I’ve delivered three different talks to three different groups on three different topics in the last two weeks. As I was preparing I came across several blog posts on how Donald Miller, or Tim Ferriss prepare for a speech.  It was fascinating (and helpful) to see other people’s methods, so I thought I’d write up what I do too.

First, a word about my audience. I’m typically speaking to an audience of 20 – 50 business leaders.  Small enough that I can hold a highly interactive discussion, which most business leaders enjoy.  If I was talking to 5000 people or even 500 people I would change a few things, but here’s what I do for this audience.

I speak from an outline, never from a word-for-word narrative. My talks can take many side roads depending on where the audience interaction is taking me, so it’s important that I don’t depend on a memorized script. I typically have an idea of what I want to say before I start writing and I try to work those main points down into three to four major points.  In working toward those key points I try to think about what questions the audience might be asking. So for example in my compensation talk I advocate setting your salary target in the mid-point of the market range for your position. Inevitably the question in the audience’s head is, “How do I get great talent if I’m paying at the mid-point?” so my next point will need to address that issue.

I’m typically delivering a business know-how kind of talk, where I am delivering some practical and useful information. As a result it’s important that I am taking a stand, that I have a point of view. It makes the talk more interesting if my point of view is different or at odds with the commonly held view in the room.  In the talk on “Managing People You Can’t See” we pointed out that most people work from home because they feel that they get more done, but when our team members work from home we assume they aren’t being productive. On the flip side when people are at work in the office we assume they are working, but the average office worker wastes 1.7 hours per day! This shook up the assumptions of the crowd. These kind of arresting discussions help the audience to realize they might not actually know it all, and creates more engagement in the discussion.

So as I work my way through the material I want to present, I try to arrange it so that I start with an idea or exercise that opens up a pretty wide gap for my audience, then each point I deliver should help to close some of that gap, but also create new questions that I can continue to answer in the next point.  This process keeps the audience focused, and if done right they will provide the transitions for me to move from one point to the next by asking the question that I am prepared to answer.

Once I have the outline I will talk it through out loud just as I would before the audience to try to get an idea of how long each section is taking me.  I don’t write things out on my flip chart while I rehearse (more on that later) but I also know that I will tend to talk faster during the real thing so it kind of balances out.  As I talk through it I find places where the idea looked good on the page, but doesn’t sound good out loud, or places where I need to add an illustration or handout.  I’ll make those edits to my outline and then talk it through again.  I repeat this until I’m comfortable with the words and the length of the material.

Lastly, I never use any kind of presentation software. That’s right, no PowerPoint. I usually just use a flip chart to record questions and ideas that the audience might give me or to draw a chart to illustrate my point. In part this is about the size of my audience, if I was speaking to an auditorium the flip chart is less practical.  But the flip chart leaves me free to really customize my presentation to the audience for I’m speaking to, it creates a more intimate experience with the audience and showcases my expertise (which is the whole reason I’m there).  It means that if I’m running out of time and I skip a point or two, no one knows but me. If I need to show a complex visual I can draw it on the chart during a break before I start, but by and large I’m just using the flip chart to record the audiences thoughts and questions, and to outline the key points of my talk.

This is my process, I would be interested to hear yours…

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Brad Farris is a small business advisor with Anchor Advisors, Ltd. in Chicago, Il. Since 2001 Anchor Advisors has been helping creative professional firms to grow, by helping them clarify their purpose, get the most from their people, keep their eye on key performance measures, and implement consistent processes. Brad is also the author of The Business Owner’s Champion: 6 Practices to Build your Nerve and your Business.