Answer Key
Presenting – Comprehension Check
- What are OFF-THE-CUFF laughs? [spontaneous jokes]
off the cuff – with little or no preparation - Which of the options best completes this sentence? “Carry a backup of your presentation on a USB flash drive or email yourself a copy,...” [or better yet, do both.]
Carry a backup of your presentation on a USB flash drive or email yourself a copy, or better yet, do both. - What does a standard presentation make the audience do? [sleep]
The presentation is starting. Dim the lights. Time for a nap. - What does it mean when your RATINGS SOAR? [they are on the rise]
to soar – rise or aspire to a higher or more exalted level - How do business presenters often alienate their audience? [by using complicated terms and acronyms]
It might be tempting to throw in a few big words but are you alienating your audience? - Which of the options best completes this sentence? “If you are using a microphone, make sure it works. The same...” [goes for the projector.]
If you are using a microphone, make sure it works. The same goes for the projector. - The text suggests a way to increase the audience's ability to remember the information by 189%. Which of the options is the way? [removing irrelevant words and pictures]
"When you remove interesting but irrelevant words and pictures from a screen, you can increase the audience's ability to remember the information by 189% and the ability to apply the information by 109%," recommends Atkinson. - What is a KNOCKOUT business presentation? [a successful one]
knockout - a person or thing overwhelmingly attractive, appealing, or successful - There is a grammar mistake in this sentence: “Not only you will lose your audience, but you will be hard pressed to adapt to unexpected events that may throw you off your mental script.” Which of the options has the mistake? [Not only you will lose your audience]
Not only will you lose your audience, but you will be hard pressed to adapt to unexpected events that may throw you off your mental script. - What is a factoid? [unimportant fact]
factoid – an insignificant or trivial fact