CHAPTER 7: INTERACTION AND THE ADULT ATTENTION SPAN
The adult attention span is short. Very short. Especially among young people.
In the old days, a boring presentation led audience members to twitch, doodle, do crossword puzzles, and whisper among themselves. These days, of course, the distraction of choice is texting, tweeting, Web surfing, and other online addictions, and that’s even when the presentation is fascinating. Plan your presentations with this reality in mind.
Some people claim that the average adult attention span is 20 minutes and therefore you’d better say everything important in the first 20 minutes. Others maintain that it’s 10 minutes. Do a Web search for adult attention span and you’ll find claims that vary from mere seconds ...
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