Storytelling with You: Plan, Create, and Deliver a Stellar Presentation

I've done my share of presentations with almost 40 years in business and more than a dozen teaching in higher ed. I sure wish this book had been published about 20 years ago! It will be valuable for anyone aspiring to take their presentation prowess to the next level. It is organized over twelve chapters that represent a dozen key steps of which only the final two are related to the actual presentation event. I think that's important! The first ten cover topics such as consider your audience (chapter 1), craft the message (chapter 2), set the style & structure (chapter 5), and refine through practice (chapter 9). I love that the process considers key elements of telling the story including words (chapter 6), graphs (chapter 7) and images (chapter 8). I found the questions embedded throughout most chapters encouraged me to step back and ponder the purpose for the presentation and my approach. For example, to understand and assess your audience ask yourself several of the 15 starter questions to explore your audience. I found these starter questions to be just that...starter questions. They nudged me to begin a process of reflection that frequently led to new questions and then new insights and strategies to consider for my presentation. The strategies in this book will help anyone improve their presentation abilities since 80% of a successful presentation actually takes place before standing in front of the audience. Better prep leads to more compelling messages and higher levels of confidence which leads to impactful presentations! A note about the Storytelling with Data (SWD) books. I learned of this author (Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic) when a friend gave me a copy of Storytelling with Data. I was blown away with the simple approach and accessible style. SWD focuses a bit more on data driven presentations, reports and dashboards and delivering that information in insightful and impactful stories. (SWD Let's Practice is essentially a workbook to "practice" storytelling with data!) SWY covers any type of presentation including those that might not be as data intensive. I see these books as very complimentary. Though one doesn't require the other, you'll probably want to add all three to your collection at some point. Storytelling with You will benefit the product manager trying to sell her new product concept. It will also benefit the volunteer delivering a presentation at the local library on his favorite hobby. If you pick up just a half dozen new ideas, this book will have paid for itself! Order two copies since I'm sure you'll want to give one to a friend.

Being able to convey insights in a compelling and actionable way is a critical skill that is too often overlooked. In my field (data analytics), technical skills are sought after with little regard for the communication skills that actually bring a project to fruition. Perhaps this is because technical skills are relatively easy to master — you can attend a course, complete projects, and Google the answer to any problem. There is a clear path to becoming proficient in that skill. With this book, communication skills can be built in the same way. The step-by-step process laid out in this book is an easy-to-follow guide to delivering your message. While the lessons require intentional effort to practice and hone (much like technical skills), the process is repeatable and full of tangible benefits. Each chapter is actionable, with real guidance that you can employ immediately. Cole Nussbaumer Knaflic expertly guides you through the steps to plan, create, and deliver your Big Idea. I feel more prepared to communicate my opinions because of this book, and encourage anyone who is interested in inspiring others to act, to read it as well.

Storytelling with you is a great complement to another book by Cole, storytelling with data. It takes the visualization tips and pairs them with creating the whole story and delivering the presentation. Storytelling with you gives a prescriptive and thoughtful approach to creating and delivering presentations. The techniques offered are easy to understand and applicable to many different types of roles and presentations. This book is great for both the novice and seasoned presenter to develop or refine skills. The book helps the reader learn how to effectively focus their story on the audience and the Big Idea they are trying to get across. A must read for those who create presentations often or feel in a rut of regurgitating content without focused meaning.

Si quieres aprender como escribir una historia, es un excelente libro.

Not only does this book cover the art of delivering an effective presentation (this particular section I will re-read before any speaking engagement) but it starts right at the beginning, helping the reader to think about critical aspects to consider in the planning phase and then the crucial steps to creating the content that supports those ideas. Where previous titles from Cole concentrate mainly on communicating data more effectively, storytelling with you would appeal to anyone, in any industry, looking to sharpen their overall presentation skills.

I have bought Cole's third book, Storytelling with you, and as was the case with Storytelling with data and Storytelling with data: Let's Practice!, this is a must-have for anyone doing data visualization. However, its audience is not limited to DatViz folk: with its focus on preparing and articulating presentations, it is relevant to anyone having to do ANY type of presentation in a work environment. While you can use it to browse specific sections, it really should be taken as a step-by-step guide from ideation to presentation. I view it as having access to all of Cole's experience, summed up in about 330 pages. You will find familiar concepts such as the Big Idea, considerations for storyboarding and building your story arc, tips to prepare your slide deck and how to rehearse for the final event. In 3 words: Get This Book!