Keep in mind the limits of short term memory when creating presentations

When I’m reviewing presentations I always advise presenters to decide the three most important things that they want their audience to take away with them. Then they should work backwards to create a presentation that will help their audience remember at least one of those three things.

Years ago I remember learning about the psychologist George Miller quantifying short term memory in the paper The magic number seven, plus or minus two.  He arrived at this number by testing subjects in a lab; I believe if he tested them with a PowerPoint presentation at a meeting the magic number would have been three, plus or minus two.

Author: Mentorphile

Mentor, coach, and advisor to entrepreneurs, small businesses, and non-profit organizations. General manager with significant experience in both for-profit and non-profit organizations. Focus on media and information. On founding team of four venture-backed companies. Currently Chairman of Popsleuth, Inc., maker of the Endorfyn app for keeping fans updated on new stuff from their favorite artists. View all posts by Mentorphile