Reply to: Off the bench :) , but not going well :(

[Gonzo]

That happened to me. But it could have been from all the drugs i took beforehand to get me through the presentation....

That will be why you talked through a 50 slide presentation in two minutes....

[Stan.goodvibes]

While you may dread doing a presentation, you may also find that you get a euphoric high when you've done it. I know I do. That's why I also do theatre.

That happened to me. But it could have been from all the drugs i took beforehand to get me through the presentation....

[northernrampage]

Refusing to do it or taking a sickie puts not only this contract, but the future permanent role at risk. If the OP wants to stay in the permie role, they really don't have much choice.

I used to do this at my last company. As on some Monday mornings we had to take it in turns to stand-up in front of 60 people and give updates. And I always did it for those awful big corporate team-bonding days.

I suffered quite badly from social anxiety, it was pure torture. However, even though I wasn't sacked for it, as I was permanent, my boss used to roll his eyes at me as he knew why. He thought I was a total child, and in retrospect when I did do it/turn up and do the corporate bonding it was fine.

I finally got over it by realising a lot of people feel the same. Not everyone likes presentations/public speaking. And also, a lot of people aren't that great at 'em. I did also have a few hypnotherapy sessions, however I think as others say it's the actually doing it that helps.

OP, even if you do really badly (which is doubtful), the worst that will happen is that your team-mates will look up from their coffees and think, "hmmm, he could present that a bit better". And that's it. They'll then go back to their coffees/whatever. And the matey ones will say afterwards, "presentations are a pain aren't they?". And they'll forget about it.

If it goes well, half of them will wish they could do it like that. It's just a moment in their working lifes.

[TheFaQQer]

At some point in your life you have to learn to do presentations and they are not all necessarily going to be in a working environment. In this case avoiding the presentation could cost the OP their contract.

So sorry singhr your the one who sounds foolish here.................

Refusing to do it or taking a sickie puts not only this contract, but the future permanent role at risk. If the OP wants to stay in the permie role, they really don't have much choice.

If they take a sickie, then I would expect to find that the meeting has been postponed to the next day when you turn up completely unprepared for it.

[singhr]

At some point in your life you have to learn to do presentations and they are not all necessarily going to be in a working environment. In this case avoiding the presentation could cost the OP their contract.

So sorry singhr your the one who sounds foolish here.................

yeah, whatever big girl

[NotAllThere]

I would recommend doing the presentation in the style of David Brent. You probably won't get asked to do another one.

My deputy on one project did exactly this. The audience was me and a bunch of French middle management. Somehow, I managed to keep a straight face, but I couldn't make eye contact with him. I'd have lost it completely.

The more presentations you do, the more confident you'll get. And the more confident you get, the easier it becomes to present.

[Soled73]

I would recommend doing the presentation in the style of David Brent. You probably won't get asked to do another one.

Not by his manager but he will by his team mates

[SueEllen]

Sorry Mal, you're coming across all pompous here. It's not all about you, it's about the OP situ in which he says he isn't sleeping/eating well 3 weeks away from the presentation, contractors don't have to put up with that crap.

At some point in your life you have to learn to do presentations and they are not all necessarily going to be in a working environment. In this case avoiding the presentation could cost the OP their contract.

So sorry singhr your the one who sounds foolish here.................

[Hex]

I would recommend doing the presentation in the style of David Brent. You probably won't get asked to do another one.

[northernladuk]

Sorry Mal, you're coming across all pompous here. It's not all about you, it's about the OP situ in which he says he isn't sleeping/eating well 3 weeks away from the presentation, contractors don't have to put up with that crap.

Really? and what would you propose he do? Say no to the client? Hand his notice in? Start arguing about the contract terms? That is all going to help the bad feelin he has already stated exists.

[singhr]

You can't refuse to do things you don't like because they aren't specifically mentioned in your job spec. Perhaps a bench-bound coder can but they tend not to be asked to go outside their remit. However, in the OP's case - and mine come to that - imparting information is cetainly in the remit of the role; people are not hiriing in a pair of hands, they're looking to gain something a bit more long term as a result.

Read your contract carefullly. You'll find something in there about knowledge retention and transfer

Also contractor's don't need to take sickies to have a day out. That's permie thinking.

So as I said - 0/10, go away and try again.,

Sorry Mal, you're coming across all pompous here. It's not all about you, it's about the OP situ in which he says he isn't sleeping/eating well 3 weeks away from the presentation, contractors don't have to put up with that crap.

[malvolio]

Agree with all of that, with one caveat. If you're not confident doing presentations, taking questions in flight can put you off your thread. It's better if you can, but safer to ask people to keep them to the end unless they really haven't understood what you just said.

[Platypus]

Some excellent advice so far. Probably the best from NotAllThere, IMO. Doing presentations used to scare the beejesus out of me, but through having to do it, it gets a lot better. Almost easy.

As you're in a contract-to-perm role, I'd say it's very important that you do do the presentation, your future at this company may depend on it. Don't bottle it. That will look terrible for you.

Don't be afraid to ask your manager for guidance, explain that you're a not very experienced presenter, and ask him for an outline agenda. And time allotted. Remember the old "2 (3?) minutes per slide" guideline.

I often open up by saying I'd like the session to be interactive. Ask questions as we go. That way, with audience participation, the time goes much more quickly. You get to drill in to the detail as you go which is always more comfortable for techies. And it distracts attention from you and your presentation.

Although there may be many problems at the place, don't be too negative. Nobody likes a whiner or doom-monger. Try to focus on the positive, don't present a list of why everything's irredeemably broken. Perhaps some "problem statement" slides then some "approach" detail after each one.

I think there's a reasonable chance your manager may like to be used as a "mentor" beforehand - makes him feel good. And ensures that you're "on message".

Final thought - NEVER give out handouts beforehand. The audience just switch off and read ahead. It kills all interactivity, or makes people ask questions out of sequence, e.g. when you're on slide 3, someone says "but on slide 11 you say ...." which is hugely disconcerting. You need to bring the audience along with you, like telling a story, at your pace.

Just my random thoughts, hope some of it helps.

[malvolio]

Come off it Mal, there's worse advice given around here. Which bit didn't you like?

You can't refuse to do things you don't like because they aren't specifically mentioned in your job spec. Perhaps a bench-bound coder can but they tend not to be asked to go outside their remit. However, in the OP's case - and mine come to that - imparting information is cetainly in the remit of the role; people are not hiriing in a pair of hands, they're looking to gain something a bit more long term as a result.

Read your contract carefullly. You'll find something in there about knowledge retention and transfer

Also contractor's don't need to take sickies to have a day out. That's permie thinking.

So as I said - 0/10, go away and try again.,

[singhr]

At best this is plain unprofessional and bad advice but more likely just trolling.

Why bother?

pot-kettle-black