Have you ever cheated on a test? If you've answered no, then you must have been the most honorable student ever. The rest of what I have to say may be of no use to you. But if your answer was yes, don’t worry. Anything you say will not be held against you in the court of law. All jokes aside, anyone who has ever cheated on a test can probably admit to one thing: You probably did it because you feared that you couldn't remember something important. I know, I know, it was such a long time ago. You were young, and you didn't know any better. You crammed a ton of words onto your hand, a small torn off sheet of paper, or on your wooden desk and thought that it would make things easier. What was the ending result? Did it make you more nervous? Did you pass with flying colors? Or did you still fail the test? Think about the primary idea behind what you were trying to do. It all came down to you thinking that you weren't going to remember some information and you needed a subtle reminder in case your mind went blank.

Now let’s fast forward past the concept of cheating and proceed into your use of notes as a speaker. I have never been that fond of using notes when I speak. I feel like it slows me down and it doesn’t allow me to think freely. Plus, most people tend to cram a bunch of words onto their notes, and it makes for a dull presentation. Plus I lost to a person who used their notes in a speech contest years ago.  They were heavily dependent on them, while I didn't use any notes at all. I was left frustrated and confused, along with a multitude of other feelings I don’t care to recall. But I’ve grown, and I understand now that notes aren’t all that bad. It all depends on how you use them.

The most celebrated public speakers have used notes at one point in time during their speeches. When a politician is delivering a speech, the majority of the time they are either reading from a teleprompter or they have note cards that they are referring to on their podium. News anchors are in that same boat. They use teleprompters. The eyes never lie, and usually, they are scanning from left to right while reading the latest news to all viewers. If anyone has ever used a PowerPoint, you've used a form of notes. Even if you are showing a picture without any words, that picture is helping you make a point and is giving you some direction. That’s what notes help do!

As a speaker, index cards are the best starting point for notes. I’ve seen when speakers have had multiple sheets of paper filled with words on the front and back. For the most part, it doesn’t go well. It causes more confusion and is a big distraction for audience members. They fumble between them. They become harder to hold onto the longer you are on stage, and the microphone picks up you flipping from page to page. Most of all, there is less eye contact between the speaker and the audience. With index cards, you can fit as many as 10 to 15 in the palm of your hand (although I don’t suggest having that many index cards). It makes for easier comprehension for you while you are on the stage.

If you choose to use notes, be smart about it. Don’t try to cram your entire speech onto 10 or 15 index cards, because you will embarrass yourself. There won’t be any real connection with your audience because you will be too busy trying not to lose your place. Notes don’t need to be paragraphs or full sentences. They can be quick ideas or keywords. In fact, the fewer words you have, the better. Relying on a ton of words to refer to would be creating an unnecessary burden. Don’t risk lowering your audience’s engagement due to you being too busy reading your notes. Your notes shouldn’t cause you to lose your train of thought nor should you have to recite them word for word. They should be simple to the point where all you need to do is give them a quick glance, and you automatically know what thought you want to convey. 

Make your next presentation, your best presentation!

Sincerely,

Julian A. Leonard
(Founder of The JLeonard Group LLC)

Previous Tip