The 6 steps for PowerPoint competency from the TED talk in the module "How to Avoid Death by PowerPoint."?

1. Do some presentation preparation work

2. Set the right tone and end on a high note.

3. Create sleek and stylish slides.

4. Get your audience to focus.

5. Its all about you.

Explanation:

1. Do some presentation preparation work:

A good presentation begins, not with slides, but with a pencil and paper. Research your audience’s background, interests and capabilities. What do they already know, for instance, and what can they learn from you?

2. Set the right tone and end on a high note:

You have no more than 30 seconds to secure your audience’s attention. So, what attention-grabbing opener will you use?

Visual communications expert Curtis Newbold suggests “a fascinating quote; an alarming or surprising statistic; asking your audience a question; telling a relevant and funny joke… an imaginary scenario; or a demonstration''.

3. Create sleek and stylish slides:

Once you have your story down, you can start to design your slides.  

Before you do, it’s important to think about the practicalities. Will they, for instance, be displayed Widescreen with a 16:9 ratio? Or Standard with 4:3? This might seem like a small detail, but it can make a huge difference in terms of visual impact.

4.  Get your audience to focus:

The most important thing is to grab your audience’s attention straight away – and then maintain it! You want your audience to go away having learned something. So, make it as easy as possible for people to grasp your message “from the off”!

5.  Its all about you:

Finally, remember that, ultimately, it’s you that the audience should be paying attention to, not your slides!

PowerPoint can be used to create great visual aids, but the success of your presentation is determined by the way you deliver them. So, tell your story with a confident, compelling physical presence, and master it by rehearsing it 10 to 15 times.