Leveraging Leadership

Just Say It: How Using Your Own Words Makes Presentations Clearer and More Impactful

• Emily Sander • Season 1 • Episode 180

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This episode shares a simple tip for presentation prep: say exactly what you mean in your own words instead of trying to sound overly formal. Emily gives examples like replacing “after extensive cross functional collaboration and deep analysis” with “we looked at a bunch of options and this is the clearest path forward,” and suggests that a Chief of Staff can just say, “I make sure really important stuff doesn’t fall through the cracks.”


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Who Am I?

If we haven’t yet before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

 

Time Stamps:

00:45 Common Pitfalls in Presentation Language
01:26 Real-Life Examples and Solutions
02:45 Final Tips and Conclusion

emily-sander_2_04-08-2025_120712:

I wanna give you one quick tip on prepping for presentations. I have a lot of people come to me for coaching on how to deliver a presentation effectively. One area they often get stuck on is the talk track. So they have the slide decks, they have the information gathered, they have it all sequenced, and then when they're speaking to it, they get stuck on the words they're trying to use. And what often happens is people try to use quote unquote, professional or strategic or high level language, and they get. In their own head about it and get kind of twisted around the axle and they get in their own way. And when that happens, what I'll do is say, okay, pause for a second. Just tell me what you're actually trying to say. Like, what are you like actually trying to say here? And they'll say something in their own words. And I'm like, use that. Use that verbatim. That's what you should use in your presentation. And they go. That felt really good. I'm like, mm-hmm. Like that. That's easy to remember. That's what I truly feel. That's what I'm trying to get to this audience, and I'm like, yes, that's what you should use in your talk track. Oh, okay. That's easy. I don't have to memorize all these fancy words Because sometimes it'll come out like something like after extensive cross-functional collaboration and deep analysis of the strategy. This option is what best aligns with our overall strategic objectives or something like that. And it's like, what did you just say? And I'm like, pause. Okay. Tell me what are you actually trying to say? And they go, Emily, like we looked at a bunch of options and this is the clearest path forward to what matters most to the company. And I'm like, say that. Say that. There's the words you should use. They sound natural. I'm picking up what you're laying down. It's easy to understand all these things. Another example is when people try to. Explain the chief of staff role. So maybe they're like at a board meeting and they're a new time chief of staff, like the first chief of staff for the company and they're like trying to explain to the board in a crisp, concise way what they do. And some people get very like buttoned up and like sit up straight and are robotic and are like, I play a pivotal role to ensure operational alignment around key strategic initiatives. And I'm like, that's not wrong, but you could also say. I'm the one who makes sure really important stuff doesn't fall through the cracks, and that's very comfortable in everyday language and people are like, oh, okay, got you. Like, yeah, and you're a real person, not a robot. So that's also helpful. So that's just a quick tip. If you're in presentation prep and you're getting stuck on like the talk track piece of it, just pause, take a step back and ask yourself, Hey, what am I actually trying to say here? Like, what is it I'm trying to convey to my audience? Say it in your own words. Maybe record it and listen back and use that, or some close variation of that. And then maybe if you've got information overload and you almost know too much about something, then that might be a place where you go to a colleague or a mentor or a friend or a coach and you say, Hey, here's all of this stuff that's in my head. Can you just listen and kind of distill down like what do you think is the main point of what I'm saying? And they might share a few things and then you would go, okay, let me, let me pause on that. That's right. That's the core of what I'm trying to say. How do I say that part? Just that part. In my own words, I would say this, this, and this. Okay. That's it. Boom. So this, this, and this is now my talk track for that section of the presentation. All right. That's a quick tip for you and I'll catch you next week on leveraging Leadership. I.