books is that they are written by thought-leading gurus and professional speakers. Most of the work they do for others is for very large audiences who are looking for inspiration and entertainment as much as they are looking for information.

I felt there was a gap with respect to the kinds of presentations business people give everyday when trying to persuade their boss to approve a recommendation. This all happens through conversation sitting in chairs around a table rather than standing on a stage. You get that kind of training if you work for certain management consulting firms such as McKinsey, Accenture, or Boston Consulting Group. For the rest of us, until now, we needed to reach books about keynote speaking and try to pull out the pieces we can use at work.

Geetesh: Storytelling is synonymous with presenting these days – but how are stories different in the world of business compared to stories we see or read? And how are they similar?

Jeremey: At the end of the day, all stories share a common foundation. I rely on the Pixar Pitch for story construction. It is a story in three acts, with two parts per act. Act 1, Part 1 = “Once upon a time and every day…” Act 1, Part 2 = “Until one day…” Act 2, Part 1 = “And because of that…” Act 2, Part 2 = “Until finally…” Act 3, Part 1 = “And after that…” Act 3, Part 2 = “And the moral of the story is…”

Of course people can and do embed classic stories inside business presentations. However, that is pretty rare in day to day settings. What I talk about in the book is a little different. It is all about apply story frameworks to business persuasion. Specifically, I recommend another variation on the three act structure called situation, complication, resolution, or SCR for short. The situation maps to Act 1 in the Pixar Pitch, the complication to Act 2, and the resolution to Act 3. The main difference is that the characters are business strategies, processes, and technologies rather than people.

The views and opinions expressed in this blog post or content are those of the authors or the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company.

Filed Under: Interviews
Tagged as: Books, Interviews, Opinion, Presentation Skills

Learn PowerPoint 2013 for Windows: What is AutoCorrect?

The AutoCorrect feature in PowerPoint fixes hundreds of common typos and spelling errors within your PowerPoint slides — automatically as you type any text. AutoCorrect also maps specific keys to a symbol, such as replacing two en dashes with an em dash the moment you hit the Enter key. The best feature within AutoCorrect is that it works so seamlessly that you may even take it for granted — conversely, AutoCorrect can also be a pain sometimes! You may for example not want the two en dashes to automatically change to an en dash — in this tutorial you will learn how you can take advantage of AutoCorrect, and also how you can override its options as required.

Explore AutoCorrect options in PowerPoint 2013 for Windows.

Filed Under: PowerPoint 2013
Tagged as: PowerPoint 2013, Text, Tutorials

Presentation Summit 2015: Conversation with Rick Altman

Rick Altman is a California-based presentation consultant who has been helping organizations communicate better in public since before Microsoft developed PowerPoint. He has been hosting end-user conferences since 1989, and is the host of the annual Presentation Summit, now in its 13th season.

In this conversation, Rick discusses the upcoming twelfth edition of his Presentation Summit conference, to be held in September 2015 in New Orleans.

Geetesh: Tell us more about the Presentation Summit returning to New Orleans this year?

Rick: For many of our patrons and staff, 2007 was a highlight of our entire conference experience. Just two years after Hurricane Katrina, it was more than just a conference experience. It was like a catharsis to be able to participate in breathing a bit of new life into that battered city. We were treated warmly by many of the business establishments, like heroes, and it created a unique vibe.

Except for San Diego, this will be the first time we will be returning to a city. That’s how special we think New Orleans is as a destination city. We will be in the heart of the French Quarter and our team has already found us some suitable places to go in the evenings.

Geetesh: What about the schedule itself? What can you share?

Rick: There is plenty to share, starting with the announcement of Guy Kawasaki as one of our keynote speakers. His experience and perspective on communication is incomparable and his passion and charisma are off the charts. The response to the announcement has been crazy good and I feel like a kid all over again.

As to how we got him, we share an affinity for the cloud-based graphics service, Canva, and that gave us some common ground around which to start a conversation.

Picture source: Guy Kawasaki Resources

Geetesh: Rick, can you tell us about the new 20-minute seminars and the speakers?

Rick: About the 20-minute seminars, we’re calling them our Tapas sessions, named after the small-plate style restaurants that are becoming so popular. We have found two things over the years: there are topics that would be of interest to our patrons that don’t need a full hour; and in the afternoon, people’s attention spans start to wane a bit. So, on two of our afternoons, we are replacing a one-hour time slot with a collection of shorter sessions. We think our folks will love it. Not so sure what our AV techs will think–they’ll be running around like crazy, but it should be worth it.

You will notice several new names on the speaker list. And many of them make up an interesting story. Last year, we had a wonderful influx of talented designers, attending for the first time. And they were young! Or maybe, it just seemed that way as I get older, but some of them are literally half my age. And a few of them were candid in their observations that our Design track didn’t offer enough substance for them. They loved our geek track and all the other aspects of the conference, but they wanted to see a bit more weight on the subject of good presentation design. So, I did what any breathing person would do: I hired them! Their perspective and their stories are unique, and I think they will add to our mix in a wonderful way.

I’m also excited to be bringing back Carmen Simon and Nigel Holmes, two of our most popular keynoters of all. And Garr Reynolds will make his usual live-remote appearance from his home in Japan.

What else would I like to tell people? Sign up soon. We’re going to sell out. Is that too salesy? Do I sound like a used car salesman? I’m just excited. I am. I can’t wait. I wish we could hold it this month.

The views and opinions expressed in this blog post or content are those of the authors or the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company.

Filed Under: Events
Tagged as: Events, Interviews, PowerPoint, Presentation Summit, Rick Altman

Learn PowerPoint 2013 for Windows: More Spelling Options

While it is indeed easy to spell check your entire presentation for any misspelled words, there are other options that you need to be aware of that will help checking your slides for spelling errors. Here are some tips to help you understand how you can do better proofing of your text content in PowerPoint 2013.

Explore more spelling options in PowerPoint 2013 for Windows.

Filed Under: PowerPoint 2013
Tagged as: PowerPoint 2013, Text, Tutorials