5 Public Speaking Tips for Data Analysts: How to calm your nerves and crush that presentation!
Contrary to what I expected when I started my data analyst job, I did not stay curled up in solitude with my laptop.
In fact, I give more presentations than I have for any previous job — presentations to staff and students on data analyses, how to use new software platforms and features, and how to use Power BI and Tableau.
The frequent presentations decreased my anxiety about public speaking. The more I present, the less scary it becomes.
Read on for my top tips about mastering your next data presentation!
1. Before your presentation, do breathing exercises to calm your heart rate.
“Breathing exercises? But I’m not into yoga and all that new age stuff,” you may say.
I was initially skeptical of breathing exercises as well, but now that I’ve incorporated them into my daily routine, I’ve realized how helpful they are for managing work anxiety and maintaining focus.
You may decide you want to try a meditation app — I’m sure you’ve heard of Headspace, Calm, or the Healthy Minds Program. New York Times Wirecutter compares the apps here.
I bought a meditation tool from Amazon — a light-up Buddha that changes color to tell you when to inhale, hold your breath, and exhale.
But at the end of the day, you don’t need any apps or tools. All you need is your breath.
Try these different types of breathing and see what works best for you:
- Box breathing: Breathe in for four counts, hold for four counts, exhale for four counts, and then hold again for four counts. Visualize a box as you do this to maintain your focus.
- 4–2–6 breathing: Inhale slowly for four seconds, hold your breath for two seconds, then exhale slowly & steadily for six seconds. This technique makes your exhale longer than your inhale, which helps your body relax.
- 3–3–3 breathing: This is a simple technique you can use to calm down quickly before or during your presentation. Breathe in deeply for three seconds. Hold your breath for three seconds. Exhale for three seconds.
Practicing these simple breathing exercises before your presentation will calm your nerves, slow your heart rate, and help you focus.
2. Speak slowly and use pauses of varying lengths.
There are many benefits to deliberately using pauses in your presentation. Below are just a few!
- Helps you convey meaning, emphasis, or the difference between your points.
- Holds your audience’s attention so they don’t get fatigued. It’s easy for them to zone out if you are speaking at the same speed the whole time without pauses.
- Prevents you from rambling or talking too fast, which is a common trap to fall into when you’re nervous.
- Helps you keep your breathing and your anxiety level low, so you can be present and focus on engaging with the audience.
- Makes it easier for the audience to retain your key takeaway points.
3. Speak the audience’s language.
Before presenting, think about your audience and their level of technical expertise. If they do not have a technical background, consider doing the following:
- Avoid any technical jargon or acronyms, even if you use them daily. Just because YOU know these terms, doesn’t mean your manager, stakeholders, or clients will. The more terms you use that they don’t understand, the more confused they will be.
- When explaining complex concepts, use analogies and simple, easy-to-understand business language to simplify your message.
Throughout the presentation, pay attention to your audience — look them in the eyes and speak to them, not to your PowerPoint slides. If they seem to be confused or zoning out, be ready to simplify your concepts or cut out any unnecessary explanations. Focus on what they need to know, and nothing more.
4. Focus on the one takeaway of each slide, making it as obvious as possible.
What is the major takeaway of each chart, and why is it relevant to your audience? Think about this when designing your presentation.
People are forgetful, lazy, and easily distracted. If you want to get any message across at all, make it glaringly obvious.
- Share your ONE major takeaway from each chart. NOT every takeaway.
- Highlight the major takeaway visually — circle it in red, make it a different color, note it on a bullet point, and say it out loud.
- Make your slide title reinforce the point you’re trying to make.
If my main takeaway was that 90% of Millennials prefer Kit-Kats to Milky Ways (which is a made-up stat, by the way, but could very well be true), I would make a simple data visualization to compare the preferences for the two (e.g. a bar chart or pie chart), highlight the Kit-Kat category in red for emphasis, and title the slide “Millennials Prefer Kit-Kats Over Milky Ways.”
5. Prepare for questions in advance.
Think about the people who will be present at the meeting and about their possible questions. If you know Mr. Jones always asks about whether the new software updates will apply to the finance team, have a response ready in advance. This may require a bit of extra research on your part as you anticipate questions from various coworkers.
If you are put on the spot by an unexpected question and feel flustered, it is perfectly ok to tell them that you’ll look into it and get back to them. You can say: “That’s a great question. I’ll check on this and get back to you by next week.” Have a pen and paper ready so you can jot down any unexpected feedback or questions.
Bonus tip from Christopher Chin: The audience is your friend.
In Christopher Chin’s (The Hidden Speaker) newsletter (which I highly recommend subscribing to!), he tells you to think of the audience as your friend. We often go into presentations assuming that people are silently judging us — but is this true? (Nope.)
When we speak, we think everyone in the audience — all those blank and bored faces — are silently judging us. And criticizing us…
But think about the last presentation you attended. When you looked at the speaker, were you judging and criticizing them?
Probably not. You were probably hoping this was not going to be a waste of your time. You were probably hoping they were going to do a great job…
When you look at your audience, remember that they are rooting for you to succeed.
Final Thoughts
Good luck with your data analysis presentation! It’s nerve-wracking to speak in front of a group of people. I’d recommend setting aside time the night and morning before your talk to practice breathwork, meditate, and review your notes with a calm head.
Go crush it!
Resources I’d recommend:
Calm: 7 Deep Breathing Exercises to Help You Calm Anxiety
Christopher Chin (The Hidden Speaker) trains tech professionals on public speaking: YouTube, LinkedIn
Harvard Business Review: Present Your Data Like A Pro
MIT Management Sloan School: Presenting about data to your board — 6 tips from experts
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