One of the most common mistakes people make when using a screen to project their presentations is speaking to the screen instead of the audience. It’s a habit that can cause your words to stray and turn a good presentation into a dud. But it’s also something you can easily avoid. A simple mnemonic will help:
TTT, or touch, turn, talk
You spend a lot of time going over your presentations and making them perfect. In fact, most of the time, you know the content of each slide without even looking at it. And you’ll probably also have the slides in front of you on your computer as you speak. If you think about it, you hardly ever need to look at the screen during a presentation.
The screen is a visual aid to your audience. The only time you you need to interact with it is when you want to point to something on a slide. So, every time you put up a new slide, read aloud or elaborate on the title and content while maintaining eye contact with your audience. If you want to reference something on the slide, remember to use the TTT rule: Tap the part of the slide you want to talk about (or point to with your laser pointer); fold back towards your audience; and so Talk on the part of the slide that you referenced.
With a well-designed presentation and TTT, your message will be heard loud and clear.