Adolph Kaestner

Types of Professional Speakers are:

1. Celebrity Speakers

• Speakers by virtue of their being either a Sports celebrity, a Politician, an Actor etc.
• Usually get invited to speak at functions as a Crowd draw card and speak about their experiences in their own field.
• They also often act as MC’s at events.
• They usually speak on a full time or part time basis and command good speaking fees for their keynote talks and breakaway sessions

2. Circumstantial Speakers

• Speakers by virtue of a Circumstance such as An Accident, Traumatic Experience , Life Surviving Event etc
• They usually concentrate on telling their story as their core speech.
• They usually speak on a full time or part time basis and command good speaking fees for their keynote talks and breakaway sessions

3. Experts Who Speak

• These speakers are usually Subject Level Experts by virtue of Academic Studies, Self Study, Work Experience and or a mixture of all of these.
• They speak at conferences and events based on their Specialist knowledge and experience.
• They usually speak on a full time or part time basis and command good speaking fees for their keynote talks and breakaway sessions.

4. Industry Speakers

• These are mostly executives and experts inside of business and industries who speak on their specific specialist fields.
• They usually do not charge a fee for their services as they speak on behalf of their organisations and gain exposure as payment.
• However of late they too are demanding a speaker’s fee or at least direct cost compensations.

5. Motivational and Inspirational Speakers

• These are speakers who concentrate on the emotional upliftment and rejuvenation of the spirit of their audiences through Motivational and Inspirational Stories, Anecdotes and Value Principles etc.
• They are most often called on as Opening or Closing Keynote presenters at conferences, Strategic Planning sessions, management or sales meetings and the like.
• They usually speak on a full time or part time basis and command good speaking fees for their keynote talks and breakaway sessions.

6. Entertainers

• These include comedians, magicians, ventriloquists and others who use "speaking plus" to get their point across
• They usually speak/perform on a full time or part time basis and command good speaking fees for their keynote talks and breakaway sessions.

7. Trainers

• These are Speakers who provide Training Courses, Seminars and Workshops in many different fields of expertise.
• They also often speak on their subjects of expertise at Conferences and Seminars and from time to time present keynotes on their fields at such events as well.

Workshop

A brief intensive course or series of meetings for a small group of people, emphasising interaction, exchange of information and problem solving among the participants. (Interaction and group participation is the key differentiator)

Seminar

A meeting for the exchange of ideas where the seminar leader presents information to a small, medium or large group of people with a minimal amount of interaction between them. (One-to-many information transfer)

Conference

A meeting for the interchange of opinions where there is usually more than one speaker presenting a paper or address to a larger audience on similar subject matter or a common theme. (Many-to-many information transfer) (Interaction between the audience members and the speakers is minimal)

Indaba

A Conference to discuss matters of strategic importance

Imbizo

A Meeting of leaders when an important issue needs to be resolved

Bosberaad

A Conflict resolution meeting where everybody has the same authority
Also sometimes used to describe a group Brainstorm Session

Lekgotla

Solving problems with the community.

Ubuntu

“We are who we are through other people”
It means respecting the dignity of all people, no matter how humble and our actions must reflect this concern for the wider community

PowerPoint Made Easy

I guess more has been written and commented on the use of Power Point Presentations in the last 5 years than almost any other Presentation Tool introduced over the same period.  The Reason – Simple – Microsoft Built a Tool to make Presentations simpler for us all and also added almost every Gizmo and feature they and their clients could think of. – The Problem – People try to use all/most of the Gizmos without paying attention to the value of the tool as an aid to enhancing the message and not the message itself.

So what am I recommending?

The primary questions you have to ask yourself are:-

• What is the purpose of my Talk/Presentation?
• Who Is The Audience?
• What is the Call to Action/Message?
• What is the session all about – Speech (motivation – inspiration – entertainment), Training Session, Sales Proposal, Information Dissemination Presentation, Brainstorm and Workshop?
• Will a Data Presentation be appropriate to get the message across and get the right call to action in the end?
• Where will this happen – Venue and facilities for a Data Presentation?

OK – so you have decided that the best way to enhance the message is with a PowerPoint presentation. – So what format should it take so that you don’t bore the audience to death?

Here are some Keep It Simple Guidelines based on the Types of Presentations.

1. Key Rules
2. Appropriate Pictures say more that words ever will!
3. Contrast  is critical –

•  Light Backgrounds with Dark Text
• Dark Backgrounds with Light Text
• Light backgrounds better in large and light rooms
• Dark backgrounds require stronger projectors and darker rooms.
• Get to know the Colour Wheel and What colours work for what effect in a presentation.

1. Speech – ( Motivation – Inspiration – Entertainment )
   • Slides to Contain PICTURES (Not Clip Art) and
   • Maximum – 5 Words per slide- Less if at all possible
   • The Idea is that the picture will enhance the message YOU are Delivering as the Speaker.
   • Finding the right picture takes time and thought as it must add value otherwise it’s just a prop / “plonk-in” as an afterthought.
   • NB- beware copyright issues on pictures you “borrow” from the web – search for Free pictures or pay for them from a stock list.
2. Training Session and Information Dissemination Presentations.
   • Here the Slides are made up of a 50% mixture of Key Bullet Points and
   • Appropriate Pictures that enhance the main point of the slide and
   • Interspersed with appropriate Video Clips that also enhance the value of the point – either seriously or humorously.
3. Sales Proposals
   • These Slides are usually based on presenting the Problem and then the Solution in Side by side boxes.
   • Max 5 Bullet Points per Box – Differentiate the Boxes (Problem and Solution) with different background shading.
   • Precede the slide with one of a Photo Depicting the problem
   • Follow the Solution bullets with a Slide depicting the Solution if at all possible
4. Workshops
   • A workshop is where there is one or more presenters talking to a group
   • The mix is- presenters give Max 50% input via presentations – illustrations etc.
   • The Delegates are involved at least 50% of the time with break away or individual work time.
   • This is more  facilitation techniques that a presentation but if presentations are used-  then apply the rules for training sessions discussed above.
5. Brainstorm Sessions
   • If data projector is to be used then best to use it with expert typist and software for Mind Mapping
   • Generally use facilitation tools and techniques and not PowerPoint for these sessions.

This is a vast subject to cove – I trust these few pointers will assist you in your next presentation.

Remember always – YOU are the centre of attention and the reason the audience is there – Not the PowerPoint presentation.

 If that was the case then rather just mail the presentation  to the audience and stop wasting everybody’s time if all you are going to do is read what is on the slides to them (also known as “Death By PowerPoint”)

Have fun !!!! and Blow their Socks off with your next presentation !!