Slides to keep your audience awake

Here’s a way to keep your
audience from falling asleep.

Look at a typical PowerPoint
slide like this one.

Title of this slide
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4
6
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Series 3
Series 2
Series 1
This is the text
 important point 1
 another important thing
 really important!
Things I want to say
 point 4
 point 5
 point 6
 point 7
 point 8
X Y Z C o m p a n y , s i n c e 1 9 8 4 !
LOGO

Cognitive scientists say
that most people can only
process around 5 to 7
pieces of information at
one time.

More than that, they start
getting confused.

How much information is
on that typical slide?

6 large elements:
1. The title
2. The graph
3. Big bullet 1
4. Big bullet 2
5. The company name
6. The company logo

6 smaller elements:
1. The labels on the x-axis
2. The labels on the y-axis
3. The labels on the colors
4. The bars on the graph
5. The 3 bullets under big point 1
6. The 5 bullets under big point 2

There are 5 different fonts
and one emphasized text.

And there is a mixture of
shapes (bullets, logo, bars
on graph, etc.)

You can count as well as I can.
Way more than 7 pieces of
information.

No wonder audiences
are getting confused
and falling asleep.

Remove the logo and the
company name.
You showed them at the beginning, you’ll
show them at the end, they’re on your
handouts and your business cards, and
you were introduced. It’s just extra
information at this point.

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Series 3
Series 2
Series 1
Title of this slide
This is the text
 point 4
 point 5
 point 6
 point 7
 point 8

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4
6
8
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Series 3
Series 2
Series 1
This is the text
 point 4
 point 5
 point 6
 point 7
 point 8

Make a title slide.
If you feel it is necessary to have a
title, make a title slide.
Then get on to the content.

Remove some of the bullets.
Why are the bullet points there?
If you really want the audience to read
them, then keep them.
If they are for the presenter to read,
well,
write them on a notecard…

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Series 3
Series 2
Series 1
This is the text

Put the graph on its own
slide.
If you are talking about the graph,
then talk about the graph.
Make it big enough for everyone to see.
Make it clear.
What is important about the graph?
Explain it with no distractions.

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Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Category 4
Series 3
Series 2
Series 1

Give the graph a title.
Otherwise, people get confused.

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Category 1 Category 2 Category 3 Category 4
Series 3
Series 2
Series 1
title of the graph

Put the bullets on their own slide.
Make the text large enough to read from the back
of the room.
Remember that we can really only comfortably
process 5 things at a time. Make sure there are
never too many points.
Group them in an understandable way.

• This is the text
• important point 1
• another important thing
• really important!

Change to an easy font.
Sans serif fonts can be read easily from far.
They also work better with weaker beamers or
when there is too much light in the room.

This is the text
• important point 1
• another important thing
• really important!

Keep the audience with you.
Put the bullet points on a series of slides so
that they appear when you are ready to talk
about them.

This is the text
important point 1

This is the text
important point 1
another important thing

This is the text
important point 1
another important thing
really important!

The idea is to communicate,
rather than to confuse.

The next time you see this on
your screen.

Or, you could just pass out
pillows and blankets in order
to help your audience sleep
better.

Slides to keep your audience awake

Slides to keep your audience awake

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