New favor for an old friend?

[Harry Hood]

Greetings! Been a few years since I stopped by. Love what you've done with
the place!

Steve, Sonia, Shyam, John Langhans, Geetesh, Austin, Taj (and say, is Brian
still around?)... Really, really nice to see your names and peruse, if
briefly, the volley of knowledge in which I used to play a little every day.
Thanks again for all your help when I was on the frontline and mentor line
of PowerPoint support for MS.

I am off in healthcare now and up for a great promotion. The second
interview of this process involves teaching some erudite folks something
new, creative and interesting. I would like to go with PowerPoint if only
because it's relevant to the job. Thing is, it's a 15-minute lesson.
Ephemeral.

And, though a sculptor and painter, I hit the old oh-crap-it's-my-interview,
deer-in-the-headlights, paralyzing block of creativity. Not fun.

Can you please suggest something - I'm not particular - that I could teach
to a small group of power users that might surprise and inspire them? We'll
all be on PP03 if I can get the classroom I want.

I appreciate any brainstorm you can provide.

Thank you all,

Harry Hood
Former Smart Fellow of The PowerPoint Order

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

Harry's in da Hood again, hey?

So is the point of the lesson actually to teach something, or is it to
demonstrate your teaching/speaking skills? If the latter, then you're allowed
to choose your own topic and put together a 15-minute lesson, is that the deal?

Who makes up the audience? What are their interests likely to be?

 

[Harry Hood]

I can choose my own topic and I found out today that the setting is going to
be a classroom, machines et al. Turns out that they want the lesson taught
in PowerPoint. This is a PowerPoint audition essentially.

The audience are going to be fellow trainers coming in from various outposts
of the company. They're sharp and they use PowerPoint daily in their jobs,
more often than not teaching it to our corporate newbies.

I am leaning toward teaching about light and color theory - something I can
make pretty exciting because I know it and dig it. The last thing I want to
do is present it in a manner that appears mundane or overly familiar. So
while I can't put my finger on what it is I want to do (which is why I am
here, humbly), I know I want to suprise them with something.

Vague enough?

 

[Steve Rindsberg]

I am leaning toward teaching about light and color theory - something I can
make pretty exciting because I know it and dig it.

Sounds like you've answered your question, sir.

I think that'd make a good lesson in any case, but if you can tie it to
PowerPoint, so much the better. To a PPT-using audience, that'd make it all
the more relevant.