Before presenting:
1. Know your time limit: Most presentations have a time limit. This time limit is anywhere from several minutes to hours. It is important that you know how long you have in order to adequately prepare your presentation. Going over can your time limit can create a number of problems for you and the other presenters, so it is best to keep as close to your time as possible. If you know ahead of time that your presentation does not require the full amount of time provided, it is best to let the coordinator know so that they can optimize the use of that time. It is important to be aware of these differences so that you can plan accordingly. Additional note: it is courteous to your audience, fellow panelists and other participants in the event that you do not go over your time, especially, since scheduling allows for little flexibility and because there is often a Q&A at the end of many panels.
2. Practice reading your accepted work: Whether it is an accepted paper, a PowerPoint presentation or something else, you should practice presenting it at least a couple of times before the presentation. It is highly recommended that you try it out on an audience you’re comfortable with at least once (like groups/singles of family, friends, a professor or someone else) and on your own at least once. During this practice, remember to look up where your imagined audience will be (to the left, right, center, etc.).
During this practice, be aware of how long you are taking during these sessions and keep in mind how close you are to the allowed presentation time. For example, sometimes readers have quicker private readings but their public practices are a few minutes longer.
At the end of practice session(s) with an audience, have them ask you questions about the work presented to help prepare you for any Q&As that might occur following the presentation.
A few good questions to prepare for are as follow:
- What inspired this project/presentation? Essentially, was this a class paper? Created from a prompt? Your own passion project influenced by life experience? You need to be able to answer why you’ve focused on this particular subject for the presentation if you are asked.
- What influenced your work on this project? This question is broadly asking for you to talk about what model you used when pursuing the project. Modeling, in this sense, is like copying the procedure of someone else’s study. Or seeing a lot of your favorite author’s style of writing in your own work. It’s a part of the inspiration, but more surface level. Like outlining in letters rather than numbers because someone else did.
- What may be a limitation of your work? If you have ever taken a science class, you have probably been asked to consider this at least once when writing up your report. If you think your work has been limited by a lack of experience or limited information available, you should be able to identify it for this question. However, your answer does not stop there. You should be able to combat the question by using what experiences or research that you do have to clarify that although the limitation may be there, it is slight in nature when considering what you do have on the subject. (Even if what you do have is something as intangible as it never being mentioned in a book or being considered an impossible thing to answer in this day and age with the current sources available.)
During your presentation:
1. Arrive at your session at least five minutes early (though being around 10 minutes early is highly recommended) unless otherwise stated: This will give you a chance to check in, meet the other presenter(s), if they are there, and scout the room.
2. Have your materials with you: If you are presenting a paper, have the paper with you (either printed or digital copy). Make sure that the print is large enough for you to read. If you are presenting a PowerPoint presentation, have your speech prepared and with you. If you have to check your script, don’t be afraid to. Being clear in your presentation is more important than having to look down a few times to check your notes.
3. Be aware of your time limit: Often, there will be a moderator of some sort who is keeping an eye on the clock for you. They’ll give you a signal when a previously discussed amount of time has been reached. Be aware. Stay on time. Wrap it up.
4. Do not speak quickly: Often, when people are nervous, they talk quickly. You need to avoid that. Present your work in an audible way. Enunciate your words. You want your audience to hear you. For this, be sure to project your voice as much as possible. (Remember that projecting one’s voice is not the same as yelling.) If you stumble over a word or two, don’t worry about it. If it is a large mistake, repeat the sentence once and move on. If it is a small one, like a word or two, repeat the words correctly and continue. It can happen to anyone.
5. Look up at your audience: Eye contact is important when presenting. It’s like a conversation. When you are speaking one-on-one with someone, you often look up at them to show that you are listening and aware. When presenting, you are doing the same thing, only in a much broader way. If you are reading, take a moment in between paragraphs to glance up at the audience. One tip is to glance up left, right and then center (really, any order of the three directions) during these slight breaks as you go to a new paragraph. If your paragraphs are short, maybe wait until you have read one or two of them or wait until there is a dramatic point in the text to do this. If you are too nervous to look directly at the people, then one recommendation is to look at the wall behind them.
6. Do not improvise or deviate from the accepted work in a major way: If you have to change a word or two, maybe even a few sentences, that is fine, but there shouldn’t be any major deviations from the original. If you have to include more or make major changes to your presentation, you should first submit these changes to the organization you are presenting for and receive approval before making said changes. Save your improvising for the Q&A part of the session.
7. If there are other presenters, be aware of your actions: Do not fidget. It is rude to fiddle with devices, ruffle through papers or commit other actions that could be distracting to your fellow speakers or the audience. One way to avoid being distracted is to pay attention to your fellow presenters, maybe even prepare a few questions to ask them after the panel.
After you have finished preparing, take a moment to relax. Rest can improve your mood and confidence.
Finally, good luck with your presentation!
Edit: (29 May 2018) Added: “Going over can your time limit can create a number of problems for you and the other presenters, so it is best to keep as close to your time as possible. If you know ahead of time that your presentation does not require the full amount of time provided, it is best to let the coordinator know so that they can optimize the use of that time. It is important to be aware of these differences so that you can plan accordingly.” Moved: “Additional note: it is courteous to your audience, fellow panelists and other participants in the event that you do not go over your time, especially, since scheduling allows for little flexibility and because there is often a Q&A at the end of many panels.”