So Where Do You Begin? Use the right tool the right way. At a certain point, the number of words on a slide pre- vents it from being a visual aid. You've been there. The audience is reading the slides instead of paying atten- tion to the presenter, the presenter is reading the slides instead of connecting with the audience, and the whole endeavor would have been better served through a well-composed document or even an email. Unfortunately, the negative habits that lead to this kind of presentation style are deeply rooted and difficult to change. But consider this: audiences will either listen to what a presenter is saying or read the slides themselves. They won't do both. Why? People tend to focus on one stream of verbal communication at a time--listening and reading are conflicting activities. On the other hand, it's natural for people to simultane- ously pay attention to both verbal and visual communi- cation. That's why great slides serve as a visual aid that reinforces the speaker's message. However, the heavy use of text occasionally might be appropriate, but in such a case, you should be careful what medium you use. Too often, presentation software is used to create documents. Garr Reynolds, author of Presentation Zen, calls these slideuments. So before your next presentation, assess how you've used the applica- tion. Did you create a document or a presentation? Either adjust your documents into slides or trust that your audi- ence is smart enough to read and circulate your slides as a document. "Communication is about getting others to adopt your point of view, to help them understand why you're excited (or sad, or optimistic, or whatever else you are).