Why You Should Be the Only Person Who Can Give Your Presentation

I was helping to run a workshop recently for high school student leaders. They were practising inspirational-type speeches that they would be giving at school assemblies to younger students.  Common themes were making the most of opportunities at school, overcoming adversity, and making friends. All students spoke well, but they spoke in generalities. For example, they encouraged younger students to take up extracurricular activities such as sports and music without talking much about their own activities. 
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​Then a young man spoke about how he had almost been expelled in his second year at high school until a teacher had recognised his potential, taken an interest in him and set him on a different path. He was now a student leader. Six months later, his speech is the only one I remember. Why? Because he didn’t talk about the idea of overcoming adversity – he demonstrated how he had done just that. 

That workshop got me thinking about how it is not just school students who are reluctant to talk about themselves or draw on personal experiences. In a corporate environment, I have heard many generic presentations that could be given by anyone. Often it is even expected.  People are given outlines of material they are expected to present with little opportunity to tailor the content. 
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This article explains five reasons why you should ensure that every presentation you give, is one only you could give. 

It will be more interesting, engaging, and memorable.  
The student leader’s relatable story illustrates this beautifully. There is only so much you can say about the principle of learning from failure. But there are an infinite number of stories of people who have had the experience of coming back stronger after failure – whether it be in sports, business, school or some other aspect of their lives. It is a universal theme that we never tire of. 

Many of us have had difficult times in our lives when someone showed us compassion or empathy rather than criticising us – or at least we can imagine what it would be like. If I was a struggling student hearing that story, it might give me hope that I could be a school leader one day. 

Here is another example. I heard a young designer recently, talking about her job as head of AI creative for a property development company. She started with the story about how she had improved some marketing materials by using AI tools. Her business was so impressed with the results that they created a new position for her. Her whole job is now investigating how AI tools can improve design outcomes for the business. 

She could have given that presentation without mentioning her backstory. It would have been reasonably interesting at the time - but forgettable. She would have also missed an opportunity to demonstrate that she is a highly impressive young woman! 

What if you have generic material that you are required to present? Use it as the basis for your presentation, but think about how you can put your spin on it. Perhaps there is an opportunity to add examples. 

People really want to hear about you! 
My brother works for a large bank in London. He tells the story of how his company invited a world-famous rugby player to speak to staff. The rugby player talked about the similarities between rugby and business. While he was a good speaker, my brother confessed that they were a bit disappointed. Why? Because they just wanted to hear about rugby! They knew the player must have had some incredible stories. But the rugby player second-guessed the audience and tried to give a clever speech linking rugby and business.

I get that it feels riskier to talk about your story than about ideas and concepts! But as long as you follow certain common-sense principles like keeping it brief and making sure there is a point, I can almost guarantee people will appreciate your original content – perhaps even more than anything else you have to say.

It is easier for you as the presenter to remember. 
Abstract concepts, ideas, facts, principles and processes – the main content of many presentations – are hard to remember. Especially if they are not your ideas and concepts! But stories and examples are very easy to remember – even more so, if they are things that you have experienced. You know what happened so there is no need to memorise. Of course, you want to practice how you will tell the story or explain the example, but you won’t need to worry about forgetting on the day. 

You will worry less about being an “Imposter”. 
I have written previously about the Imposter Syndrome – the feeling that you are a fraud, not deserving of your position, waiting for others to find you out.  The Imposter Syndrome can contribute to public speaking anxiety because people worry they are not qualified to talk on a topic. 

You might not be the expert in the room, but you are the only person who has had your experiences. I once coached a young woman who was dreading a work presentation because she had to talk to senior leaders about the company culture and values (she was in communications). She worried that the audience understood much more about the culture and values than she did. But I pointed out her unique perspective. She was qualified to talk about how it felt, starting as a new graduate in that organisation – how she perceived the culture as a newbie. None of the senior leaders had that perspective. 

An opportunity to “be yourself”.
I acknowledge that it is not always appropriate to use your own content. For example, I have a background as a public policy advisor. When I advised elected representatives, I had to stick to the facts. I could use examples, but quite rightly it had to be content that any advisor could give. 

But even if you can’t use original content, you can still make a presentation your own by letting some of your personality come through.  I had a session recently with an ex-builder working for a project management company. He has risen to a senior level in the organisation but feels self-conscious as he is not a corporate type and does not have a tertiary qualification. But he knows building and has great people skills. My advice to him – don’t try to be something you are not. Use your strengths.

Conclusion 
I specialise in helping people with public speaking anxiety. I believe that the principle of giving a presentation that only you can give can be hugely helpful for nervous presenters. It will make you feel more confident in your material and your ability to remember it – and less like an imposter (if that is an issue for you). It will also make you a more engaging presenter – and your audience will thank you for it! 

​Article written by Catherine Syme