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in your presentation. Microphones are especially helpful if your voice has a higher pitch. Such voices can be tough to pick up for people who are hard of hearing. Using the mike will make your talk more inclusive and accessible.
Be seen. When presenting on a stage, don’t hide behind the podium. Body lan- guage helps you communicate. Dressing up for the occasion can make you more aware of your body language. Nice clothes also send a signal to the audience (and to yourself) that this event is important. When presenting from a computer, standing up can give you more energy. Use a standing desk or elevate your laptop with boxes.
Stay on time. Short talks (six to twenty minutes) are popular, especially for online presentations. Events featuring several short talks are fun and inclusive, with more voices and less rambling. Speaking too long disrespects your hosts, the audi- ence, and your fellow presenters. Talks
by a single presenter should be no longer than forty-five minutes when presented in person in an auditorium or classroom, while online talks should be thirty or less. If you are the moderator, lay out the ground rules in advance. Let the speaker know when their time is nearly up and politely interrupt if they go significantly over. If you are in the middle of a presentation and you realize you have too much content, just skip a section and wrap it up.
Know your public. Who is attending your event? Experts or laypeople? Students or professionals? Do you speak the same language or do you come from different cultures? If possible, read the room as you go. If people seem checked out, skip ahead to a livelier section of your talk.
Interact. When appropriate, pause and ask for feedback, especially when using online conferencing software. Digital environ- ments make it hard to know how the audi- ence is responding. Stop and ask them.
ILLUSTRATIONS BY JENNIFER TOBIAS
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