There’s no straightforward answer as to how to deliver an effective presentation but there is lots of advice and guidance on how to prepare for it. Preparations can be stressful and challenging but you will be rewarded with the confidence and knowledge to deliver a strong presentation. Here are some great ideas:

Decide on your key talking points. When you have the topic for your presentation, the best place to start with the preparation is to decide what key points you want to get across. There’s no point writing a full script until you know what points you want to hammer home. It is vital that you understand the subject matter of the presentation you are delivering. This will make it easier to produce a script for the presentation.

Prepare your script. Everybody has different styles and techniques for writing the script for a presentation. Some prefer to have bullet-points on cue cards to remind them of key features. Others like to write a script and learn it word-for-word. The script for the presentation should consist of an opening (an outline of the key objectives), a main body (where the bulk of the subject matter is presented) and then finishing with a summary (a very brief overview of the information). The script doesn’t have to be a work of literary excellence but it needs to be sufficient enough to get you confidently through your presentation!

Incorporate Visual Aids. Use PowerPoint to provide the audience with visual stimulation and to support the content of your presentation. Why not take a look at another of our blog posts Putting the WOW into PowerPoint Presentations?

Practice. Practice. Practice. Once you have the content and the script prepared for your presentation, now is the time to practice. Ask friends and family to watch your presentation, this will help you to learn the script and also get some feedback from others. It can also be useful to practice in an environment with distractions as this will help you prepare for any unexpected interruptions during your presentation.

Be Confident! The more you have practiced the material, the less nervous you will be. If you have taken the time to learn your script and practice in different environments, then you will feel more relaxed when delivering your presentation. So take a deep breath, take your time and be confident!

In 5 Effective Time Management Tips we offered some techniques to manage your time more effectively. Using these techniques helps you achieve more in a day and significantly improve quality of your life. Let’s find out how.
 
 
 

Reduced Stress

A lot of us experience stress when we feel that we have far too much to do and don’t think we will finish a task on time. One of the main advantages of time management is its ability to reduce stress. By effectively organising your time you would be able to complete your tasks on schedule and have time to relax, thus reducing your level of frustration.
 

Increased Productivity

Managing your time not only allows you to concentrate on important tasks but it also increases your productivity. If you organise your work you would probably be able to complete more tasks within a certain period than you would have dreamt of. Instead of having to rush through all your tasks to try completing them, and perhaps not doing a good job, you can take your time and produce quality results.
 

Improved Satisfaction and Confidence

If you haven’t completed some of your tasks at the end of a day as you had no time, you probably feel guilty. With effective time management you will be able to complete more tasks and produce quality work. As your productivity will increase, you will feel proud of the results you’ve accomplished. Thus in turns will give you a sense of satisfaction and boost your level of confidence.
 
 

I hope you have found this information useful, if you would like to learn more about time management, please feel free to look at our Time Management Articles.

In Putting the ‘Wow’ into PowerPoint Presentations – Part 1. Readability we talked about how to make your presentations more enjoyable to read. And in Putting the ‘Wow’ into PowerPoint Presentations – Part Two. Images we learned how to make presentations more visually appealing. However even a visually great presentation can fail if something with your equipment goes wrong. Here are 3 Tips to ensure your gear passes MOT

Test the Equipment

Before you present your slideshow, ensure all equipment works properly. For example, if you are using a projector, test that it is working with your computer and it is projecting the image the way you want.
 
If you have a large audience you might need to use a microphone and speakers, so confirm that they both work as well.
 
Start your computer to ensure it works and check if it has the program you need to run the presentation on. Open your presentation file to verify it opens without any issues.
 
Navigate Through PowerPoint

PowerPoint is the most likely program to be used when you prepare a presentation. During your presentation, some listeners might want to look back at previous slides. Therefore practice navigating through your presentation by using shortcut keys on the keyboard to easily locate the slide your listeners want. You can also use the projector remote to select a specific slide instead of having to go through the entire presentation.
 
Have a Backup Plan

Think what can go wrong with equipment and have a backup plan.
 
For example, to avoid issues because a computer crashed, make sure that you have a copy of your presentation. Save a copy onto a USB memory card or CD so you can insert it onto another computer and run your presentation from there if required.
 
To avoid issues because the projector failed, have a printed copy of your presentation and use your notes to guide you.
 
Follow these steps and you’ll be prepared to run your presentation smoothly. Next time, we are going to write what else to prepare to deliver effective presentations.

