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The Non-Designer's Presentation Book
These days, it's not just corporate marketing directors tasked with giving computer-based presentations—anyone forced to stand in front of a crowd and talk for more than three minutes had better know how to put together a slide presentation. You're not a professional designer, but you want your slides to look professional. What do you do?
Enter Robin Williams, the beloved, best-selling non-designer's designer (with over 850,000 copies of The Non-Designer's Design Book in print!) who has taught an entire generation the basics of design and typography. In The Non-Designer's Presentation Book, Robin expands upon the design principles introduced in her award-winning Non-Designer's series. She explains four fundamental principles of good design as applied to digital presentations, and adds four more principles specific to clear communication with slides.
Whether you work with a Mac or PC, PowerPoint or Keynote, let Robin guide you, in her signature, light-hearted style, through the entire process of creating a presentation—from using the right software to organizing your ideas to designing effective, beautiful slides that won't put your audience to sleep.
In this essential guide to presentation design, you'll learn:
• What makes a good presentation or a bad one
• How to plan, organize, and outline your presentation
• Four principles of designing effective presentations
• Four principles for designing beautiful slides that communicate clearly
• An exhaustive list of timeless presentation rules ... that you should totally ignore
Enter Robin Williams, the beloved, best-selling non-designer's designer (with over 850,000 copies of The Non-Designer's Design Book in print!) who has taught an entire generation the basics of design and typography. In The Non-Designer's Presentation Book, Robin expands upon the design principles introduced in her award-winning Non-Designer's series. She explains four fundamental principles of good design as applied to digital presentations, and adds four more principles specific to clear communication with slides.
Whether you work with a Mac or PC, PowerPoint or Keynote, let Robin guide you, in her signature, light-hearted style, through the entire process of creating a presentation—from using the right software to organizing your ideas to designing effective, beautiful slides that won't put your audience to sleep.
In this essential guide to presentation design, you'll learn:
• What makes a good presentation or a bad one
• How to plan, organize, and outline your presentation
• Four principles of designing effective presentations
• Four principles for designing beautiful slides that communicate clearly
• An exhaustive list of timeless presentation rules ... that you should totally ignore
158 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2011
20 people are currently reading
284 people want to read
About the author
Robin P. Williams
87 books81 followersRobin P. Williams is an American writer of computer-related books. She is particularly known for her manuals of style The Mac is Not a Typewriter and The Non-Designer's Design Book, as well as numerous manuals for various Mac OS operating systems and applications, including The Little Mac Book. Williams has also spent years studying William Shakespeare, and in 2006 issued her book Sweet Swan of Avon: Did a Woman Write Shakespeare? in which she proposed the writer Mary Sidney as a candidate in the Shakespearean authorship question.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
September 22, 2010
What will you learn from this book? Crap and more crap. I mean that in a good way, though. Mnemonics are useful things – but what is really odd about this book is that she doesn’t draw any attention to it at all. She has organised her principles of good design into two groups of four – for the content Clarity, Relevance, Animation and Plot, and for the slides, Contrast, Repetition, Alignment and Proximity. In the only other of her books I’ve read, The Non-Designer’s Design Book (wonderful stuff), she focuses on the second CRAP and then on the importance of typefaces. This book is even better than her other one. This should be made almost compulsory reading for anyone thinking of forcing an audience to endure yet another PowerPoint presentation.
Actually, if I can be remembered for anything perhaps I wouldn’t mind being remembered for the first use of PowerPoint as a verb. As in the sentence: “Am I feeling tired? No, much worse, I feel utterly PowerPointed.” The definition would be, ‘The loss of the will to live’, or perhaps, ‘The single most obvious proof that Bill Gates is a sadist’.
The best advice in this book – and this is a book of exceptionally useful advice – is that it is important to learn how to see and to learn how to see you need to learn how to put into words what you are seeing. Why is it that you are putting that piece of clip art in the corner of your slide? Is it because it is enhancing the meaning you are seeking to convey? Is it because you were told every slide needs a picture? If you can’t say why anything is on the slide then you have work to do. Clutter is the enemy, but so are visual non-sequiturs. Do you really want your audience to wonder what the connection between birth control and smiling frogs could possibly be? As she repeatedly points out, people only have a certain amount of brain space and you probably don’t want to send them off on what may prove to be more interesting tangents than anything you are saying in your presentation.
