The one page rule reminded me of something related to presentations…
It is said most people remember only 10% of what is presented to them…and that dissapates over time. And even then is this knowledge actually applied to anything useful. What a waste!
There are three things I try to keep in mind when presenting, even for an operations review: 1. What’s the story? Every story has a plot, context, characters. What’s the headline of the presentation if it were written as a news story? Bring in examples, hardships, victory, results, etc. in a cohesive way as to be more memorable.
2. Answer first. Answer last. This is the ‘if I leave you with one thing’ thing. State the punchline or point of view in the beginning and the end. State it with pause for effect. Put it on the slide at the beginning and end. Make it part of your opening and closing.
3. Make it actionable. Whatever you say, make sure the people know they can, could and should do something with that ‘one thing.’ Even if all you’re providing is insight, help them understand how to apply it to their lives, their results, or the overall business.
Follow these rules and hopefully the 10% they remember will be the one thing you gave them that makes a difference.