How to be a Presentation God: Build, Design, and Deliver Presentations that Dominate!

Chapter 7. They Matter Even More

I'll allow for the fact that not everyone reading this book is a die-hard perfectionist. But I think I can safely assume that, given the choice between a perfect presentation and abject failure, we'd all choose the former. Only a premier slacker would purposefully sabotage a presentation, and even then it would beg the question: Why bother? If you hate your job that much, why even show up to take the dive?

With this widely accommodating standard of universal ambition in mind, it's high time we take a look at this slippery term, "perfect." Personal tastes color ideals across the board; food, art, humor, politics, family values, and more are all subject to individuals' whims and life experiences. Yet we are engaging in mass communication when we present—albeit a slightly targeted version. Someone in the room will like modern design; someone will think it's too edgy. Someone would have preferred vegetarian options for lunch; someone is searching for the burgers. With so many variables at work, it's a wonder that anyone reaches a level of appeal beyond the immediate family, and even then . . . well, that's a different book entirely.

This is the reason I'm excited about the iPad: One day, perhaps everyone will tote one of these personal entertainment devices around, allowing us to deliver messages based on user-specific information with pinpoint accuracy. However, until then, we have to carry on with lots and lots of assumptions, some of which will ...