Have you ever walked out on a movie that you absolutely loved? I've
done it a couple of times. It might have been to take care of a sick
kid or for some other dire and pressing need. But in general, people
don't walk out on a movie that they absolutely love.

The same is true for our presentations. If people get up and leave
during your presentation, it is not a reflection on their
professionalism but rather a reflection on how compelling your
presentation is. But simply making your presentation louder or
funnier is not going to captivate the audience and make them want to
stay.

I can get up and leave an action movie and not feel like I really
missed something. On the other hand, the movie that really connects
with my heart and my soul is the one that I hate to miss. When you
connect with your audience's heart and soul they'll want to stay with
you the entire time and they'll be asking for more. If you don't
connect, then you are relying entirely on how interesting your
presentation is; and keep in mind with the MTV generation our
presentations have to be very interesting in order not to lose them
in the first 20 minutes.

But even the most thrilling action movie rarely leaves people wanting
more. It's the heart and soul connection that makes people want to
come back and that makes them want to know about you. Without the
connection you are doing nothing more than relating facts and they
can get that same information from a book, or from reading an article
on the Internet.

The purpose of a presentation is to connect with your audience at a
heart and soul level. What do you use to connect with your nurses?

Best wishes,
David W. Woodruff, MSN, RN-BC, CNS, CEN
President, Ed4Nurses, Inc.
www.Ed4Nurses.com