Power Presenter, The

Jerry Weissman is the founder and president of Suasive, Inc., formerly Power Presentations, Ltd. Weissman began his career as a staff producer-director of public affairs and news programs at CBS TV in New York, where he learned the skills to master the building blocks of every presentation: a clear, compelling story, well-designed graphics, natural delivery, and the art of Q&A. In 1988, Weissman brought these skills to Silicon Valley. In short order, he established himself as the coach for Silicon Valley CEOs developing their IPO roadshows by teaching them to tell their business stories through the eyes of their investors. In doing so, he helped their companies raise hundreds of billions of dollars. After amassing an elite client list of IPOs, he soon widened his focus to coaching public and privately held companies to develop and deliver all types of business presentations. Today his methodology has helped thousands of companies on every continent deliver high-stakes presentations with clarity, confidence, and maximum persuasion. In addition to this book, Weissman is the author of four other books on presentations and public speaking: Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story and Designing Your Slides; In the Line of Fire: How to Handle Tough Questions; Presentations in Action; and Winning Strategies for Power Presentations, all Pearson publications.

• Foreword to the Second Edition     xvii Preface: Show Me the Money     xxi Introduction:  The Deer in the Headlights     xxvii Fight-or-Flight     xxvii Adrenaline Rush Remedies     xxviii The Mental Method     xxix Book Conventions     xxx Chapter One:  Actions Speak Louder Than Words     1 Audience Advocacy     1 The Power of the Visual     3 Chapter Two:  Creating Empathy with Your Audience     11 Empathy     11 The Science of Empathy     12 The Effectiveness Matrix     15 Chapter Three:  The Butterflies in Your Stomach     23 Fight-or-Flight: Internal Dynamics     23 Fight-or-Flight: External Dynamics     26 Presenter Behavior/Audience Perception     29 The Yikes! Moment     30 Chapter Four:  The Quest for Content     31 Slides     32 Script     33 Teleprompter (Also Known as Autocue)     34 Comfort Monitors     35 Advanced Technology     36 Five Simple Steps to Develop Your Story     37 Chapter Five:  The Mental Method     45 Concentration     45 The Mind–Body Connection     46 The Mental Method     49 Delivering Your Message     59 Chapter Six:  The Learning Process     61 Change     61 The Four Stages of Learning     62 Comfort Zone Paradox     63 Repetition over Time     65 The Yikes! Moment     68 The Suasive Master Skills Cycle     69 Chapter Seven:  Speak with Your Body Language     71 The Historic Kennedy–Nixon Debate     71 External Factors/Audience Perception     76 Visual Dynamics     77 Vocal Dynamics     92 Putting It All Together     96 Chapter Eight:  Control Your Cadence: The Phrase     99 Cadence     99 Complete the Arc     100 Rising/Falling Inflection     102 Complete the Arc in Action     107 Chapter Nine:  Control Your Cadence: The Pause     111 Unwords     112 Ten Benefits of the Pause     120 Speak Only to Eyes     120 Phrase & Pause     122 Cadence Summary     124 Chapter Ten:  Tools of the Trade     127 Position     127 The Presentation Checklist     130 Putting It All Together     133 Chapter Eleven:  SlideSynchronization     135 Design/Delivery Balance     135 The Suasive Meta Design Concepts     138 Seven Steps of Slide Sync Delivery     141 Slide Sync Delivery in Action     148 Chapter Twelve:  SlideSync Narrative     149 Describe     149 Narrative Continuity     154 Three Simple Steps of Continuity     155 Putting It All Together     156 Chapter Thirteen:  Masters of the Game     157 The Great Communicator     157 Sir Winston Churchill     160 President John F. Kennedy     161 Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.     162 Reverend Billy Graham     163 The Great Communicator Redux     165 The Great Orators: Conversation and Empathy     167 Coda:  Ending with the Beginning     169 Endnotes     173 Appendix A:  Video Links     187 Acknowledgments     193About the Author     195Index     197