Some cures for PowerPoint anxieties

When you have a presentation on the horizon and you need to create a PowerPoint deck to help deliver your message, do you ever get a little apprehensive? Despite the fact that PowerPoint presentations have become quite commonplace in all types of meetings, I’m well aware that many of us don’t feel confident when it comes to crafting a deck that truly conveys our main messages.

To help, I’ve come up with a handful of resources that I think do a great job of giving those of us with PowerPoint anxieties a little insight into how to make this powerful resource work for, and not against, us. Pair these tools along with the latest version of Office 2010, which comes with PowerPoint, and you just might find yourself doing things with PowerPoint you never thought possible, like easily adding video and animation, incorporating snazzy transitions, broadcasting your slide shows and more.

PowerPoint skills builder:This is a free, short and to-the-point (don’t you love that?) video training series that guides viewers through tasks that will increase their proficiency in PowerPoint.

Microsoft's PowerPoint blog : Check in regularly on this blog for tips, videos and other handy bits of information on PowerPoint and how to use it.

PowerPoint support : Have a specific question related to PowerPoint? Visit its support site, where you can quickly search for PowerPoint help and how-to answers.

PowerPoint MVPs– MVPs, or Microsoft Most Valuable Professionals, are leaders in the technical community with a passion for sharing their knowledge with others. If you do a little digging on
the Internet, you’re sure to run into many PowerPoint MVPs eager to share their insight with others. For example, PowerPoint MVP Ellen Finkelstein has a wealth
of knowledge on PowerPoint to share with everyday users, and her PowerPoint Tips Blog is loaded with great advice.

Got any other PowerPoint resources or tips you’ve found particularly useful? Please share them if you do.