Presentation Skills Self-Test

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Presentation Skills: Self-Assessment

Rate yourself on the following items. Use a scale of 0-2:

0 = no problem 1 = moderate problem 2 = severe or constant problem

PREPARATION ISSUES

Preparation takes too long___
Material scattered, poorly organized___
Material often too complex, high-level___
Material often too detailed for audience___
Material often incomplete - important points missing___
Material heavy, dry; no relief for audience___
Boring visuals___
Unclear visuals (hard to read/understand)___
Too many visuals___
Need more imaginative approaches to encourage interaction with the audience___
Not enough examples or other evidence to persuade listeners___
Bad notes (small, disorganized, etc.)___
Trouble handling high-level audience ___
Trouble with hostile audiences___
Trouble with nontechnical audiences___
Trouble with operating-level audience___
Trouble with mixed audiences___

DELIVERY ISSUES

Losing point___
Dependent on notes___
Not much audience contact: tend to stay far away___
Not enough eye contact___
Trouble moving around the room___
Finding audience interaction hard___
Speaking too softly___
Rushing uncontrollably___
Hesitation signals: "uhm," "and…," etc.___
Tending toward monotone___
Articulation not always clear___
Too serious or negative - no smile___
Nervous at start___
Nervous throughout___
Easily thrown off by interruptions___
Unsure what to do with hands___
Fiddling with hands, pointer, etc.___

HANDLING QUESTIONS

Uncomfortable handling any questions___
Trouble answering concisely___
Trouble answering hostile questions___
Trouble handling complex or multiple questions___

Evaluation:

For any item rated 2 (severe problem), you'll benefit from individual or group training. To begin working on your presentation issues by yourself, check the free articles available on our web site!

Training options related to presentation skills

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