Creating a Cohesive Narrative in Presentations

Many amazing presenters fall into the trap of believing their data will speak for itself. But it never does… Our brains aren't spreadsheets, they're story processors. You may understand the importance of your data, but don't assume others do too. The truth is, data alone doesn't persuade…but the impact it has on your audience's lives does. Your job is to tell that story in your presentation. Here are a few steps to help transform your data into a story: 1. Formulate your Data Point of View. Your "DataPOV" is the big idea that all your data supports. It's not a finding; it's a clear recommendation based on what the data is telling you. Instead of "Our turnover rate increased 15% this quarter," your DataPOV might be "We need to invest $200K in management training because exit interviews show poor leadership is causing $1.2M in turnover costs." This becomes the north star for every slide, chart, and talking point. 2. Turn your DataPOV into a narrative arc. Build a complete story structure that moves from "what is" to "what could be." Open with current reality (supported by your data), build tension by showing what's at stake if nothing changes, then resolve with your recommended action. Every data point should advance this narrative, not just exist as isolated information. 3. Know your audience's decision-making role. Tailor your story based on whether your audience is a decision-maker, influencer, or implementer. Executives want clear implications and next steps. Match your storytelling pattern to their role and what you need from them. 4. Humanize your data. Behind every data point is a person with hopes, challenges, and aspirations. Instead of saying "60% of users requested this feature," share how specific individuals are struggling without it. The difference between being heard and being remembered comes down to this simple shift from stats to stories. Next time you're preparing to present data, ask yourself: "Is this just a data dump, or am I guiding my audience toward a new way of thinking?" #DataStorytelling #LeadershipCommunication #CommunicationSkills

Some executives inspire action. Others get ignored. Why? Because facts fade. Stories stick. After a 1-minute pitch, Stanford research found: ⟶ 5% recalled a statistic ⟶ 63% remembered the stories Here’s how storytelling can reshape your career: Too often, leaders default to data dumps: ⟶ Dense board decks ⟶ Endless bullet points in team updates ⟶ Info overload in all-hands meetings The result? Information is shared—impact is lost. After a career in corporate communications, I know firsthand how storytelling makes the message stick. Here are four ways to bring your messages to life with narrative: 🟡 Board Meetings ⟶ Don’t just share quarterly results—frame them as a journey: What challenge did you overcome? What shifted? ⟶ When outlining strategy, position it as the next chapter in a larger story. People engage with progress they can visualize. 🟡 Team Communications ⟶ Go beyond status updates—share moments of resilience, creativity, or lessons learned. ⟶ Instead of reciting company values, illustrate them with real team examples that people remember. 🟡 Customer Presentations ⟶ Open with a real customer journey: their pain point, your partnership, and the change they experienced. ⟶ Before/after stories make transformation tangible—more than any stat ever could. 🟡 Change Management ⟶ Paint a picture of the future state so people see themselves in it—not just the steps to get there. ⟶ Share your own experience navigating change to build empathy and trust. ↓ ↓ Want to start? 1/ Look for the human impact inside your metrics 2/ Use a simple structure: beginning, conflict, resolution 3/ Practice with small stories—in meetings, Slack, or 1:1s 4/ Always end with a clear shift or takeaway Facts inform, but stories move people. Try adding one story to your next presentation using these ideas—then watch what changes. P.S. Have you used any of these approaches already? I’d love to hear what worked. ♻ Repost to help your network lead with more story. (Research: Jennifer Aaker, Stanford GSB)

Everyone loves a good story. You should be using your data to tell one every chance you get. The importance of narrative in scientific communication cannot be understated. And that includes communication in traditionally technical environments! One thing that gets beaten into you in graduate school is that a scientific presentation is a technical affair. Communicating science is fact based, it's black and white, here's the data, this is the conclusion, do you have any questions? Actually, I do. Did you think about what story your data could tell before you put your slides together? I know this is a somewhat provocative question because a lot of scientists overlook the importance of telling a story when they present results. But if you want to keep your audience engaged and interested in what you have to say, you should think about your narrative! This is true for a presentation at 'The Mountain Lake Lodge Meeting on Post-Initiation Activities of RNA Polymerases,' the 'ACMG Annual Clinical Genetics Meeting,' or to a class of 16 year old AP Biology Students. The narrative doesn't need to be the same for all of those audiences, BUT IT SHOULD EXIST! There is nothing more frustrating to me than seeing someone give a presentation filled with killer data only to watch them blow it by putting the entire audience to sleep with an arcane technical overview of the scientific method. Please. Tell. A. Story. With. Your. Data. Here's how: 1. Plot - the series of events that drive the story forward to its resolution. What sets the scene, the hypothesis or initial observation? How can the data be arranged to create a beginning, middle, and end? 2. Theme - Good vs Evil, Human vs Virus, Day in the life of a microbe? Have fun with this (even just as a thought experiment) because it makes a big difference. 3. Character development - the team, the protein, gene, or model system 4. Conflict - What were the blockers and obstacles? Needed a new technique? Refuting a previous finding? 5. Climax - the height of the struggle. Use your data to build to a climax. How did one question lead to another and how were any problems overcome? 6. Resolution - What's the final overall conclusion and how was the conflict that was setup in the beginning resolved by what you found? By taking the time to work through what story you can tell, you can engage your entire audience and they'll actually remember what you had to say!

