Page 132 - The New Articulate Executive_ Look, Act and Sound Like a Leader

HOW TO MAKE A POWERFUL DECK PRESENTATION 123

gets things off to a faster start. If the hosts want to chitchat a little
after sitting down (e.g., maybe talk about the weather or politics),

that’s fine. Otherwise the presenting lead should look for the fi rst
opportunity to begin. This could come as a sudden silence or a signal
such as, “So, Mary, what have you got?”
For the sake of illustration, let’s assume that in this particular
case the hosts have requested that the deck be made available in
advance or insisted that it be physically on the table for the
meeting.
Now for the lead to control the meeting, the deck must not yet
be opened. If someone across the table happens to be peeking inside
and sneaking a look ahead, the lead immediately puts an end to that
with something like: “Before we get into the books there is some-

thing I think you need to know first” or “Before we look at the

books, let me first give you the big picture.”
If the lead feels secure, is comfortable with the POWER for-
mula, and is completely confident with her story, she may choose a

more radical approach. For example, if the meeting is small (just a
couple of people), she might dismiss the books altogether with some-
thing like: “We have a whole presentation here in this deck, but
instead of dwelling on the book, I think I’d just like to give you a
quick overview of how we see the situation and how I think we
might be able to help.”
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If you have the time, make two presentations: the Wafer that
shows only visuals and graphics, and the Whopper that documents
everything else, such as word slides and dense tables of
support and backup data.
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The rest is straight out of the POWER playbook: No opening
amenities. No agenda. No further mention of a presentation. (We
want this to feel and sound like a conversation, which sets the right