Better Presentations: A Guide for Scholars, Researchers, and Wonks by Jonathan Schwabish

Summary

Better Presentations by Jonathan Schwabish is a practical guide designed to help scholars, researchers, and policy wonks communicate their data and ideas more clearly, thoughtfully, and persuasively through presentations. The book breaks down barriers to effective communication by offering actionable advice for structuring talks, designing slides, and engaging audiences. Schwabish draws on his experience as a data visualization expert, providing real-world examples to illustrate his points and emphasizing the importance of simplicity, accessibility, and narrative. The ultimate goal is to elevate the quality and impact of academic and technical presentations.

Life-Changing Lessons

1. Focus on your audience: Tailoring your message and slides to meet the needs and background knowledge of your audience makes your presentation more engaging and effective.

2. Less is more: Removing unnecessary text, graphics, and data from your slides allows your key points to shine and helps your message stick.

3. Practice storytelling: Framing your presentation as a narrative, with a clear beginning, middle, and end, gives your data meaning and keeps your audience’s attention.

Publishing year and rating

The book was published in: 2016

AI Rating (from 0 to 100): 85

Practical Examples

1. Slide simplification

   Instead of overcrowding slides with text and bullet points, Schwabish demonstrates how to distill slide content down to a single key message or image per slide. This helps the audience focus on what matters without getting distracted by extraneous information.

2. Visual hierarchy

   He explains using font size, color, and layout to create a clear path for the viewer's eyes through each slide. For example, making the most important figures larger and using contrasting colors for emphasis enables complex data to be understood at a glance.

3. Storyboarding presentation flow

   Schwabish recommends sketching out the major sections and transitions of your talk on index cards or paper. By mapping the logical progression ahead of time, presenters can ensure their narrative is coherent and free from unnecessary detours.

4. Consistent branding and design

   Maintaining consistent fonts, color palettes, and graphics across slides improves professionalism and makes the presentation more polished. Schwabish shares visual templates to help presenters achieve a cohesive look that supports rather than distracts from the content.

5. Effective use of data visualizations

   Instead of defaulting to tables and basic bar charts, Schwabish shows alternatives like annotated line graphs, heatmaps, or pictograms. He underscores the importance of choosing visuals that make complex data intuitive for the intended audience.

6. Engaging through interactivity and questions

   He encourages presenters to foster engagement by pausing for questions, incorporating quick polls, or even using interactive features like live annotations to ensure the audience remains connected to the material.

7. Accessible presentations

   The book addresses the need for making slides accessible to people with disabilities, such as using high-contrast color schemes, readable fonts, and alternative text for visuals to ensure everyone benefits from the presentation.