Another piece of useful advice is that if you don’t put too many words on a slide you can’t spend all of your time reading the slide, you will have to ‘talk about the slide’ rather than ‘read the slide’. Slide reading is a particularly terrible thing – something that makes your audience wonder if drowning is too good for you. (Note: I’ve heard it said that once your lungs fill drowning is actually quite a peaceful death – people who read their PowerPoint slides do not deserve a peaceful death, rather if there was a righteous God they would earn a slow and agonising one. And, one in which just when they thought it is over and they were ready to accept the gaping abyss, yet another series of agonies would start).
You might notice that Animation is the A in the first CRAP. You would be quite justified in having a shiver of horror speed down your spine at this point. PowerPoint comes with these terrible ‘features’ that have words slowly swirling onto the screen in an unreadable blur. Her advice is to not use this unless it actually helps to make what you are saying clear. Given that this is RARELY ever the case, you should RARELY if EVER use this nonsense. If you want to see how bad these can be check out some of the presentations here http://www.worldofteaching.com/index..... Particularly on in Sociology in the English Language category called ‘Core Democratic Values’, what were you thinking??? I particularly love the bizarre sound that comes with the very strange transitions and the images of military saluting throughout is quite special. Is Patriotism really a core democratic value?
Which is the other point about PowerPoint – it can’t make you smart and has lots of funky features to allow you to look even more thick than you really are. Part of me would like to say – use them with abandon, it pays to advertise – but I probably shouldn’t.
This really is a good book and one that certainly will open your eyes. The examples are so clear – particularly where she shows you what looks like a perfectly reasonable slide and then applies her principles and makes it look a million times clearer. She is the art teacher I wish I’d had – you don’t know what you can’t see until someone shows you and if that isn’t the definition of a teacher I don’t know what is.
Actually, if I can be remembered for anything perhaps I wouldn’t mind being remembered for the first use of PowerPoint as a verb. As in the sentence: “Am I feeling tired? No, much worse, I feel utterly PowerPointed.” The definition would be, ‘The loss of the will to live’, or perhaps, ‘The single most obvious proof that Bill Gates is a sadist’.
The best advice in this book – and this is a book of exceptionally useful advice – is that it is important to learn how to see and to learn how to see you need to learn how to put into words what you are seeing. Why is it that you are putting that piece of clip art in the corner of your slide? Is it because it is enhancing the meaning you are seeking to convey? Is it because you were told every slide needs a picture? If you can’t say why anything is on the slide then you have work to do. Clutter is the enemy, but so are visual non-sequiturs. Do you really want your audience to wonder what the connection between birth control and smiling frogs could possibly be? As she repeatedly points out, people only have a certain amount of brain space and you probably don’t want to send them off on what may prove to be more interesting tangents than anything you are saying in your presentation.
Another piece of useful advice is that if you don’t put too many words on a slide you can’t spend all of your time reading the slide, you will have to ‘talk about the slide’ rather than ‘read the slide’. Slide reading is a particularly terrible thing – something that makes your audience wonder if drowning is too good for you. (Note: I’ve heard it said that once your lungs fill drowning is actually quite a peaceful death – people who read their PowerPoint slides do not deserve a peaceful death, rather if there was a righteous God they would earn a slow and agonising one. And, one in which just when they thought it is over and they were ready to accept the gaping abyss, yet another series of agonies would start).
You might notice that Animation is the A in the first CRAP. You would be quite justified in having a shiver of horror speed down your spine at this point. PowerPoint comes with these terrible ‘features’ that have words slowly swirling onto the screen in an unreadable blur. Her advice is to not use this unless it actually helps to make what you are saying clear. Given that this is RARELY ever the case, you should RARELY if EVER use this nonsense. If you want to see how bad these can be check out some of the presentations here http://www.worldofteaching.com/index..... Particularly on in Sociology in the English Language category called ‘Core Democratic Values’, what were you thinking??? I particularly love the bizarre sound that comes with the very strange transitions and the images of military saluting throughout is quite special. Is Patriotism really a core democratic value?
Which is the other point about PowerPoint – it can’t make you smart and has lots of funky features to allow you to look even more thick than you really are. Part of me would like to say – use them with abandon, it pays to advertise – but I probably shouldn’t.
This really is a good book and one that certainly will open your eyes. The examples are so clear – particularly where she shows you what looks like a perfectly reasonable slide and then applies her principles and makes it look a million times clearer. She is the art teacher I wish I’d had – you don’t know what you can’t see until someone shows you and if that isn’t the definition of a teacher I don’t know what is.
December 22, 2023
A good set of guidelines, but pretty standard for anyone who’s done their share of executive deck building. Also, leans more towards Ted Talk style (big image with 2-3 words) versus a business deck for a data/ fact hungry CFO. Regardless, Ipicked up a few different ideas that I can immediately attempt.
