Book excerpt: World-renowned presentation coach Jerry Weissman has spent 20 years helping top executives succeed in the most important business presentations of their lives. Here’s what he’s learned: the best way to get his message across is to show his techniques in action. In Presentation in Action , Weissman does just that: he teaches how to make spectacularly successful presentations by showing exactly how great presenters have done it. Weissman dives into his library of outstanding presentations, sharing examples from current events, politics, science, art, music, literature, cinema, media, sports, and even the military. His compelling examples don’t just demonstrate what’s universal about effective human communication: they also reveal powerful ways to solve the specific challenges presenters encounter most often. This book’s five sections focus on each element of the outstanding contemporary presentation: Content: Mastering the art of telling your story; Graphics: Designing PowerPoint slides that work brilliantly; Delivery skills: How to make actions speak louder than words; Q+A: How to handle tough questions; Integration: How to put it all together. Now, in Winning Strategies for Power Presentations, Weissman identifies the elements of a great presentation, distilling 75 best practices from the world's best persuaders into bite-sized chapters designed to be easy-to-read -- and equally easy to apply. Following on the heels of Weissman's best-selling Presentations in Action, this book presents powerful new insights into the four key areas of delivering winning presentations: contents, graphics, delivery, and Q-and-A sessions. Throughout, Weissman's compelling case studies range from Jon Stewart to venture capitalist John Doerr, Stephen King to Mark Twain, Franklin Delano Roosevelt to Netflix CEO Reed Hastings. Weissman also includes brand-new advice on a wide spectrum of "special presentation" issues, ranging from developing a richer public speaking voice to delivering scripted speeches, interviewing like a TV anchorperson to demonstrating products more successfully.