Here are some things to look for in reviewing the first draft of a presentation:
Content and Organization:
- Does the opening provide a good idea of what the presentation is about?
- Are the main ideas arranged in a logical order?
- Are opinions backed up with facts, statistics, and authorities?
Language:
- Have you come with clear, effective statements of your main ideas?
- Have you eliminated jargon as much as possible?
- Have you used vocabulary that the audience will understand?
Length:
- Have you devoted an appropriate amount of time to each part of your presentation?
- Is your entire presentation an appropriate length?
Very few first drafts are good enough to be “the draft”. Unless you have immense clarity of thought and eerie foresight, the chances are that you will make a reference later on in your speech that either contradicts something you said before, or has a meaning that is not immediately clear to your listeners going on the basis of what you said before.
The first draft of a speech is about getting all your ideas on to the page and ensuring that they are coherently presented. The further drafts will be about ensuring that the speech flows like it should, and sounds like a complete document rather than a series of thoughts.
Writing a speech that takes all of the important factors into account first time is not impossible, but does take an inordinate period of time, and the final document can often sound like pages of research.
Getting the balance right between informative content and something that will hold the attention of your audience generally requires you to revisit the speech after you have written it. You could sit to write with a reference book in front of you, checking every fact, figure and quote before you commit it to paper. However, this approach almost always leads to a speech that has very little life in it.
The best bet is to write a draft of the speech that sounds like something you would say. The latter drafts of it will then take into account the details that you have checked, and any amendments you have made as a result of a read-through.
It may be that in the original draft you have given more time to one section than you have to another, equally important section. By adding and subtracting elements, you will have a speech that sounds coherent and impressive. By sitting and working on a first draft that takes everything into account and has all of the important facts and figures checked, you will have a speech that sounds like a research document.