Putting Some Personality Into Your Presentations

As part of my day-to-day, non-CMEpalooza professional responsibilities, I spend a lot of time working on presentations that will be delivered by other people. This isn’t always easy. Sometimes, I don’t even know the clinician for whom I am creating or editing content beyond a few emails back and forth. I usually try my best to put myself in their shoes (“How would I try to convey this concept?”), while knowing full well that they are going to put their own spin on things. I am always fascinated when I’m working on a series of live programs and have the chance to see different people take the exact same presentation deck and deliver a completely differently-focused activity.

By now, I like to think I’m pretty good at composing material for other people (at least no one complains), but this wasn’t always the case. I remember one time in my late 20s when I had to write a draft of a speech for our association president to deliver at the annual conference, and I inserted way, way too much of my own snark into the speech. I don’t think there were too many ‘80s pop culture references, but there may well have been. Needless to say, my draft was pretty much gutted as it went up the internal food chain, and my days as a speech writer were over. It was pretty humbling.

But as with everything else, you learn as you grow professionally. These days, I have figured out how to remove my personality (mostly) from content that I will not be personally delivering by making things more straightforward and to the point. It doesn’t always make for the most exciting material, but it allows faculty the leeway they need to craft their own story.

Every once in a while, though, it’s good to be able to put my own personality into content that I am going to personally deliver. Derek and I usually stick to behind-the-scenes roles, but we’re stepping out from behind the webcam in two weeks at the annual Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions conference in New Orleans to give a presentation we’ve entitled “10 Years of CMEpalooza: Lessons for the CME Community.” Basically, we’re cramming a decade of educational tidbits into 60 minutes. There will be haikus, there will be trivia, there will be snarky asides, and there will be lots and lots of ‘80s references. Basically, everything that CMEpalooza is known for jam packed into an hour. Things will probably go off the rails fairly quickly and I’ll start throwing things at Derek, but it’ll all be in good fun. The best thing is that this session is buried so far into the afternoon agenda that we can all just go to the bar when we’re done and laugh it off (note from Derek: I suggest we cut out the intermediate step and all just meet at the bar).

Speaking of innovative presentations, did you hear that we’re accepting abstracts for CMEpalooza Spring taking place on Wednesday, April 24? You know that Derek is dying for a musical adaptation of the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Education, but I personally wouldn’t suggest going that route unless, you know, you want to likely embarrass yourself in front of hundreds of your colleagues. But hey, maybe you have a little Judy Garland in you and want to go for it. Be my guest (note from Derek: ignore Mr. Grumpy Pants. A musical adaptation of the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Education would be amazing and would impress all of your colleagues.)

I do hope that, musical or not, you give some thought to having a little fun in finding a way to share your professional expertise. That’s the joy of public presentations – it gives you a chance to show the world a little bit of your personality while also passing along something of educational value. It’s a delicate balance that maybe takes a time or two to get right, but here at CMEpalooza, we love to be guinea pigs for new concepts. Just use your imagination. And if you have an idea that you think is absolutely, completely impossible to pull off, run it by us. Maybe we can help you figure out how to cook a soufflé while talking about Moore’s outcomes levels. We’ve done stranger things.