Many people ask me about resources available to help them become better presenters and build better presentations. There are two individuals that I think are doing particularly outstanding work. I highly suggest checking out their blogs and books. Links are provided below.
Garr Reynolds
Garr is perhaps my favorite author that speaks and writes on presenting. An American transplant in Japan, his blog, Presentation Zen, is an excellent resource. His unique angle on the topic is the way he incorporates elements of Japanese zen and culture into his work (hint: simplicity and harmony are incredibly important). He also has a great presentation tips page on his website. Some of his books (again, highly recommended) include:
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Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery By Garr Reynolds
This is Garr’s original book, updated to a second edition. I consider this to be the absolute best book out there on the topic. It gives a great mix of delivery and design advice and it does so in a really engaging visual way. If you only purchase one of these, this one is it!
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Presentation Zen DESIGN: Simple Design Principles and Techniques By Garr Reynolds
This is one of Garr’s follow-up works that focuses exclusively on the design of slides. It provides some of the same information found in Presentation Zen, but GREATLY expands on it in much more detail. You’ll find out more about using color, fonts, images, etc. effectively.
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The Naked Presenter: Delivering Powerful Presentations With or Without Slides By Garr Reynolds
Another follow-up work by Garr. This book focuses more on the delivery aspects of giving a presentation. As the title says, you don’t need to have slides to deliver a great presentation. This work is more conceptual in nature, providing was of constructing great narrative arcs in your work.
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Nancy Duarte
Nancy is another excellent presenter. She is the head of the eponymously named, Duarte, that provides presentation design services to clients. “Duarte creates presentations and offers training based on our unique VisualStory™ methodology, which applies storytelling and visual thinking to craft persuasive communications designed to shift audience beliefs and behaviors.” She also provides many tips and tricks in her books:
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Slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations By Nancy Duarte
This book provides a great overall resource for both presentation design and delivery. You’ll find many similar themes between this and Garr Reynold’s work. It’s great to compare the two and pick up new insights.
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Resonate: Present Visual Stories That Transform Audiences By Nancy Duarte
This is a follow-up work to Slide:ology that focuses more on honing your ideas and message.
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In addition to the above resources, Mahable posted a great brief article on online resources for presentation design apps.
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