Chapter 6 Synopsis

Burmark would like us to interject humor into our presentations. I like the section on neotenty. “It’s all about keeping the childlike whimsy, the joy we had before we entered kindergarten – sustaining it throughout our lives.” (Burmark, 2011) Bringing the unexpected or surprise into presentations helps again keep the audience more engaged with the presenter. Stephen Sultanoff identifies the following 3 components, with, mirth, and laughter. I have personally felt that my audience is typically not one that would want interjections of too much humor. I appreciate Burmark’s comments about how to get content across. “First, you have to your audience’s attention…Second; you need to connect the humor to your content.” (Burmark, 2011) Again, I think my difficulty in my setting would be trying not to disqualify my message by turning my presentation juvenile. Funny images verses jokes would probably allow me to keep a light tone, but continue to get my point across. References Burmark, L. (2011). They snooze, you lose:the educator's guide to successful presentations. San Francisco: Josey-Bass. DOI: www.amazon.com