Presentation Tips and Resources
If you only have a minute….
- 10 tips on how to make slides that communicate your idea, from TED’s in-house expert (TED Blog)
- 11 design tips for beautiful presentations (Visage)
- Turning a paper into a presentation (UNC Greensboro)
Where do I begin?
Turning ideas into a presentation structure
- Organization and preparation tips (Garr Reynolds)
- Video: One point at a time (Lynda Design Course)
- 4 tips to make your presentation clear and concise (Slide Genius)
How do I make it look good?
Visual design do’s and dont’s
- Utilizing color theory in your presentations (Slide Genius)
- Short and sweet guide on improving design (Shutterstock)
- How to design your own PowerPoint slides without a template (Design Shack)
- Video: When to use a photo vs. an illustration (Lynda Design Course)
Sometimes, the details matter
- Go to fonts for PowerPoint Presentations (Slide Genius)
- Find colors that work well together at MaterialPalette.com
Where can I find good pictures?
High quality and royalty free
- Pixabay
- Pexels
- Unsplash
- Vecteezy
- The Gender Spectrum Collection: Stock Photos Beyond the Binary
- Flat Icon for millions of icons and stickers
- University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (attribution is required)
What should I say?
Your talk should complement your presentation, not replicate it
- Five ways to grab your audience’s attention at the beginning of your presentation (LinkedIn)
- Unique presentation delivery tips (LinkedIn)
- Top 10 delivery tips (Garr Reynolds)
- 7 advanced tips to perfect your public speaking skills (Forbes)
What if it’s a research or conference poster?
Telling the story of your research
- We really love this poster about making posters
- How to give a dynamic scientific presentation (Elsevier)
- A beginner's guide to creating conference posters
- Video: How to make a poster template in PowerPoint (YouTube)
- Video: How to create an academic poster in InDesign (YouTube)
Pre-fab poster templates to get you started
Print your poster on campus
What if the stakes are high?
Job or idea pitches
- 6 questions to ask yourself before you give a presentation (LinkedIn)
- Four tips for delivering the best interview presentation possible (Hays)
Get inspired!
- Video: Why Storytelling Matters (TED)
- Video: The Secret Structure of Great Talks (TED)
- Nervous? Read this! (Harvard Business Review)
Interested in more? Check out our recommended books
- Slide:ology: The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations (Nancy Duarte)
- Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery (Garr Reynolds)
- OnPoint: How to Become a Fearless Speaker (Harvard Business Review Magazine)
- Why Most PowerPoint Presentations Suck And How You Can Make Them Better (Rick Altman)