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PowerPoint Tactics: Part 1 - A tree in the woods is like an engineer with PowerPoint
November 29th, 2006There is an age old question that asks, “If a tree falls in the woods and nobody is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” It is a philosophical question that essentially asks whether or not an event can be proven if no one witnesses it. For ideas that engineers come up with, the same is true. If you are unable to communicate an idea, typically via a presentation that involves speaking in front of others and using Microsoft PowerPoint, it might as well not exist.
For many of us in the engineering field, conveying ideas can be a difficult task. As opposed to interacting with people socially, we tend to be introverted people who choose to spend time on creative pursuits in isolation. While this can heighten our problem solving ability, it can hamper our ability to communicate and relate to others. Our ideas are obvious to us, so naturally we think they will be obvious to everybody else, but this is rarely the case. In this chapter, commonly used communication tactics are covered for the three most common forms of business communication: presentations, documentation, and email. Using the tips discussed here will make it easier for your ideas to be heard by the non-technically inclined who usually hold the power over budgets and rewards.
- Part 1 - A tree in the woods is like an engineer with PowerPoint
- Part 2 - Apple anecdote
- Part 3 - Slide organization
- Part 4 - Text based slides
- Part 5 - Graphical slides
- Part 6 - Synchronizing to your agenda and using backup slides
- Part 7 - Oral delivery tips
- Part 8 - Final Thoughts
Are you kidding me? Take a look at my picture. If I’m not a genuine, bona fide nerd I’m not sure who is. I'm currently employed as the Marketing and Internet Platform Solutions, Portals and Applications Chief Architect at Hewlett Packard (try saying that 5 times fast) and write here about career best practices for techies. Why? Because I wish I'd had this kind of free advice earlier in my own career and now I'm trying to "pay it forward". See more in 
March 29th, 2008 at 9:13 am
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March 29th, 2008 at 9:17 am
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March 29th, 2008 at 9:19 am
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March 29th, 2008 at 9:20 am
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March 29th, 2008 at 9:20 am
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March 29th, 2008 at 9:22 am
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[...] time and time again that the folks who get ahead are the ones who master the soft skills. They can translate complex and detailed technical topics into language that non-technical senior executives and marketers can understand. They take the time [...]