Improving your skills with the right training could unlock your full potential and improve your performance. If you are considering doing a training course, either to increase your skills or knowledge about a subject, choose a course and subject that will benefit you the most. However finding the right course is not an easy task. Here are 3 important steps:

Find Out Your Training Needs
Before you choose a training course, you need to think about what your training needs, aims and learning goals are. The best way to accomplish this is by carrying out a Training Needs Analysis (TNA). This is a process, which identifies your training needs and provides you with information on what training might be appropriate for you.

If your employer does not offer TNA you might enquire if a training provider offers this service. Some training companies can offer you a written Training Need Analysis or verbal via telephone assessment.

Check if You Need Certification

With a learning goal in mind you need to decide whether you need certification in the subject you’ve decided to develop.

Choosing a course where you can receive a certification at the end of it, can be very beneficial to you. Certification can help you by opening the door to more opportunities in your career. It could increase your chances of finding work even in a tough job market, as it provides proof of your skills to potential employers. It can also increase your skills, confidence and knowledge in the subjects that you have chosen.

So before you decide to take a course make sure you know if you need certification.

Decide on a Type of Training

There are a wide range of training methods that are available to choose from, so you might want to think about which method best suits you. The majority of them fall into two category – self-paced training and instructor led training.

Instructor Led Training (ILT) is where an instructor provides live training to a class. To find more information please read on Benefits of Instructor Led Training.

Self-paced training includes Computer-Based Training or more popular Online Training.

ILT gives you advantages of learning in a group and have regular interaction with the trainer. Its disadvantage is in fixed schedule. Self-paced training provides you with greater flexibility to learn at any time. However they require self-discipline and motivation to complete the training and quite often lack of sufficient external help. Therefore if you are a complete beginner in a subject a self-paced training might not be beneficial to you.

Hopefully the above was useful to you. We are going to write more on How to choose the Best Instructor Led Training, so keep reading.

Do you, by the end of every day, feel overwhelmed by the amount of work you had to do? Do you feel disappointed that you haven’t accomplished what you intended to do and instead wasted your time on other tasks or interruptions by your colleagues? If you answered yes, then here are 5 tips for effective management of time.
 
You only have a certain number of hours in the day, so using your time more effectively can help you achieve more in a day and meet your deadlines without stressing yourself out. It does not mean that every minute of your day should be spent working, it is about effectively planning you day to maximise your productivity. So, choose just one of the tips below and try it for 10 working days. If that does not help, pick another one.
 
Work in Your Flow
We all have times during the day where we feel on top of the world and can do anything. And at other times all we want to do is sit down and watch TV. Figuring out what times of the day you feel most energetic about working can be a huge benefit to you. It helps you feel more motivated to do your work, and you could get a lot more done in that short time ‘flow’ compared to the rest of the day. When you’re in the “flow,” you are so absorbed in a task that you lose sense of time, you feel in control and things just get done. So you could allocate that part of the day to your most important task of the day.
 
Prioritise Your Tasks
Prioritising your work can be extremely advantageous to you. By organising your jobs you will find it a lot easier to work out which tasks need completing. Knowing what needs to be done and in which order ensures you spend your time and energy on tasks that are truly important to you.
 
In order to prioritise your tasks first write them down. You don’t need to write down an entire list of everything you need to achieve, maybe just five or six of your main tasks. Once you have done this, take time to analyse which tasks you feel you have to accomplish first. Take a pen and mark them down.
 
Don’t Multitask
Multitasking is myth. If you are trying to work on many tasks at the same time you will not be able to focus on one task. As a result you will produce a mediocre result. Effective time management is not about doing many things in short time it is about doing right things. So try to focus on finishing your tasks one after the other within a reasonable time frame, following your daily to-do list and focusing on your key priorities.
 
Delegate
When you have a lot of work to do on your own you might want to think about delegating a task to someone else, so you can concentrate on more important tasks.
 
First you need to look and identify what task you want to pass on. Make sure you do not simply delegate a task which you find unpleasant, but a task which will free up your time for more important task to complete . Second, you need carefully choose a person to whom you are going to delegate a task and ensure that a person is able to complete the task.
 
Take a Time Management Course
If you struggle with managing time then take a Time Management course. You will learn different tools and techniques to effectively plan and control your workload. These techniques will not only improve your time management at work but also help you in your everyday life, so that you can achieve life-work balance.

