Make Your Material Memorable

The job of an executive is to focus on the bigger picture of an organization. They deal in vision and strategy, not implementation and execution. That’s why your presentation needs to focus on the what and why, not the how.

Pre-wiring is a form of doing your homework, and serves as few purposes:

• You can surface concerns and defuse objections, making negotiation easier.
• You can gain valuable insight about what executives already know and potential gaps in knowledge so you can tailor your c...

You may fall into the trap of believing a longer presentation equates to greater value. In other words, you may assume that the more data and justification you present, the stronger your case will be. This isn’t true. Executives value brevity. It signals your mastery over a subject.

It’s crucial to prepare in advance of meeting with executives, but there is also such a thing as over-preparation. Often, clients rehearse their talk word-for-word. This backfires when your time slot is cut short or an executive throws an unexpected question your way, like in the scenario describ...

“B.L.U.F.” is an acronym that comes from the military and stands for “bottom line up front.”

Instead of making the mistake of leading with context, you instead get to the point quickly. You begin

your presentation with the most important information first – whether t...

Executives are notorious for interrupting. They will have questions, and they won’t wait until the formal Q&A time to ask them.

One strategy is structuring your presentation like an accordion. In other words, design it so that you can expand or shorten it as needed.