We are all different. Some of us are very detail oriented giving 100% to whatever we do, and some are more big picture (80:20) people. However, it doesn’t really matter what kind of person you are, presentation in consulting is everything. A cake looks 100 times more delicious if it looks amazing. A person looks more competent, if she is dressed well. The contents of a slide looks more accurate, if the slide looks good.
With PowerPoint slides, the saying always goes: everyone criticizes what they can. This means that the easiest thing to b*** about is if the slides look messy, the boxes are not aligned, and/or there is a typo. It makes most people feel superior and good about themselves to point out things that are not correct or look sloppy.
Especially at the beginning, you will make a better impression if your slides don’t look like a hot mess. Before sending the “first draft” to your manager, be sure to check off every item on the checklist I’ve included. The “first draft” is usually code for sending a finished version of your document over. Don’t send over half-baked things, you will simply have to explain too much. Finish it as much as you can and then have her add the finishing touches.
