>has 18pt font on multiple slides... Good point. I like your concept of builds - it's useful to approach presentation styles as UX design problems. I already do it sometimes but I don't think I am very good at pausing. Usually, I say something along the lines of "...and that leads me to...[click]...eh,...this next slide. [small pause] A part of my degree was a long series of company visits. Usually, they'd ask us students to divide in smaller groups, work on a small case study and present the results after an hour of giving it some thought. While others were thinking of excuses not to present, I usually didn't mind the practice and I ended up refining the bullet-point-method along the way. In high school I was deathly afraid of giving presentations, but now I'm comfortable giving presentations to small and medium sized groups and sometimes get compliments for it. What I don't know is how I can move on from here. How do I continue improving my presentation skills? What are some of the lessons you've learned more recently?
Really, the sad thing is to think like Twitter. People consume data in discrete chunks. This is true conceptually, biologically, and physically. Blinking is actually us cutting up our experience into discrete chunks, so our brain can process and store all the data. (That's an incomplete description of blinking, but accurate enough for the point.) So give them a fact, and a moment to process it. Stack another fact on top of that one. Give them a moment. Stack another one. Then stand back and have a general description for what you have built. Let them process that. So place a brick, place a brick, place a brick, then stand back and say, "pyramid!" Leave out the details. Be general. Get the broad strokes right. Point them in the right direction, but don't give them GPS coordinates. Then, stand back and let them ask questions. THAT's where you give them the detail. People learn better when THEY drive the process of inquiry. So if you give them waypoints on a map, and then let them ask "Hey, how do we cross this river between points C and D?", two things happen: 1. You are no longer the "presenter". You are having a conversation, with another person, about a topic you know VERY well. This will make you more natural, less stressed, and more interesting, all while standing on that (normally) terrifying stage. 2. The person actually learns more, and respects you more, because you were able to provide the answer to the question that they couldn't work out on their own. People try to present an excess of data, to prove their point, and all they do is bury the audience in confusing minutiae. Let them tease out the details with their questions. You can also use their questions as talking points, if they truly need further explanation, and the crowd is interested. Ideally, if you have a 15-minute slot, give them a 5-minute presentation and then answer questions for 10 minutes. You will have the highest rated talk of the day.