Ultimately, awareness of these ideas and the aversion to breaking them should be an oath made by any business professional.
Ultimately, awareness of these ideas and the aversion to breaking them should be an oath made by any business professional.
March 17, 2021
Got this book to go through as a team at work, where we're taking each chapter and then presenting to each other on the specific subjects. It was actually a pretty great experience, and certainly transformative.
The book is broken down into 2 main parts: Optimizing content (which contains clarity, relevance, animation and plot) and Designing the slides (Contrasting, repetition, alignment, and proximity). Each of these sections dives into key points relevant to the topic. The entire section of designing slides, I thought, was the most influential for me, and I now leverage nearly all the skills I learned. So, if anyone wants a nice breakdown on quick ways to step up your presentation game, I'd recommend focusing on those chapters. Also, I was very impressed with how interactive and how the author leveraged step by step transformations to model exactly the concepts she was teaching.
Book rating criteria; to help objectify my ratings.
1. Will I read it again?
No, but will reference it.
2. Would I recommend this to others?
Yes, this is a pretty quick and insightful book on improving presentations, so super valuable.
3. Am I smarter, better or wiser as a result of this book?
Yes.
4. Was I entertained while reading this/it kept my attention?
Yes, was a very easy read.
5. This book was just the right length?
Yes.
The book is broken down into 2 main parts: Optimizing content (which contains clarity, relevance, animation and plot) and Designing the slides (Contrasting, repetition, alignment, and proximity). Each of these sections dives into key points relevant to the topic. The entire section of designing slides, I thought, was the most influential for me, and I now leverage nearly all the skills I learned. So, if anyone wants a nice breakdown on quick ways to step up your presentation game, I'd recommend focusing on those chapters. Also, I was very impressed with how interactive and how the author leveraged step by step transformations to model exactly the concepts she was teaching.
Book rating criteria; to help objectify my ratings.
1. Will I read it again?
No, but will reference it.
2. Would I recommend this to others?
Yes, this is a pretty quick and insightful book on improving presentations, so super valuable.
3. Am I smarter, better or wiser as a result of this book?
Yes.
4. Was I entertained while reading this/it kept my attention?
Yes, was a very easy read.
5. This book was just the right length?
Yes.
July 21, 2021
Excellent, good for any one that makes a presentation with visual materials or designs a business card or advertisment.
Basic principals that you will follow!
I recommend this short well written and documented book.
Basic principals that you will follow!
I recommend this short well written and documented book.
November 5, 2022
4.5 starzzz
May 11, 2017
If you are new to giving professional presentations or just looking for a good refresh, this is a good, basic starting point. Robin Williams (no, not that Robin Williams) gives very good pointers on how to organize your material into a visual presentation that will enhance, not take over, your message.
Note: this book just covers putting together your visual presentation once you have the material you want to present. You should supplement this book with ones on effective presentation styles and what to include to get the desired responses.
Note: this book just covers putting together your visual presentation once you have the material you want to present. You should supplement this book with ones on effective presentation styles and what to include to get the desired responses.
June 6, 2011
This book is awesome, straightforward, and clear. No more excuses for suck-ass Powerpoints. While the example may not be as superlative as you may dream about, I found that their clarity and directness more than compensate for glitz and glamour. Buy this now!
June 22, 2012
This was the fastest textbook I've ever had, gotta love a book full of visuals when that is your learning style. It is for LIBS602. It had some good tips in it, and makes me wish I had an apple computer even more than I already do.
December 24, 2015
Nothing I haven't seen before in other books or on other websites, but the information is presented nicely and organized well.
I probably wouldn't have gone out of my way to read or buy this book if it weren't for class, though.
I probably wouldn't have gone out of my way to read or buy this book if it weren't for class, though.
January 24, 2010
Very interesting primer book, easy to ready, clear and makes you feel like a ... Designer!
July 4, 2010
Ideal for presenters--parallels with some of Tufte's ideas. Lots of graphical examples clearly juxtapose the beautiful and the ugly.
December 21, 2010
An excellent and practical guide for creating powerful multimedia presentations. This particular book also contains some nice "how to's" for both Keynote and Powerpoint.
November 21, 2012
Short book with lots of good tips illustrated by lots of examples.
January 14, 2015
Great source of information for my college class based on library presentations.
October 28, 2015
Quick and easy read on the basics of design. My take-aways were 2 forms of CRAP. Took some notes.
I found I am using a lot of these concepts already.
I found I am using a lot of these concepts already.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews