Bull's Eye Model: Five Star Habits

This article explains the five five-star habits that comprise part of my Bull's Eye Model for effective presentations. (Click here to get an overview of the whole model. Click here to learn more about the three core elements.)

Everyone who comes to one of my Bull's Eye Business Presentations workshops gets a double-sided, wallet-sized card that explains the Bull's Eye Model.

It's a super-useful guideline, and mental reminder of everything there is to know about making a great speech or presentation.

The card is simple, visual and concise; it looks like the images on the right (click here to see a bigger version).

The three core elements of the Bull's Eye Model are:

1. Audience
2. Content
3. Delivery

Five-Star Habits

Stephen Covey has the Seven Habits of Highly Effecive People. I have the five five-star hapits of highly effective speakers. To make it easier for people to recall the five-star habits, I've framed them in a way that makes them more memorable. I've also created an icon for each one, because visual cues help people remember information more readily. I sometimes run into former participants who have attended one of my workshops in the past, and they often rhyme off the habits to show me they still remember what I taught them!

Briefly, here's what each of the five-star habits means:

Think like a fish: a successful fisherwoman catches lots of fish because she knows what kind of bait each type of fish li·kes, she knows where different species like to swim and how they behave. Being a successful presenter is much the same as being a good fisherwoman - you must choose the bait your audience likes in order to hook them. If you have several different kinds of fish in your audience, you must use different kinds of bait.

Hunt like a lion: The important thing to remember here is how lionesses hunt: they focus totally on their prey. They pick one animal out from the herd and they focus on that one individual - they have a clear objective. The same applies to presentations: you must have a clear goal/objective, and you must say what it is at the start of the presentation, otherwise your audience won't know where you're trying to take them.·

Make a sandwich: this is all about structure. It's a version of the same of old rule everyone knows: 1) Tell them what you're going to tell them, 2) tell them, and 3) tell them what you told them. In other words, have an start, middle, and end. Given this is so basic one wonders why 90% of speakers don't do it. When you do, you will be in the top 10%. Click here to see an awesome real-life example.

Get fit: people who want to be more fit and healthy normally do two things: they 1) diet to lose weight, and 2) exercise to build strength. In the presentation context this means 1) get rid of the fat (delete anything that is not of value), and 2) build strength by including stories and examples. Make a point, tell a story/give an example. Make another point, tell another story/give another example. Easy.

Be an "all star:" this is the delivery package in which the presentation or speech is wrapped. It's the outside ring on the Bull's Eye Target and it comprises passion, enthusiasm and preparation (PEP), body language, voice, visual aids, and most important YOU! One of the most most successful strategies you can use to connect with audiences is really no strategy at all: just speak from your heart and be your authentic self.

Making great presentations isn't rocket science. Not much has changed since the great Greek philosophers and Roman orators made speechifying an art form. The secrets to success aren't really secrets at all. Use the Bull's Eye model as your guide and you will succeed:

1. Think first about what your audience wants to hear, NOT what you want to say. This is by far the most important part of preparation.
2. Have a clear objective.
3. Have a beginning, a middle and an end.
4. Delete fat, tell stories, use examples.
5. Deliver powerfully.

Do you want to learn more about how to put the Bull's Eye model into practice and be an outstanding presenter and speaker? Sign up for a workshop, or contact me for more information.