Part XII

PART XII: Practice

Chapter 23: Practice Like You Play

Practice should simulate the competition. Don’t simply run through the slides while sitting around a table. Practice:

• standing;
• using the clicker;
• looking at the judges;
• speaking at competition volume;
• using the actual deck;
• timing the presentation;
• answering questions;
• recovering from mistakes.

Practice 1: The One-Minute Story

Give your team one minute to explain:

• the situation;
• the problem;
• the recommendation;
• the impact.

If you cannot explain the solution in one minute, you may not understand it well enough.

Practice 2: The Slide Headline Test

Remove the body content from every slide. Leave only the slide titles. Read them in sequence. Do they tell a story? If not, the deck needs to be restructured.

Practice 3: The Three-Second Test

Show each slide for three seconds. Ask: What did you see? Compare the answer with the intended message.

Practice 4: The Blind Audience Test

Present to someone who has not read the case. Afterward ask:

• What was the problem?
• What was our recommendation?
• Why did we recommend it?
• What was the most important evidence?
• What was the expected impact?
• What was our biggest risk?

If they are unable to respond, you have identified a communication issue.

Practice 5: The Hostile Judge

Have someone challenge:

• your assumptions;
• your numbers;
• your recommendation;
• your alternatives;
• your implementation.

The goal isn’t to “win” the argument. The goal is to remain calm, clear, and credible.

Practice 6: The Recovery Drill

Intentionally interrupt the presentation. Have the speaker:

• lose their place;
• restart a slide;
• skip a slide;
• receive a difficult question;
• have another speaker make an error.

Then recover. You are training a skill that matters enormously in competition: What do I do when things don’t go according to plan?