Working from home has become more popular in recent years. However, since working from home tends to blur the boundaries between work and personal life it can be a dream come true or a nightmare. Here are the top 7 tips for Effective Working from Home:
 

Have Your Own Work Space

It would be great if you could have a space, preferable a room in your house that you could use for working. You could organise it into a small office: put in a desk, a computer, have a telephone line and some shelves for filing. Thus you will put yourself in ‘work’ mode once you have entered the room.
 

Organise Your Work around Your Natural Schedule

When working at home you may have the luxury of making your own schedule. You might need to take your kids to school or walk the dog, so why don’t you organise your work around those activities? Make sure your boss is aware of the structure of your day in case he needs to contact you.
 

Make a To Do List

When working from home you are more likely to get distracted than when working in the office. If you are having trouble deciding what you need to do, you could lose motivation and end up drifting off your work. Making a to-do list will allow you to plan out what you need to achieve during the day, and the best time to do it. If you know what you what to achieve, it helps you keep focused and makes you feel good as you are making progress towards your objectives.
 

Keep Back Up Copies

It always a good idea to keep a copy of any files you need in case anything happens to your Internet connection and you need your files. When transferring any files it’s advisable that the data is protected, so encrypt it.
 

Keep in Contact with Colleagues

When you work from home you can sometimes feel isolated from your colleagues, therefore keep in contact with them on a regular basis. It will help you to be informed about any changes in the company, or projects you are working on. Make sure you have different technology in place, such as phone, email, instant messaging, so that if one way of communication goes down, you still can be reached.
 

Make Sure That Your Family Know You Are There to Work

There are things around the house that could potentially distract you from your work, such as doing chores or playing with your children. Have a talk with your family to let them know that even though you are at home you are unavailable to play or help at the present time.
 

Take Breaks & Don’t Overwork Yourself

If you follow the tips above, working from home will be a lot more productive, but don’t forget to take breaks every so often, go have a cup of tea or just stretch your legs. This helps you feel more motivated to carry on with the rest of the day, whereas you could give yourself a headache looking at the screen all day.
 

Once you have finished working for the day you can now sit back and relax. But if you cannot stop thinking about a task you need to do, or a new idea you have then the best thing to do is make a note of it and come back tomorrow. Don’t start working again, enjoy being home.
 

Check out our Time Management Articles for more information about managing your time.

When an apprentice first starts a new job it can be a bit uneasy for them, as they have to learn a new job, adjust to an environment and meet people they are unfamiliar with. This could be hard for them as it is probably their first job. By following a few steps the company can help them get settled into the business and improve speed at which they develop to reach their full potential. Here are some tips that the manager could use to build a foundation for a successful, productive career of an apprenticeship:
 
Make the First Day Enjoyable

This is the day where they are taking a new step into their lives, so make their first day enjoyable and celebrate it. Let them know that you are glad they are working for you; this makes them feel welcomed.
 

Introduce them to the Process

Go through any procedures that you have in your business with them. It may include health and safety policies, fire safety procedures and assemble point in case of fire. You can also inform them about the dress code, show the location of the bathroom and the kitchen, discuss terms and conditions of employment and holiday entitlements.
 

Introduce them to the New Job

If you have not sent them their full job description in advance, then you can now give them a copy listing the tasks involved and their responsibilities, so they can become more familiar with them. Also inform them about any training they might need. It is also an opportunity to talk about the employee’s performance targets so they can understand what they need to achieve.
 
If they work in the office give them an overview of your internal filing system. And try not to explain it all at once because that might be a bit overwhelming for them to take in.
 

Introduce Them to Other People in the Company

Any new employee isn’t likely to know anyone else in the company therefore introduce him/her to their new colleagues. But try to introduce them on different days, so they have a chance to remember them better.
 

Be Prepared

Prepare your new employees work area and company account details such as login information or a work email address. It will help them to settle into their new job and make them feel part of the company. You can also provide them with contact details for other employees such as email addresses or phone numbers in case an apprentice needs to contact them.
 

If your company uses equipment or tools that the apprentice hasn’t likely used before, you could put together an information booklet or folder that summarises how to use it. This will help them refer to the booklet, instead of having to ask another member of staff
 

Be Patient with Them

An apprentice will not probably be skillful; therefore you will need to provide a number of training sessions over a few weeks. Be patient as people learn in different ways and at different paces. If they are doing something wrong advise them on how they could improve it, so that they leave training sessions with the skills and knowledge he or she came to acquire.
 

