When it comes to drafts and revision, we think about papers, books, speeches–basically anything with words–but we may not think about revising our presentation media.
How many drafts do you make of your slide deck?
When it comes to design, it’s sometimes difficult to embrace the drafting and revision process. If you are anything like me, you probably just start creating one slide at a time until you are done. And then you check it off your list and start working on practicing your presentation. But what if you took time to revise your slides?
Today we want to share the story of Ron Berger with you. He’s an expert teacher (like, he teaches Harvard teachers). And he’s a champion of the drafting process. We believe if you learn Ron’s rules and embrace the revision process, you can take your presentation slide deck to the next level.
Who is Ron Berger?
In his book Think Again, Adam Grant tells the story of Ron Berger. Ron started out as a passionate public-elementary-school teacher who developed a system to help his students grapple with tough problems and embrace confusion. His main goal was to increase their curiosity and stamina in the face of challenges.
The drafting process was critical to his teaching plan, so he would tell the students from the beginning how many “versions” of something they would be doing. He said, “quality means rethinking, reworking, and polishing . . . they need to feel they will be celebrated, not ridiculed, for going back to the drawing board . . . they soon began complaining if I didn’t allow them to do more than one version.”
Here’s an example of how Ron’s students used the drafting process. Check out the 6 drafts his student Austin made of a butterfly.
Here’s the kicker. Austin was just 6 years old when he made these drafts. Because he was open to the feedback of his peers and teacher and because he embraced the revision process, he was able to create something amazing.
Ron’s Rules for Feedback
Ron worked hard to create environments where feedback was well-intentioned and well-received. As you learn to embrace the drafting and revision process, be aware that there is a learning curve to both offering and accepting feedback. It can feel uncomfortable at first to have others critique your work, or to view your projects as “in process” rather than immediately complete. Either way, these tips for offering and accepting feedback can help you.
1. Be specific and kind.
If you are offering feedback, don’t generalize. Generalizations like “I like it” or “I don’t like it” or “it’s good” don’t help at all. Instead, explain what it is specifically that works or doesn’t work. Cover which elements in the design stand out and why. One of my favorite prompts Ron offers starts with “have you considered…?”
If you are the one receiving the feedback, be grateful. Having someone offer time and attention to examine your work is valuable, even if it feels strange at first. After thanking the person for their feedback, don’t be afraid to ask questions to solicit more specific comments from them. Seek out the information you need to make things better.
2. Critique the work, not the person.
If you are offering feedback, focus your comments on the work. Move away from anything that feels personal or highlights a characteristic of the designer. For example, you might say, “this slide seems unfinished” instead of “did you run out of time or energy for this slide?”
If you are accepting feedback, be careful not to take things personally. Remember that this is about making your work better, not about diminishing who you are.
3. Remember opinions are subjective.
If you are offering feedback, remember that your opinion is just that, your opinion. Don’t overstate your thoughts as if they are fact. And try to avoid any kind of hierarchy, meaning, don’t start to think of ideas as worse or better, right or wrong. The point is to offer many ideas and work together to use those ideas to make the end product the best that it can be.
If you are accepting feedback, remember that in most cases, you don’t have to change things just because someone has a different idea. However, you should remain open to seeing things from another’s perspective. The more open and curious you remain, the more you’ll be able to improve your slide design.
Embracing the Revision & Drafting Process
Again, it takes some time to learn to revise your presentation media. So start slowly. The next time you create a slide deck, work to resist a “one and done” mentality. Leave time in your schedule to create multiple drafts of every slide deck you do. And ideally, leave enough time in between drafts to let your thoughts and emotions about your earlier drafts marinate and settle.
Also, save each draft of your design separately. You might find as you begin to revise that you want to reincorporate pieces from earlier drafts. Finally, take some time to compare your first drafts to your final drafts. See how far your design has come and reflect on what you learned in the process.
We can all learn a lot about staying curious, creating draft versions, embracing feedback, and learning through revision from Ron Berger. And from Austin. If he created an amazing butterfly sketch in just a few drafts, imagine what you can do with your next slide deck.
Looking for help with your presentation design? We may not have Ron Berger on our team, but we do have some incredible presentation experts who know how to create amazing slide design. Get in touch with one of them now.
