The Level Of Entertainment In Show Business

The main reason people feel as if there is nothing on the tube is the fact that we as humans have a short attention span. This translates to people switching from a channel once they become bored or disinterested. As they flip and they see nothing that really entice them they continue till they end up on the original channel in which they decided was boring the first place. The only people who think they have too many channels, are the ones who are engaged and have an attention span that keeps them glued to one channel.

With the growth of niche television channels, this eventually led to the growth of sub channels dedicated to things such as trout fishing and video games. This eventually led to there being a glut of channels in which only a few people were interested. For regular television watchers, this would add to the bane of them not having anything to watch because in their incessant flipping they end up in a patch of channels in which they have no interest in.

Have a large amount of channels is a good thing to some people but in reality less is better. If you only had a couple of channels, like people without cable or satellite television then you would be forced to watch whatever came on the TV. You would become adjusted to what channels show what show and create a viewing habit based off that. You would basically create your own TV viewing schedule and you would not stray from the fact that there is nothing to watch on television.

Downloading television programs is basically the same as downloading other kinds of files. You first need to find a website that contains links to TV shows online, and then you have to make sure that you have some kind of file-sharing client that will allow you to access the files (often called "torrents" after the name of one of the most popular clients out there). Television program files contain both audio and video components, so they are much larger than music files. As a result, it can often take several hours to download a single file.

There are a couple of different ways you can watch the files you've downloaded. First, the most common way to watch TV shows online is to simply view the downloaded file in a media player. You probably already have a media player on your computer; if you don't, there are several different ones that are available for free. You just have to run a search and choose the one that you think will suit you the best. You'll also have to download the appropriate codecs so that you can both see the video and hear the audio of the television program files. Again, a few minutes spent with your favorite search engine can point you in the right direction as far as codecs go.

If you're a bit more comfortable around your computer and know what you're doing, there's another way to watch TV shows online. You can actually burn the MPEG file to a CD-ROM (thus creating a VCD), which you can then watch on your regular DVD player. You should be aware that this extra step takes much longer and that not all DVD players are capable of handling VCDs. But the end result is definitely worth it, so give VCDs a shot.

Business Managers: Communicate Your Career To The Next Level

Not too long ago, I walked into a room where some of the country's top oncologists were preparing to launch a new cancer-fighting drug. The occasion was the group's rehearsal before a big presentation to the Federal Drug Administration. Given that these men and women are some of the best and brightest in their field, I thought the rehearsal would be a breeze. So, I sat down, pen poised to make a few notes so I could help them fine-tune their presentations and be ready for the onslaught of media that was sure to follow.

What a letdown. Five articulate, highly educated, well-dressed presenters, armed with shiny animated slideshows, droned on and on and on and on. It didn't matter what they were saying because the audience wouldn't really hear any of it anyway. Around me, eyes closed, and others pretended to take notes while playing solitaire on their laptops. I wondered how in the world I could help these presenters. I also thought about tripling my consultation fee on the spot.

All presenters believe their words are important, and they are. But if you don't give an audience a good reason to listen, they will quickly tune you out. In an age where sound bite is king, cutting through the clutter is more important now than ever.

Consider the following 7 points before stepping into the limelight:

The Take-Home

No matter how many years and dollars you've spent on research and development, no matter the technical complexity of your subject matter, when speaking to a group your entire presentation must boil down to one key point. If you had to sum up your talk in 10 seconds, what would you want your audience to know?

Ask Yourself the Right Questions
What you think a listener needs to know is not always what that listener wants to know. Put yourself in your listener’s seat and ask the following questions: So what? Who cares? What does this mean to the listener, reader or viewer and me? Until you frame your messages from your audience’s perspective, they won’t care. If they don’t care, you’ll never receive their full attention.

Talk in nuggets

Powerful communicators who can hold attention have something in common with each other. They've learned that speaking is for the ear, not for the eye. Instead of preparing a presentation as a research paper jammed with minutiae, condense complicated information into bite-sized nuggets and present only the information needed to move an audience toward the desired outcome.

Present, Don't Read

Is your presentation written like a term paper? Is it written in sentences? Do you allow room for pauses so the listener can participate? People don't converse in long-winded sentences. We speak in short phrases. So write in phrases or bullet points. You will then find yourself talking more and reading less. Also, take time to pause between key thoughts so your listeners can digest what you're saying.

Paint the Picture

Explaining the features of your product may be important, but explanation without example has no meaning. People can't remember all of the facts, but they do remember impressions. By comparing and contrasting, providing analogies and visual images, your presentation will come to life.

Slideshow or Presentation?

No one comes to a presentation to see a slideshow. They come to hear a knowledgeable person share ideas and talk. Visuals should reinforce what you're saying, not serve as your script. Instead of preparing the slides first, prepare your remarks then create appropriate supporting visuals. Let your words drive the visuals instead of the other way around.

Nix the Jargon

Just because your audience is packed with colleagues or you’re providing information for an industry trade publication doesn't mean you should talk jargon. Get rid of the buzzwords and throw away phrases. Rather, look for opportunities to put your words in context by humanizing your material and telling stories or anecdotes.

As I worked with the oncologist presenters and brought many of these points to their attention, they worried that simplifying the information would harm their credibility. Quite the opposite. By making an effort to connect with their audience rather than throw too much information at them, they created a focused, central theme with real-life examples that excited and inspired listeners. And in the end, the cancer drug they believed in made it to market and received a lot of good press!