I’m wild about a brand new, beautiful, and absolutely brilliant book on how to create memorable visuals for presentations.  It’s called Presentation Zen, Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery, by Garr Reynolds (New Riders, 2008).

You only have to flip through the pages to immediately grasp Reynold’s provocative mix of inspiration and practical guidance.  As a presentation designer and internationally acclaimed communications expert, he shows how  thoughtfully designed, graceful, efficient visual imagery can make you look good as a presenter.  He has of the most popular Web sites on presentation design and delivery on the net — www.presentationzen.com.

The book is filled page after page of examples of how creativity, photos, large size font, and cool graphics can transform your PowerPoint from dull to dynamite.  Just one example - picture this - the slide on the left shows a full page photo of a runner slogging through the desert with a simple message - Less than 33% of U.S. adults are at a “healthy weight.”  Not bad.  But the slide on the right? It shows the midsection only of an overweight man grabbing his belly fat, with the caption in large print: 66% of Americans are obsese or overweight; below that a simple chart on the numbers of all adults, women and men.  It’s so much more memorable!

Garr Reynolds is a writer, designer and musician who currently holds the position of  Associate Professor of Management at Kansai Gaidai University in Japan. http://www.kansaigaidai.ac.jp/asp/

 Hence, his zen-way of seeing things.

His real message: Simplicity Rules.

How good is it?  Seth Godin  http://www.sethgodin.com/sg/ the marketing guru of gurus quips, “Please don’t buy this book! Once people start making better presentations, mine won’t look so good.”

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This weekend at the National Speakers Association convention in New York, www.nsaspeaker.org Steve Forbes took the stage.  He had 1,800 professional speakers on the edge of their seats as he shared his insights about the future of the US economy.  Forbes, President and CEO of Forbes, and Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Magazine, www.forbes.com as well as a former Republican candidate for President, can actually be a little awkward on stage, yet people who get paid a lot of money to speak to corporate audiences were mezmerized; in a room full of people who love to talk, you could hear a pin drop.  Why?  Forbes was funny and smart –he made economics accessible to all.  And, even more important he told us things we really really didn’t know. 

What’s the real state of the US economy?  Not bad at all!  But don’t ask the media, says Forbes.  They would rather stand in front of a gas pump talking about $4 a gallon gas than actually do research on the the dry stuff that matters, like US monetary policy. And he’s right. (Full disclosure, as many of you know, I was a reporter for 20 years.  I know how it really works.)

Forbes spoke eloquently about the real drivers of our economy, and I was convinced after he spoke–we still have the largest most resilient economy in the world.  He pointed out that as voters we’d better start asking better questions of the people running for office. For example, how will they approach monetary policy?  Because according to Forbes, it wasn’t oil companies or mortgage lenders that brought this on, but by the Fed, which four years ago, and again last year, started printing money like there was no tomorrow.  In an overreaction to the credit crisis, both times, it did more harm than good.

But back to executive presence.  What makes Forbes so powerful on stage?  Wit, intelligence, and the ability to explain something that dry and dull and make it fascinating.  What else did we like about him?  Smart as he is, he didn’t swagger onto the stage or lord his fortune or his smarts over us.  He was hilarious really, as well as respectful.  He treated his audience as the intelligent citizens they want to be. 

Something else– he obviously wasn’t reading someone else’s talking points.  He walked away from the podium five minutes in, and stood center stage for the better part of an hour, speaking eloquently.  If you’ve seen him speak, you know that sometimes his gestures seem slightly out of sync with his message.  Yet he transitioned beautifully from gas prices to the mortage crisis, tax policy to monetary policy, government to politics, all without notes.  He even threw in several funny lines about the speaker who had immediately preceded him on stage.  That’s confidence.  

You also can’t argue with Forbes success, even if he did inherit the company started by his grandfather.  Forbes is still on the cutting edge.  In 1977 they entered the new media arena with the launch of Forbes.com. The site now attracts over seven million unique visitors a month and has become the leading destination site for business decision-makers and investors.

For a copy of his speech, contact the National Speakers Association at www.nsaspeaker.org - I highly recommend you watch it, and take notes.

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A few weeks ago I was speaking at the Society for Human Resources Management (www.shrm.org) where the topic was how to Speak Like a CEO.  In their television studio after the session, the interviewer asked me how HR leaders can coach their managers on delivering bad news.   

The biggest mistake that managers make is not being direct and clear.  The person getting feedback either doesn’t “get it” or doesn’t take it seriously.  The second biggest mistake managers make is just the opposite: they are too direct and their style overwhelms the person.

What’s the solution?  I’ll pass along the advice I once received from a wise friend and counselor.  “Be gentle but firm,” she said.  What does it mean?  Your tone should be kind, caring and concerned but your message must be unequivocal.  Focus on the behavior, not the person, but make sure you don’t mince words.

This is part art, part science.  I recommend writing down what you want to say and practicing out loud.  Write down the behavior that is unacceptable and be specific.  Explain the impact it had.  Ask the person to respond.  Listen to make sure they have heard you.  If they distort the message, they didn’t hear it, or didn’t believe it, so repeat it and give an example, and again, state the impact along with the desired behavior.  Stop, ask a question, and listen to see if they’ve heard it.

Your words should be crystal clear while your tone can be kind.  You can maintain eye contact, and a businesslike but concerned expression while you deliver an unequivocal message.  It requires practice but once you get the hang of it, you’ll realize how much people appreciate it.  They want to know how they’re doing, they don’t even mind bad news, as long as they know what is expected, that you’re going to give them a chance to get it right and that you appreciate them as people.

If you have a repeat offender, you may need to get more direct in your tone, but try this first: gentle but firm.  It works.

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Bad News “Bearers”

A reporter called me to ask this question: what should CEOs do when they have bad news to deliver to the board?  Let’s face it; these days- there is some bad news to deliver.  Still, I have a problem – not with the question – but the assumption.  The assumption being you’re going to walk into a board meeting and drop a bomb shell.

If you’re doing your job as CEO you’re in touch with your board.  Bad news should not come as an utter, complete, total surprise.  When times are tough (and for that matter when times are good) you need to have your board in the Feedback Loop.  If you aren’t getting on the phone or emailing key board members from time to time, then how on earth are you going to get the advice and information they are able to provide you?

Yes, business is done in the boardroom, and it is important.  But you need to build relationships with your board that extend beyond the formal meetings.  If you have a high quality board, you have people who can and should add value to your business.  If your board is doing its job, they should be acting as a valuable resource and sounding board for management.

Full disclosure: I have never run a public company.  But I’ve worked with a lot of CEOs who do.  Those who are successful figure out how their boards can help them make good decisions. 

If you have bad news, you should be picking up the phone and talking through the situation, at a strategic level, with the people who can provide advice, support, and good, sound counsel.  Your toughest critics can be (of course not always) your greatest ally if you cultivate their brains. 

Aside from building relationships what can you do when you have bad news? Take a step back and ask yourself, what will they ask?  Write down their questions, and then write down your answers in bullet point style.  Board members may disagree but they will give you the benefit of the doubt if you have thought through the issues and are well prepared.

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