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Prepare your presentation equipment

Just now, while you are performing on stage, the beamer breaks down! How can you save the presentation so that your audience will remember you well? I will get to that in a moment.

Are you familiar with your equipment? Have you considered all eventualities? Are you well prepared and equipped for your performance? Then you can deal more confidently with situations such as a broken beamer, power outage or other unexpected disturbances. You can avoid a large part of these problems through targeted preparation.

 

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How you present spontaneously

You are attending a seminar and are suddenly addressed directly by the speaker: “What is your opinion?” There is no time for long reflection. How do you react now? Do you have a suitable answer ready?

Honestly, this situation rarely occurs in the presentation. In a seminar such a direct question is not common either. More often than not you come into this situation in small talk or in conversation with other colleagues. However, it is common during or after a presentation in which you speak to an audience yourself. If only you could answer spontaneously and quick-witted! What can you do for it?

 

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How your poster presentation works

Poster presentations are an integral part of science conferences since the 1960s (Rowe, 2017). Google spits out millions of tips about how to design posters and in terms of content. But how do you present yourself during the poster session? How do you maximize attention? How do you position yourself as an expert in your field? The online tips are so far – well, very modest. This blog post is meant to change that. Read more

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Stories make science exciting again

“Sometime they’ll give a presentation and nobody will come.” I experienced that again and again while I was a student and researcher. There are conference sessions in which just three people sit in the audience listening to a presentation that is at most mediocre. Only three, because the topic is extremely special and because many presentations recite a bunch of numbers, data and facts.

As students, we can learn a lot of undoubtedly interesting stuff – otherwise we would not have decided to study a particular subject. But most professors do not give much thought to how this material is taught. No wonder with the continuous pressure of publications, project proposals and the day-to-day administrative stuff. The unloved teaching is only the odd one out. But without preparation and training only natural talents may succeed with both instructive and exciting lectures. Unfortunately, this happens far too rarely.

 

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Socialize with small talk

Whether at conferences, job interviews or even more so at networking events: When you want to talk to people you do not know yet, small talk can break the ice. The art of small talk is to find and share common interests. So it is better you don’t go like a bull at a gate.

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Speeches create knowledge

“We are happy to inform you that your presentation has been selected for our conference…” Congratulations, you have passed the first hurdle!

In science it is appreciated to present and discuss results of your research at conferences. But how do you prepare for your presentation and which way do you present your material? What added value do you bring to your audience? What do people expect from your presentation?

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