Here’s how I build PowerPoint presentations: After years of coaching from some great communicators and my own trial-and-error, I’ve distilled my favorite principles into this simple approach. 1) Verbal Drafting This gets the process started. ↳ Start talking about the topic however you're comfortable ↳ Speak while driving or walking. Thought dump into Word. Capture it in a voice-to-text note ↳ Let it flow, stream-of-consciousness The point is to get ideas flowing. Writing and editing are separate processes. You’ll edit later. Get the thoughts out there. 2) Write a 10-Sentence Narrative Create the Horizontal Logic of your presentation. It ensures you’re telling a complete story. ↳ Group your verbal drafts into themes ↳ Distill those groups into 8-10 total sentences ↳ Read those 8-10 sentences. These key ideas should communicate your narrative clearly and completely. If not, try again. Forget precision, this is about stringing together key ideas to construct a coherent narrative. 3) Create a Detailed Outline The outline provides the Vertical Logic of your presentation. Vertical logic supports each key idea from the previous step. ↳ Make your 8-10 key ideas from the previous step into bullet points ↳ Make sub-bullets summarizing supporting facts, ideas, and data ↳ Check for missing data/support and gather what you need At this point, your presentation has horizontal logic (clear narrative) and vertical logic (internal support). Now you can open PowerPoint. 4) Make a Wireframe Open PowerPoint - it’s time to start building your slides. ↳ Create one blank page for each of your 8-10 key ideas. ↳ Write each slide’s key idea in a takeaway box at the bottom of each page. ↳ Add a title page, agenda, executive summary, and closing slide (usually next steps or a thank you). ↳ Using simple shapes, block out space on each slide and write a 5 second explanation of what you want to build there. ↳ Ensure each slide’s planned content completes the vertical logic, supporting the takeaway Don’t start with pre-built slides because you'll shape your narrative to fit the slide's layout. Exception: it's a recurring, standardized slide. 5) Build the Presentation Visuals first. Words only when necessary. We want the audience listening to your voice, not reading your words. ↳ Be as visual as possible while keeping vertical logic ↳ Build in this order: pictures, diagrams, charts, words ↳ Ensure each slide, contains a fully-supported, compelling key idea ↳ Delete every non-essential word. If it can be removed without altering meaning, delete —- That’s the process: 1) Verbal drafting 2) 10-sentence narrative 3) Detailed outline 4) Wireframe 5) Build the Presentation What does your presentation process look like? #presenting #leadership #PowerPoint #presentations

Imagine you've performed an in-depth analysis and uncovered an incredible insight. You’re now excited to share your findings with an influential group of stakeholders. You’ve been meticulous, eliminating biases, double-checking your logic, and ensuring your conclusions are sound. But even with all this diligence, there’s one common pitfall that could diminish the impact of your insights: information overload. In our excitement, we sometimes flood stakeholders with excessive details, dense reports, cluttered dashboards, and long presentations filled with too much information. The result is confusion, disengagement, and inaction. Insights are not our children, we don’t have to love them equally. To truly drive action, we must isolate and emphasize the insights that matter most—those that directly address the problem statement and have the highest impact. Here’s how to present insights effectively to ensure clarity, engagement, and action: ✅ Start with the Problem – Frame your insights around the problem statement. If stakeholders don’t see the relevance, they won’t care about the data. ✅ Prioritize Key Insights – Not all insights are created equal. Share only the most impactful findings that directly influence decision-making. ✅ Tell a Story, Not Just Show Data– Structure your presentation as a narrative: What was the challenge? What did the data reveal? What should be done next? A well-crafted story is more memorable than a raw data dump. ✅ Use Clean, Intuitive Visuals – Data-heavy slides and cluttered dashboards overwhelm stakeholders. Use simple, insightful charts that highlight key takeaways at a glance. ✅ Make Your Recommendations Clear– Insights without action are meaningless. End with specific, actionable recommendations to guide decision-making. ✅ Encourage Dialogue, Not Just Presentation – Effective communication is a two-way street. Invite questions and discussions to ensure buy-in from stakeholders. ✅ Less is More– Sometimes, one well-presented insight can be more powerful than ten slides of analysis. Keep it concise, impactful, and decision-focused. Before presenting, ask yourself: Am I providing clarity or creating confusion? The best insights don’t just inform—they inspire action. What strategies do you use to make your insights more actionable? Let’s discuss! P.S: I've shared a dashboard I reviewed recently, and thought it was overloaded and not actionably created

