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How to Tell Your Story

By Marc A. Schuckit M.D, 9/20/2013 S1

I. Introduction

A. Learn how organize message for an audience

  1. You are vehicle of information; but audience is key
  2. Same approachused for:
  3. Grand rounds
  4. Scientific lecture

c. Medical student lecture (our example in AMSP)

d. A paper

e. A grant

B. To meet AMSP education goalyou need remember: S2

1. Lecture goes on AMSP Website

2. To be used by others

3. To be given in their own words

4. Outline is essential (but is rarely taught)

5. Must use sentence fragments

  1. From 1st draft on
  2. Give enough so lecturer knows what to say
  3. Not so much it will be read word for word
  4. Allows eye contact (is not to be read)
  5. Can find place easily if lost

6. Keep outline to 1 item per line

7. No A without B; 1 without 2, and so on

8. Audience to be first year med students (so use no jargon); 45 min long

9. Using AMSPconventions for consistency

a. Outline format

b. Convention for words (arbitrary)

1’. Abuse

2’. Binge

3’. Addiction

C. Everyone can learn this skill S3

1. Some better than others, but all can improve

2. I teach a specific style

3. You modify for yourself

D. This lecture has 5 components (shown on slide) S4

E. Now onto philosophy and preparation S5

II. Philosophy S6

  1. Set ~4 clear goals
  2. That’s all audience will remember
  3. Helps you adjust lecture if ↑ or ↓time
  4. Those goals become focus of lecture
  5. All else builds up to 4 points
  6. Or summarizes closes points
  7. These 4 goals need be explicit in giving lecture/writing papers, etc.
  8. Goal must fit audience
  1. Be sure it’s what they want & need
  2. Use their language & level
  3. Don’t give something just because you spent time on it
  1. Pace information to fit audience attention span
  1. That’s only ~10 minutes
  2. Everyone in audience has different off/on times
  3. So need summarize at end of each major point and section to synchronize
  1. Now onto preparation

III. Preparation S7

A. Must know material well

  1. Best way to ↓ anxiety
  2. You will know more than most in audience

B. Steps in preparation

1. Develop outline

2. Revise (& keep revising)

3. Practice & time self

4. Anticipate problems

C. To know material: need systematic focused literature review S8

1. Begin with a recent paper

`2. With goals and audience in mind

a. Skim abstract

b. If potentially valuable, then:

1’. Skim Intro & Discussion

2’. Only study tables/figs & methods if needed

  1. List topics on sheets
  2. Develop relevant topic heads for each page
  3. This may become outline headings
  4. I do on yellow paper; you do on computer
  5. Cite the paper or the reference

6. Go to other recent papers & extract relevant data S9

7. Now have pages with everything re a topic in 1 place

8. If that topic has many references do summary sheet

9. Place topics in order for lecture/paper/etc.

10. Create new topics as needed to fill in holes

11. Delete topics not relevant

12. Keep asking what the 4 points are & reminding self of audience

13. Stop when enough or no more time

D. This is an example of an outline S10

  1. Note use of prime
  2. Never A without B, etc.

E. Review of preparation S11

F. Now onto slides S12

IV. Part of preparation: slides

A. Guidelines for developing slides S13

  1. First do slides for 4 key points: similar to starting paper with tables/figures
  2. Then develop slides necessary to:
  3. Build up to 4 points
  4. Transition between points
  5. Lead to conclusions

B. Slides must be easy to understand

  1. 10th grade level
  2. Understood in 10 sec audience listen to you
  3. Simple (e.g. data cartoon)
  4. Large font: can read in back of room
  5. One line per item
  6. Consistent structure and capitals
  7. 1 slide per minute
  8. Fill slide top to bottom: allows larger font

C. Slides are never: S15

  1. From book or paper: those need much time to be studied
  2. Quotes where you & audience read together (is not efficient)
  3. Overheads are dangerous
  4. Can put them upside down/backwards
  1. Sticky
  2. Blow in wind

D. Slides fit one of several goals S16

1. I’ll give an overview of some types

2. Examples oftransitions and mood slides: S17

a. e.g. pill head S18

b. e.g. COGA logo S19

c. e.g. AMSP slide S20

d. E.g. outline of this talk S21

3. Examples of simple data slides S22

a. Cartoonre level of response (LR):effect/time for FHP/FHNS23

b. Pie chart (variance of risk) S24

c. Structural equation model (SEM) projected S25

d. SEM data S26

4. Criteria/definitions S27

a. DSM-5 (animated) S28

b. Self Report of the Effects of alcohol (SRE) questionnaire S29

5. Examples of conclusions/direction S30

a. Level of response (LR) summary S31

b. Alcohol Use Disorders (AUDs) are genetic S32

c. Search for level of response (LR) genes S33

d. Approach for preventing heavy drinking S34

V. Now on to next topic: Delivery S35

A. Before you start S36

  1. Inspect room, lights, projector, etc.feel confident
  2. Stand
  3. Have outline in front of you

B. When talking S37

  1. State what you’ll cover
  2. Announce transitions between topics
  3. Summarize each topic before begin the next
  4. Make eye contact; revise if losing their interest

5. Watch the clock

6. Summarize major points at the end

C. Now on to questions and other issues S38

VI. Handling questions S39

  1. Restate the question
  2. Never get angry (that turns audience you)
  3. Handling rambling questions
  4. Try to restate the issue
  5. Say time is short and ask for specific question
  6. Admit when you don’t know

VII. Other topics S40

  1. Humor
  2. Could use cartoons (?)
  3. Spontaneous humor is good (but beware it might offend someone)
  4. Handouts
  5. Slide copy and outline best done before lecture
  6. Materials to read best given day before or after lecture (or will distract)
  7. Audience boredom
  8. Scan for this by people sleep/read/restless/talk
  9. Can skip ahead to next topic
  10. Can ask audience what’s wrong
  11. But best to not ignore
  12. Getting lost in what you want to say
  13. Scan outline to see where you are
  14. Is reason for: 1 line per item; sentence fragments; etc.
  15. Emergencies
  16. Not having enough time
  17. That’s why watch clock
  18. Remember 4 major points and adjust to cover those
  19. Problems with slides: remember 4 major points and cover those

VII. Conclusions S41

  1. Major points
  2. Everyone can give a lecture/paper/etc.
  3. Remember the audience is important; you are only a vehicle for a message
  4. Be prepared can handle almost any problem

B. Now time for questions S42