It’s like when you used to go to Fred’s in Tigerland while at LSU. Yes, we’re being serious.
Professional communication can be a challenge. What is it about planning a presentation that makes us all want to pack as much jargon as we can in our Powerpoint slides? Why is it so hard to give an engaging—yet informative—presentation?
Nicole Kahn, a former senior director at famed design studio Ideo, suggests in a recent Inc. article to head to your local watering hole hangout.
“Something really important happens when you’re at a bar,” she explains. “You use really direct language. You make sure that what you’re saying is entertaining and engaging. You don’t quote tons of data. You don’t use overly corporate language—except maybe in air quotes.”
And even if bars aren’t your scene, she says you can still replicate the experience to test run your presentation. Ask yourself: How would you give your presentation at a bar? What if you only had the backs of napkins for graphics? How would that change the way you relate information?
“By bringing the bar test into the work environment, we’re more able to answer this question: What’s the point?” she explains. “When we’re in the middle of a project, the sheer number of stories we could tell about it are as numerous as stars in the sky, and we get really excited to share them all to show what we’ve done, but we can’t do that.”
Read the full story for more tips.