Get Feedback

Check on the apprentice throughout the day and get his/her feedback to see how they are getting on and how they feel about working there. You can use their feedback to improve your induction process overall, which even further will make them feel involved.
 
In Conclusion

With these tips you can make the apprentice integration in your company a lot more enjoyable and less nerve-racking for them. This open, comfortable and constructive type of relationship with your apprentice from day one will pay dividends in the future.

In our previous article: Mr Blair v Mr Branson – Who Do You Trust More? we explained how important trust is when dealing with any aspect of a business deal. Now that you have that client’s trust it is time to turn that client into a customer.

If you have done a good job in attracting new business leads to your company and gaining their trust, the next step to consider is how you intend to turn these leads into happy customers. Happy customers can lead to more customers enquiring about your services from word of mouth. Whatever you do, don’t use the technique displayed by our chicken friend here, it won’t end well.

To be sure your potential customer feels comfortable, you must listen to everything that they are after. Don’t jump too quickly to try and close the deal; you could frighten the customer away. To ensure they have full confidence in you, try following these 5 steps:

1. Engage & discuss any issues that the client considers key openly
2. Listen to what the customer sees as important and crucial for them, this will in turn help you prescribe the right solution to what they are looking for.
3. Frame the real true issue and don’t be afraid to take personal risks to get to the root of sensitive issues but refrain from using language which insinuates blame on the client.
4. Envision how things would be in the future, ensuring to include the situations in which both sides benefit as well as pointing out other possible outcomes & results.
5. Commit to and plan steps to help move the sides forward toward the ultimate goal.

Once these five steps have been achieved, both you and your new customer will be happy and you can start the whole process again with another potential future customer.

Would you like to view previous articles? Then indulge yourself on our Business Articles page.

Would you like to learn more about Business? Then come along to one of our Business Training Courses.

Which would you trust more? Blair (left) or Branson (right)?

Putting your trust into the hands of somebody you don’t know can be a daunting prospect. So how can you gain the trust of your target audience so that they will take advantages of the services you are offering?

Well the answer to this isn’t always straight forward. With the current economic climate, the trust of a business can be almost impossible to get, especially if it involves a large sum of money. Small business can be as hard if not harder to convince. The profession you work in can also turn into a factor against you, forcing you to work even harder to gain this trust.

For example, a survey carried out by Sandler Training, a leader in providing Sales & Management Training tested the public view on how they rate various professions in terms of trust. Perhaps unsurprisingly, well over half of all the people surveyed agreed that Politicians were the most untrustworthy people followed by Sales-people.

This should be worrying for any business since most rely on their sales-people to drum up and acquire new leads for their services. If these sales-people give the impression that they are untrustworthy, then you might as well kiss goodbye to any chance of any company wanting to deal with them.

So readers, who would you rather do business with? A self made billionaire or a controversial ex Prime Minister?

Keep a look-out for our follow-up article in which we will give tips on how you can turn your newly found business leads into valued customers.

Stress can be a major block in a person’s working life and can attribute to poor health if it builds up too much. A recent survey carried out by the Insurance Group AXA shows that in the past 4 years, stress levels in the UK have doubled so there has never been a better time for you to start combating your stress.

National Stress Awareness Day is an annual event organised by the International Stress Management Association which seeks to promote awareness of just how damaging stress can be and to offer help to those affected by highlighting the many coping strategies and help sources available to them.

Stress can be brought on by different factors in the workplace such as tight deadlines, ineffective time management, problems with colleagues, and problems with equipment.

Here are a few tips from the International Stress Management Association UK website, organisers of the National Stress Awareness Day.

Learn to manage your time more effectively:

Learning to prioritise your daily tasks can help reduce stress in a big way. We at Infero can also help you here as we offer Time Management Courses in our wide range of Business & Technical Courses.

Learn to compromise rather than argue:

In most conflicts, there is usually a way in which both sides can achieve a positive outcome. Try to find this compromise rather than arguing and raising your stress levels even more.

Don’t take on too much work & know your limitations:

Taking on more work than you are capable of completing is just asking for trouble. Once you accept to complete something for a colleague, you don’t really want to be letting them down and if you have other tasks to complete at the same time it becomes stressful.

We at Infero would also like to help you overcome your stress barriers and therefore we have a course to help entitled Creating & Maintaining Life Balance. The course will help you learn ways to manage your stress effectively and ways to improve both your physical & mental well-being.

Contact us or give us a call and we’ll be more than happy to answer any questions you may have about our courses and how we can help you.