How to Avoid Death by PowerPoint

Understanding the pervasive issue of poorly designed PowerPoints and their negative impact on audiences. We'll explore the cognitive load associated with cluttered slides and the resulting audience disengagement.

“Why do our PowerPoints look the way they look? Or rather, How on earth, can we accept that they look the way they look?”

Focus on delivering a single, clear message per slide to improve audience comprehension. This reduces cognitive load and improves attention.

“Just make it simple for human beings. Have one message per slide. We are extremely limited to understanding more.”

Understanding the limitations of working memory and avoiding redundancy between visual and verbal content. This aligns with cognitive load theory.

“If you have text, sentences on your PowerPoint, and you persist with the annoying idea of speaking at the same time, what will be remembered by the audience is zero.”

Using size effectively to guide the audience's attention. This leverages attentional bias towards larger elements.

“The most important part of your PowerPoint should also be the biggest, nothing else.”

Utilizing contrast to direct audience focus and avoid visual clutter. This enhances cognitive fluency.

“Contrast controls your focus.”

Limiting the number of objects per slide to enhance cognitive processing. This minimizes cognitive overload.

“The magical number is six. It's not five, it's not seven, it's six.”

Apply the five design principles to real-world PowerPoint examples. Includes feedback mechanisms and progress tracking.

Analyze case studies of presentations to identify effective and ineffective use of design principles. This fosters critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Reviewing the key takeaways and completing a short quiz to reinforce learning. Includes feedback and opportunity for review.

Strategies for integrating better PowerPoint design into daily workflow using habit stacking and reminders.