Why Templates ruin your Slideshows
Generally speaking Templates for slideshows suck. Big time. More than you think and then some. Don’t ever use them again. There: Your slideshows just got 384% better (yes, exactly 384%)
Is it THAT bad?
Okay, okay that does sound a bit extreme, but I stand by what I said. Templates for slideshows need to go. So what’s the gripe? Why do I disdain them so much?
Basically for two reasons: Firstly they (mostly) aren’t any good. They’re not good looking, the structure is antiquated, and frankly everybody has seen the same ones over, and over, and over again.
Secondly, and that’s my main issue with it, they immediately limit your creativity. They make you tailor your presentation to the slideshow, even though it should be the other way around. Have you ever struggled to come up with more bullet points about your current topic, but felt like you had to since only having two on the slide looked weird? I sure have. Ever wondered what title to give a slide, or what stock image to use?
I could continue with the examples, but I think you start to see my point.
I am a strong individual and not so easily influenced
No you’re not and neither am I. Everybody is influenced by the things they perceive fractions of a second after the impression is made. Our brains simply aren’t wired for original thought 100% of the time. While this is good to prevent overload, it can also hinder us when it counts and we’re not even noticing most of the time. I’m currently working on a little side project of mine, which is supposed to show you just that, so stay tuned to hear about it.
You don’t need a title for that
Slides in the middle of a presentation don’t need to have a title. Period. Get the thought out of your head now. What the slide is showing should be clear from what you’ll be saying while it’s visible, and if it’s not: Rework your presentation. Some issues need to be ironed out.
Getting rid of titles yields the most dramatic improvements in slideshow quality from my experience. It changes the focus from the slides to what you’re saying, and stops you from clinging to the slideshow with the structure of the presentation, which in turn fixes what is wrong with most presentations: The slideshow now supports your speaking, not the other way around.
Work like it’s 1969 (or whatever)
I recommend sticking to analog tools for presentation design. I.e. pen and paper for those who forgot what that is. If even the thought of not using a computer for work gives you withdrawal symptoms (*raises hand hesitantly*) try creating a new slideshow and adding a bunch of empty (fully empty: no boxes, no nothing) slides, and get going from there. There’s a name for when you start working that way and suddenly only end up needing 5 slides instead of 15: progress.
Since random quotes are always nice ;)
Perfection is attained not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
- Antoine de Saint Exupery
Exit stage left
Using these words as your mantra I wish you the best for creating your next presentation, and hope to hear all about how you perceived the change. Feel free to hit me up on twitter with feedback, thoughts or questions, or just follow to stay tuned for new blog-posts, and other nifty stuff. Thanks for wanting to give great presentations, the world needs more people like you!
This post is mirrored from my homepage. Take a look if you’re curious ;)
