Giving Presentations
Shape a single memorable message, slide narrative, and delivery plan for keynotes, pitches, and all-hands without starting in slide software.
Overview
Giving Presentations is an agent skill most often used in Launch (also Validate and Grow) that helps you craft and deliver compelling talks using narrative-first techniques from experienced product leaders.
Install
npx skills add https://github.com/refoundai/lenny-skills --skill giving-presentationsWhat is this skill?
- Bow-and-arrow framing: one remembered sentence before building slides
- Techniques distilled from 19 product leaders on narrative, contrast, and engagement
- Audience, stakes, and format discovery (keynote, board, all-hands)
- Rehearsal, nerves, and physical presence coaching for delivery
- What-is vs what-could-be contrast structure for sustained attention
- Techniques sourced from 19 product leaders
- Bow-and-arrow method: one remembered takeaway per talk
Adoption & trust: 1.7k installs on skills.sh; 1k GitHub stars; 3/3 security scanners passed (skills.sh audits); trending (+100% hot-view momentum).
What problem does it solve?
You are facing a high-stakes talk but your slides are unfocused and you cannot state the one thing the audience should remember.
Who is it for?
Founders and solo builders preparing investor updates, launch keynotes, board readouts, or all-hands with limited prep time.
Skip if: Purely written SEO articles, automated slide generation without coaching, or situations where the narrative is already locked and you only need visual design assets.
When should I use this skill?
User is preparing a talk, building a slide deck, dealing with presentation anxiety, practicing for a keynote, or asking how to be more engaging when presenting.
What do I get? / Deliverables
You leave with a clear arrow message, an engaging story structure, and practical rehearsal steps tailored to your audience and format.
- Single-sentence arrow takeaway and supporting narrative outline
- Slide-story structure with engagement hooks (contrast, state changes)
- Rehearsal and delivery checklist for nerves and presence
Recommended Skills
Journey fit
Spans multiple journey phases - primary shelf plus alternate fits below.
Launch is the canonical shelf because the skill optimizes how you present and distribute a story to an audience, even though the same craft applies earlier in pitches and later in thought leadership. Distribution matches outbound talks, launch keynotes, and audience-facing narratives rather than SEO copy or in-app analytics.
Where it fits
Refine an investor or design-partner pitch so one sentence carries the problem and promised outcome.
Structure a launch keynote with contrast and stories so early adopters remember the product wedge.
Turn webinar or meetup content into an engaging arc with clear takeaways for retention and referrals.
Prepare an internal demo or sprint review that keeps stakeholders aligned on the single decision needed.
How it compares
Use instead of jumping straight into slide templates when you need message discipline and delivery coaching first.
Common Questions / FAQ
Who is giving-presentations for?
Solo builders and product people who present to customers, investors, or teams and want structured narrative and delivery help rather than generic slide advice.
When should I use giving-presentations?
In Validate when pitching scope or pricing, at Launch for keynotes and launch talks, in Grow for webinars and thought-leadership, and anytime you are practicing for a board or all-hands.
Is giving-presentations safe to install?
It is coaching-oriented procedural knowledge; still review the Security Audits panel on this Prism page before installing any skill from the catalog.
SKILL.md
READMESKILL.md - Giving Presentations
# Giving Presentations Help the user create and deliver compelling presentations using techniques from 19 product leaders. ## How to Help When the user asks for help with presentations: 1. **Understand the context** - Ask about the audience, the stakes, the format (keynote, board meeting, all-hands), and how much time they have 2. **Start with narrative, not slides** - Help them identify the one thing they want the audience to remember before touching slide software 3. **Structure for engagement** - Guide them to use contrast, story, and state changes to maintain attention 4. **Prepare for delivery** - Coach on rehearsal techniques, managing nerves, and physical presence ## Core Principles ### Start with the arrow, then build the bow Tristan de Montebello: "Stop focusing as much on what you want to say and focus more on what you want your audience to remember. We call it the bow and arrow technique because you can only remember one thing out of a talk... The one thing is your arrow." Define a single sentence that represents the only thing you want remembered. Select anecdotes and data (the bow) that provide the tension to launch that arrow. ### Use "what is vs. what could be" contrast Nancy Duarte: "This motion of traversing between what is, what could be, what is, what could be... makes people leave their current state and long for this future state." Structure your narrative to alternate between the current flawed reality and the ideal future. End with "new bliss" - the world with your idea adopted. ### Make the title the takeaway Andy Raskin: "Replace 'The Team' with 'Our team is veterans of whatever industry.' Every single slide it's a takeaway, not a label." Slide titles should be descriptive conclusions, not generic category labels. The audience should understand the point without reading the body. ### The audience is the hero, you are the mentor Nancy Duarte: "In myths and movies, the mentor comes alongside the hero. The presenter should come alongside the audience and help them get unstuck or bring a magical tool." Treat the audience as the protagonist on a journey. Your job is to give them tools, not show off your expertise. ### Schedule state changes every 3-5 slides Wes Kao: "Every three to five slides, put in a state change. We want to turn audience engagement from an art into a science." Insert interactive elements at regular intervals. Ask the audience to guess a data point before revealing it to increase engagement. ### De-risk with pre-meetings and role-play Casey Winters: "You want to de-risk that meeting not make it a big success or fail moment... have pre-meetings with key individuals so they're less surprised." Role-play the presentation by impersonating specific stakeholders and their likely objections. Surface concerns before the formal review. ### Look up when thinking, not down Tristan de Montebello: "If you're looking down on Zoom, it looks like you're looking at your phone. If instead you think up, you actually look thoughtful by default." Direct your gaze upward when gathering thoughts. Place a "Think Up" post-it note on your monitor as a reminder. ### Reframe anxiety as excitement Matt Abrahams: "When you feel those symptoms of anxiety, say 'This is exciting. I get to share my point of view.' By seeing it as more positive, it causes us to relax." Anxiety and excitement share the same physiological response. Labeling the arousal as excitement improves performance. ### Use the 1:2 breathing ratio Matt Abrahams: "Your exhale should be twice as long as your inhale. Take a three count in, take a six count out." The physiological relaxation response is triggered during the exhale. Use a double-inhale to fully expand lu