The great intro

Of course, there’s no one answer to this, but here are some

general points that may be of help to you in deciding how

promising your idea really is.

Start with a personal story — yes, these can be powerful and

grab attention. Sad but true, a ‘horror story’ about a bad pre-

sentation probably gets the most interest!

Joke — In fact, a horror story about a bad presentation is a

kind of joke — but be careful with this approach. Maybe you

will accidentally step on some toes with the professor in the

corner of the room — or maybe you will make yourself sound

conceited. Plus, as every stand‐up knows, being half way

through a joke that your audience finds unfunny is an uncom-

fortable place to be.

Ask a question — well, this is a pretty direct way to engage

with an audience. You might say, for example, ‘How many

people here have ever given a really duff presentation?’

Questions like this might at least grab attention! However, you

need a good follow-up; this would be back to ‘telling a story’.

The kind of question to avoid is the boring one. It’s incredible

how often the same question comes up over and over again.

So don’t start by asking ‘How many of you have had experi-

ence at giving a presentation?’