Fill In The Blanks
Last month, I decided to ditch the deck on two separate occasions. No PowerPoint. Just me, myself, and my notes. The first time I was working with an intact team to teach some fundamental decision-making models and problem-solving tools. The second time was during a virtual workshop with reps from South Africa, the United States and Canada.
Before we get too far here, this is not an anti-PowerPoint rant. In fact, I quite like the challenge of trying to make complicated information more concise one slide at a time. I also love the visual element of designing slides (and yes, I take too much time trying to make them look just right).
Side note: Just the other day someone introduced me to their group as “the guy who always brings incredible slides” (and that made me smile more than I’d like to admit). So you know I did not ditch the deck lightly.
I opted for fill-in-the-blank worksheets instead of slides. Here is what I discovered when I flipped to full analog. I slowed down. Instead of rushing through familiar content that I’ve taught many times, I took my time. I stayed in the moment and enjoyed the “slow reveal” of each key concept.
The best part: the participants actually participated. They followed along. They took more notes than usual. They asked better questions. Several told me after they appreciated the level of engagement from me and from their colleagues.
Like any good facilitator, I had my trusty agenda, but time felt more elastic. We had room to stay and play with the topics.
I know I’m not sharing anything particularly revolutionary. But after years of facilitating groups, it was a reminder that slowing down and staying present is always better than cramming more content onto a slide.
I am not swearing off PowerPoint. I’m too visually oriented to drop it altogether. However, I have taken two important lessons from the last month:
slow down so you can stay and play,
participants like the “slow reveal” so design for a bit of mystery.
Inspiration
Inspiration: D’Elia, M.J. (2025). “Team Tools for Library Leaders.” 3-hour workshop. Internet Librarian 2025 Conference.