Many presenters cram their slides with detailed information – not so much for the presentation, but for the “what if” factor. “What if” the audience wants more information? “What if” a detailed question comes up? “What if” they need to access that information later?
For some bizarre reason, this detailed information worms its way into your slide presentation, becoming a “slideument” – a combination of slides with supporting documentation. (Note: Big thanks to Garr Reynolds of Presentation Zen fame for coining this new word).
While it is easy enough to print the “handout” option on PowerPoint, I don’t recommend you print the slides out verbatim as your handout or takeaway. Keep the two objectives distinctly separate:
-Your handout or takeaway should contain all the detailed information enquiring minds want to know.
-Your slideshow, on the other hand, is the visual representation for your presentation.
They can come from the same file, but you will “hide” different pages depending on whether you are printing your handout or displaying your presentation.
