Presenting with spontaneous creativity!

I do not have a great memory!  I believe it to be quite large ...as you'd expect at my age! But my filing system and search facility or should that be faculty, are barely average on a good day. Unless of course we happen to be talking about acronyms! Then I just can't forget as these two favourites from way back on the CV illustrate:
Work Study Analysis (c1966):- 1:Select 2:Record 3:Examine 4:Develop 5:Install 6:Maintain.
...Rarely used now but unforgetable thanks to S.R.E.D.I.M.  
Kraft Foods Promo-Display Criteria (c1976):- Position + Impact + Message + Price + Ease of self-selection + Stock availabilty + Stability.    
...Of by-gone interest but forever inscribed through P.I.M.P.E.S.S.  
I don't know why my brain finds acronyms so powerful but I know it likes them and responds very well to them! I think it may have something to do with my left-brain right-brain balance?

 Which in my case suggests a leaning towards things of the left-side such as lists and logic, but also a "rightish" passion for imagination and day-dreaming. Something often mentioned in school reports.
This manifests itself in a particular way when I try to write a presentation or a training programme. Try as I might I cannot anticipate and write the content in full and final detail. Not a problem uniquely mine by any means ...a great proportion of people I work with face the same difficulty. When circumstances demand that I write a script in this manner I can guarantee that on delivery day I'll think of something a lot better to say. So the end result is that the script becomes a constraint.  That apart, there are often occasions when an informal talk is the order of the day and working from a script just isn't right. But if you're like me you'll still need a flight plan to fly by or there's no knowing where you'll end up or when!!
Is this sounding familiar? If it is and you're like me then try out this scriptwriting strategy:

1. Write your script out in the usual way. Sorry you're not getting away with it! Choose your style, set your objectives,  map out the key topics, and write the words. But don't worry about perfect grammar and spelling. This is just for you to read.
2. Read your script several times to yourself to hear the messages and their meaning and to get the timing right.
3. Identify KEYWORD(S) that relevantly describes each key message throughout the presentation.
4. Create an acronym from the Keywords.  Play around with them if you need to, to get acronym-friendly keywords.
5. Finally for reassurance and the visual confidence that this gives, list the Keywords with first letter in bold on a pocket-size card. Visualize the acronym on the card in your pocket.

So why do I think this works for me? I believe that my brain needs to lean on the orderliness of its left hemisphere to then allow itself confident free-rein into the creative right-side. Something that Tony Buzan discusses in his The Power of Creative Intelligence. 
So give this method a try and don't be surprised if it's the best presentation you ever made.


for more on persuasive communication visit http://persuadability.co.uk/