When everyone's there your guide beams at you all and says, "Listen, folks, this is a great hike. Don't worry about a thing. Ready? Let's go for it!" And she plunges into the foliage.

To enhance your understandability, be a good guide. First, let people know where you're going to be taking them. In other words, tell them what they can expect to hear. Then, break your information up in manageable chunks. Number the chunks and give them simple one or two word headlines. Finally, use the numbers and the headlines repeatedly, like trail markers.

Here's how this might sound:

"Today I'm going to talk about the three elements that make up every successful presentation. First is Credibility. Number two is Understandability, and three is Memorability. Every skill and technique I talk about will relate to one of those three elements. Okay? So let's start with number one. Credibility...

"In print this might seem elementary or even condescending but spoken words are experienced very differently than the written word. Besides, nine times out of ten, you're the presenter because you're the expert. You know more about your subject than most of your listeners. So beginning in an elementary way isn't all bad. It's sure better than plunging into the woods and leaving them all behind.

So, to enhance understandability:

Preview your material with a brief summary—no details yet. Break your material into chunks (ideally three, each of which can have sub-points).

Give each chunk a one or two word headline. Announce each chunk by name and number when you get there. Summarize when you're done.

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