Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery

Subtitled, "Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery," the author of this exceptional book is a writer, designer and musician who lives and works in Japan. Drawing upon zen principles throughout the book, each of the three key chapters (Preparation, Design and Delivery) is full of practical insights and examples of the primary principles for enhancing the reader's ability to make their points powerfully and concisely. Multiple topics close with an "In Sum" page that repeats the key principles of that portion of the book. Beautifully illustrated with scores of examples of both good and bad presentation slides (the book is not really about PowerPoint or Keynote, but the entire presentation process), Reynolds and his contributors provide excellent, practical insights on the entire process.

Some key takeaways from the book include:
-Seek to realize the maximum effort with the minimum means.
-Never start your design on a computer. Presentation software is not designed for the brainstorming necessary. Consider using Post-its on a wall or a storyboard.
-There are three documents in a presentation - the slides you show, the notes you use and the handouts you provide after the presentation.
-Avoid "slideuments" - Documents that are masquerading as PowerPoint slides.
-Be sure your presentation answers the two main questions: 1. What is your point? 2. Why does it matter?
-Practice the six Main Principles in your presentation - Simplicity, Unexpectedness, Concreteness, Credibility, Emotions and Stories (the acronym is SUCCESs).
-Regarding design (there are scores of examples in the book), remember the Big Four: Contrast, Repetition, Alignment and Proximity.

An incredibly useful (not to mention aesthetically striking) book for anyone who seeks to enhance their presentation skills.

To quote Seth Godin (one of the contributors and no slacker in this area himself!), "Please don't buy this book! Once people start making better presentations, mine won't look so good. (But if you really want to learn what works and how to do it right, Garr is the man to learn from.)"

This book is a must have for anyone wanting to communicate to an audience. The book is written in a logical sequence and like it's central premise uses images freely to make each major point in the book ... well visual. Anyone that has ever been to a good presentation innately can see why they enjoyed the presentation. And the corollary is equally true, just spoken words and bullet points do not stick and leave the audience bored and tuned out. The most lasting lesson in the book is that "creativity comes from constraints" - less is more. I would also recommend that you get the paperback version as opposed to the Kindle version as the latter does not show all the images and they are by definition black and white. If you are a presenter on a regular basis make sure your briefcase contains this presentation "bible".

This book is my current top recommendation with regards to how to improve your slideshow presentations.

The book is full of useful advice, and also full of many visual examples.

This should be required reading for anybody who uses Powerpoint or Keynote.

I have bougth that book with a lot of expectations and at the end was a bit disapointed. I had started studying the subject with a first cheaper purchase on the website powerpoint-presentation-[...]. That revealed to be actually enough. The book Presentation Zen did not bring me much more. I think that the book could have been shorter, and some ideas were sometimes too obvious.. (like keep the light on)

If you give presentations for work...
1. buy this book
2. learn & live it
3. make an difference in your company
4. ask your boss for a raise

Yes, it's that good.