Steve Jobs said: “The most powerful person in the world is the storyteller.” I come back to Jobs’ 2007 iPhone launch again and again. In it, he uses a narrative throughline to tie the entire presentation together. I've pulled my favorite examples into this video so you can see what I mean. Here’s the framework Jobs used (that you can too): *** 1. Make a promise A tantalizing statement to draw the audience in. This is his 'hook.' A few guidelines: • Short • Punchy • 'Big if true' Jobs promises “a revolutionary product that changes everything.” Now you, as the audience, know what his intention is. This is important. He gives himself and Apple a big goal to chase after. It's falsifiable -- it either happens, or it doesn't. *** 2. Create the buildup Set the context by using comparisons on the scale you hope to achieve. Jobs compares what he’s revealing to the Macintosh 1 and the iPod. Two products that, as he reminds you, changed entire industries. *** 3. Introduce conflict Conflict is simply tension between where you are and where you want to be. Here, Jobs uses the smart phone to introduce that tension: “The problem with smartphones is they’re not so smart.” He implies, "There's gotta be a better option..." *** 4. Raise the stakes Bring on the drama. Jobs says, “Apple is going to reinvent the phone.” Now we read that and it sounds obvious. But think about how bold that claim was in 2007 before anyone had heard the word “iPhone.” Blackberry dominated and, well, Apple made music players. *** 5. Demonstrate it Show your audience why your product – your story – is important. Jobs does a great job injecting humor here. *** 6. Bring back the problem When you watch Jobs, he never raises the stakes just once. Instead, he drills home how frustrating the current state is over and over. It’s painful — and that’s why your product is needed. *** 7. Wrap it up Position your product as a the savior, the painkiller. In 30 seconds, Jobs lists 13 features of the iPhone that traditional phones don’t have. Include your Call to Action — what you want people to do. Then end your story. *** You’ll notice it’s similar to the classic “Hero’s journey.” He didn’t reinvent the wheel. Instead, he mastered it. Tldr 1. Make a promise 2. Create the buildup 3. Introduce conflict 4. Raise the stakes 5. Demonstrate it 6. Bring back the problem 7. Wrap it up

You know a board presentation is going well about 30 seconds in. You either have the room, or you don’t. I’ve prepared dozens over the years – as a consultant, agency lead, and client-side executive. It requires a different muscle than delivering a pitch. Yes, there’s a story to tell – but the best board meetings are linear, concise, rooted in metrics and business impact. You’re not trying to get them to like you. You’re helping them believe in the path forward. Think about the role of a Board: To govern, not micromanage. They want clarity, not complexity. A recommendation, not a list of options. Confidence in the thinking, the execution, and the team. Here’s my mindset as I prepare, if it helps: // Start with the end in mind. Before touching a slide, I ask: what do I want the board to feel, understand, and approve? If I can’t answer that in a sentence or two, I’m not ready to build anything. I’ve always liked McKinsey’s SCR framework to organize my thinking (this is a good explanation https://lnkd.in/gnJDKD8D). Rarely do I explicitly break the presentation into S, C, and R sections, but I use it to organize my thoughts at the outset. // Don’t tell the whole story. Tell the right story. The instinct is to show everything you’ve done. Don’t. This isn’t a status update, it’s a focused narrative that drives decision-making. Boards want signal, not noise. // Pressure-test the logic. I run the story by someone not close to the work. If they can’t follow it or spot gaps, I revise. Board members won’t always ask for clarification. If your logic breaks down mid-flow, so does their confidence. // Anticipate the hard questions. There’s always a tension point – budget, risk, timing, feasibility. Don’t wait to be asked. Address it directly. Boards respect transparency and preparation. Evasion erodes trust. // Common traps to avoid: Trying to impress instead of inform. Giving choices instead of making a call. Mistaking slide volume for value (that old rule about keeping decks under 20 slides? Mostly a myth. I've seen five-slide decks that were airtight and 50-sliders that lost the room by page four. What matters is the clarity of thought and control of the narrative). What other advice do you have? Always looking to be sharper.