Bullets are for the NRA: Great Presentations in PowerPoint*

What You’ll Learn

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Have you ever been riddled with PowerPoint bullets? How many SmartArt graphics have you been subjected to in the past week?

Everyone knows what boring PowerPoint slides look like, since 99% of all slides are boring. I'm sick of it, and if you're sick of it too, this class is for you! In my course, you'll learn:

Why Presentation Slides Matter
How to Design Great, Memorable Presentations
PowerPoint Tips and Tricks

This class is for anyone that has to or wants to work in PowerPoint, and anyone involved with presentation preparation, design, and delivery. Some familiarity with PowerPoint is helpful for the workshop but not required. The class will follow a three-part format with Q&A throughout.

Lecture: Effective Presentation Design
Workshop: Interactive Lessons
Demos: PowerPoint Tips and Tricks

We'll learn from presentation greats including Jobs, Kawasaki, and Godin, (don't know who these people are? You will!) and discuss visual elements including white space, charts, and photos. In the interactive portion of the course, students will rebuild "problem slides" and we'll have some fun with AutoShapes. At the end of the course, you'll have a new appreciation for PowerPoint and the art of great presentation. I will also provide a take home "cheat sheet" for PowerPoint design.

Students will need to bring a laptop with PowerPoint pre-installed. I will primarily be using PowerPoint 2011 for Mac, but any recent version for either platform (2003, 2007, 2010 for PC, 2008 for Mac) will be fine. Keynote users are welcome, though the workshop will focus on PowerPoint usage.

If you do not have PowerPoint, free trial versions for Mac and PC are available online.

Beginner Level

About Your Teacher See Full Bio

Adam Sigel · Clear and concise

I work with PowerPoint every day for a global consulting firm, helping people and companies communicate critical events to investors, employees, media members, and policymakers. I know how to marry good content with design and delivery that changes people's minds. I have 3 versions of PowerPoint installed on my computer, and I have Keynote on my phone, iPad, and laptop. No sane person would do this unless they cared desparately about presentation design. I've built and seen enough bullet-flled "leave behinds" to last a lifetime, and I want to show people why "deck" doesn't have to be a four-letter word. I'm all about effective communication, and I want to help you tell your story so you can win business, gain customers, attract capital, solicit sponsors, bring awareness, and generate buzz.

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