Halina St. James suggested that you prefix your opening statement in any presentation with two magic words: “Hi, Mom!” If your mom can understand what follows, then your presentation is simple and clear. Otherwise, you’ll need to rewrite it. Consider the paragraphs below.

“Hi, Mom! We need to utilize proper project management techniques by adhering to the five process groups across all nine knowledge areas.”

“Hi, Mom! On your next object-oriented programming project, think of the acronym PIE—polymorphism, inheritance and encapsulation.”

“Hi, Mom! I would like to share with you the results of our project which leveraged the pervasiveness of social media to increase our revenue channels above industry average through inbound marketing.”

If your mom responded by saying “Huh?”, then you’ve got a lot of work to do to ensure that your audience can lucidly remember your message.

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