wealwaya.info

Microsoft does not know a heckuva lot about presentation design, but one thing they do correctly in PowerPoint is to make available different types of graphs so that you can match the graph type to the point you’re trying to make with your data. There are twelve different graph types available with PowerPoint 2000, but few of those styles work well in the low-resolution world of computer-based presentations. With few exceptions, here is how you want to use the following types:

o Pie Graphs for Share

o Bar Graphs for Comparative Amounts

o Line Graphs for Trends, Time

Pie Graphs

Pie graphs (commonly misnomered pie charts) are one of the more overused, and hence misused, types of graphs, primarily because they are so easy to make, and easy to make look good. They are misused when chosen to show amounts rather than share. The beauty of pie graphs is that they show so clearly what they are supposed to show, i.e., how much of the whole each element contributes. In most cases the actual amounts – in this case percentages – are actually secondary to the area of the slices in terms of telling the story.

When you look at a pie graph with five or fewer slices, your brain can quickly ascertain which groups dominate. We often see pie graphs with more than 5 elements, but they then become more difficult to comprehend in short order. In most cases, consider whether your story needs to include details about all the players, or whether a group of insignificant contributors can be grouped as “others”.

If you want to show how much volume each element contributes, rather than what fraction, you’ll want to use a bar graph.

Bar Graphs

To show relative sizes of different segments as well as the actual amounts, you’ll want to use a bar graph. Bar graphs are designed to show volumes against a y-axis that clearly delineates the units of measure. By having a series of bars next to each other, we can see how each element compares with the others as well as what absolute volume the element represents.

There are variations on the bar graph, such as a stacked bar, where different elements are stacked on top of each other to form a series, or a 100% bar graph, where all the bars are the same height but are split to show what percent of the whole the volume reflects. In a presentation environment, esoteric options are best to be avoided.

Line Graphs

Line graphs have the unique advantage of speaking to inherent right-brain prejudices about information. That is, when typically conditioned western minds see a graph with no labeling, they automatically assign “volume” to the y-axis, with “up” meaning “more”, and a time-line to the x-axis, with the left side meaning most recent. Just as we read from left-to-right, rightward motion subconsciously means positive motion.

You would want to use a line graph, then, to show a progression in amount from one point in time to another. The elevation of the line at any one point represents the quantity of the tracked data at that moment. Audiences, wanting to be the first-to-know, will automatically make assumptions about the types of values x-axes and y-axes represent. Don’t disappoint them.

Data labels

Graphs are a great way of making complex information easily understood. But graphs work best only when you properly integrate words, numbers and images. Whenever possible, label the elements of your graph directly on the elements themselves, rather than relying on the ever-popular clarity killer, the legend. Legends require too much effort on the part of listeners to discern exactly what each data point is. Just be certain your labels don’t clutter up the otherwise clear “picture” a good graph can make.

If you have a number of graphs in your presentation, you’ll want to avoid dumping a data overload on your audience by over-labeling each one. In fact, in many cases you can tell your story forcibly enough by only the size of your data elements, without burdening their minds with numbers that they’re likely to forget by the end of the presentation. However, it’s also not a bad idea to have what we call “reference slides” that do contain all the data attached to the end of your main slide deck. To really impress your crowd, install hyperlinks to these slides from the ones in your main show, and when some vice-president makes a stink about wanting to know the whole story, zap to your total-info slide and give him what he wants. He probably won’t ask again.

Consumer debt negotiation can help you to pay off ones debts and thus lead a debt free lifestyle. If you happen to be irregular in meeting your installments and have skipped three or even more of them, it is time you begin considering negotiating your debt. Consumer debt negotiation is a great solution available to you if your debt account was offered to a collection organization.

With consumer debt negotiation, your outstanding balance is lessened by as much as 40% to 60%. It is possible to select debt settlement in situations where you have nagging debts to settle.

Should you appoint the services of a consumer debt negotiation company, they work on your behalf and discuss with the credit companies in order to reduce the outstanding amount. The agency analyses your financial condition to find out if consumer debt negotiation is the right option for you. A budget is worked out so that you can easily curtail other costs and keep some cash or to make larger payments towards your debt.

A trust account is created into which the cash is paid as opposed to having it paid to the lenders. When there is adequate money to begin talks with the creditors, negotiations begin. Once the credit companies decide to lower your settlement amount, you start making payments to them. A trust account ordinarily doesn’t gain any interest, nevertheless you continually receive detailed statements, indicating any financial activities that have taken place, in the trust account.

Your credit rating is an essential indication of your monetary health too. Should you have a favorable credit record, it increases your likelihood of getting new credit later. Not only this, you also stand a much better possibility of obtaining various monetary privileges a number of the creditors will offer. The rate of interest being one of them.

Since you stop making payment to the lenders for some time, and make payments to the trust account, your credit worthiness gets hurt for a short period. The score drops the moment your credit companies do not receive any payments from you. Consumer debt negotiation restricts this from being permanent. Even so, once your payments become regular again, your credit worthiness begins improving.

If you are looking for professional help, the company you hire determines to a large extent, how fruitfully you complete the debt settlement program. Before hiring their services, it is advised to assess their credibility. Try examening previous records of the consumer debt negotiation agency. Donate settle for a firm that asks for fees before they in effect do anything for you.

Consumer debt negotiation is definitely an enormous benefit to you. This will help you to lead a free life. As soon as you enroll for a consumer debt negotiation service, the number of collection calls made by collectors is cut down tremendously. You are eligible to pay much less than what you owe, you get to become regular with your debt repayments, and finally you’ll be able to lead a debt free lifestyle.

Your presentation reveals a lot about you. It shows your ability to plan, communicate, and think. Here’s how to make a good impression the next time that you speak.

1) When planning a presentation, identify and write the goal for your presentation. Then study it to make sure that this represents what is expected of you. If needed, survey others by asking if this meets their needs for your presentation.

2) Plan your presentation so that it supports your goal. Make sure every point moves the audience toward accepting your goal and discard all unrelated information. Unrelated information, however interesting, distracts the audience and wastes time.

3) Think through your presentation from the audience’s viewpoint. Consider what they know, understand, and expect. Similarly, consider what they need to know. Then plan a presentation that delivers this.

4) If possible, talk with key members of your audience to determine what they expect, know, and need from your presentation. These conversations will help you win support for your ideas, gain valuable insights, and practice parts of your talk.

5) Test your presentation with members of your audience, associates, or coworkers. Then pay attention to their reactions to your main points. If they’re different from what you wanted, make adjustments to increase the effectiveness of your presentation.

6) Rehearse your presentation everywhere, anywhere, and with anyone. Rehearse. Rehearse. Rehearse. An unprepared presentation always appears unprepared. And that upsets the audience because they know their time is being wasted.

7) Rehearse your presentation with a clock. This makes sure your presentation fits into the time allotted. People dislike presentations that exceed the time limit. It also ruins the schedule for the event where you are speaking.

When preparing slides, overheads, or other exhibits, show only one key idea on each. Too much information confuses and upsets people.

9) Make sure that the information on the exhibit can be seen by everyone in the room. An exhibit is useless if no one can read it. And you can’t rescue a useless slide by announcing, “I know that you can’t read this.” If the information is critical, then distribute copies as part of your notes.

10) When planning slides, test each slide by asking yourself, “Why am I showing this?” Make sure that each slide supports your talk. Otherwise, leave it out.