Information capacity. Bandwidth. Attention span. These are all ways of asking, how much of what I present is actually going to sink in with my audience? And it’s a great question. But it’s a complicated one.
Mirko Di Bernardo says in his 2009 book on neuroplasticity and memory that, “It is estimated that the brain of a mammal is composed of about a hundred billion nerve cells and connections between these cells are many times more numerous.” With all that we’ve got going on in our brains from moment to moment, we may never be able to quantitatively measure the effectiveness of our presentations. But we can better understand the factors in both the audience and in the presentation that keep our information from sinking in.
Audience
- Relevance: One of the major factors affecting whether or not information sinks in is how relevant we perceive it to be. According to a major scientific-based educational resource for teachers, Edutopia, “a solid amount of research links personal relevance and emotional engagement to memory storage.” Neurologist and teacher, Judy Willis “suggests that the brain processes underlying this may involve the reticular activating system, [which] acts like a virtual editor of sensory information, letting in certain things and filtering out others.” So the things that typically make it through the initial filter of our brains are things that matter to us or affect us emotionally. As presenters, we have to continually remind our audience why the information we are presenting matters.
- Internal Noise: I recently attended an online talk. The topic was one of great relevance to me, and I had been looking forward to it for weeks. However, about 4 hours prior to the presentation, I had gone with my husband to an orthopedic surgeon who had given us some sobering news about the condition of my husband’s shoulder. My brain was so busy processing that unexpected news that I barely caught any of the presentation. This points to something we refer to as “internal noise.” We have to assume that our audience members will be preoccupied with other thoughts when they attend our presentations. We only have so much information capacity. In order to overcome this or prioritize your presentation, try using one or more of the following strategies: ask rhetorical questions, facilitate audience interaction, use elements of suspense or surprise, point to relevance of material, and repeat important points.
Presentation
- Balance of Logos & Pathos: One of the quickest ways to bore an audience into tuning out your presentation is to cram it full of logos. Logos is the term for content that is fact-based, whereas pathos is content with emotional appeal. If the audience is only thinking, they aren’t learning. Great presenters couch their content in feeling. Using information with emotional appeal is a great way to overcome information capacity.
- Pace: If a presentation moves too slowly or too quickly, the audience can lose interest. The New York Times reminds us that we can typically understand or listen to up to 400 words per minute, but we generally speak at around 140-180 words per minute. The presentation average falls somewhere around the 173 mark according to research conducted by Virtual Speech. As long as you are around that mark, you should be fine. But also remember that varying your pace during your presentation can help keep your audience interested.
- Delivery: Once you have developed relevant and balanced content, you have to work to deliver it with energy. An unenthusiastic speaker inspires unenthusiastic listening. Passion for a topic is contagious. The greatest sales people and teachers wholeheartedly believe in the benefit of what they are selling or teaching. The same should be true of presenters. Demonstrate your passion with movement, pitch variety, and facial expressions. These forms of non-verbal communication can help to make sure your information sinks in and sticks.
Those 1 billion nerve cells in the brain are busy forming connections every minute of every day. Because of that, information capacity is a bit of a myth. There is always room for your presentation to sink in. But only if you work to engage your audience with a thrilling presentation.
Want more help making sure your information sinks in? Get in touch with us now.
