Giving an Effective Presentation

Introduction Several articles in the statistical literature contain tips on giving an effective statistical presentation. An excellent recent example, by Becker and KellerMcNulty, appears in The American Statistician (1996, pages 112-115). So why did I agree to attempt another essay on this topic, for speakers intending to present at IBC2000? In part, because my experience at recent statistical meetings strongly suggests that most of us could benefit from a reminder of the common pitfalls that can mar a presentation. While I have been lucky to attend some excellent talks at recent meetings, these have not been in the majority. None of the following advice is novel, but I hope that a short review of common presentation mistakes may be helpful. If there is one essential message, it can be summarized in this exhortation to speakers — “always be considerate of your audience”.