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Outside the glass door, a movement caught my eye. I looked up just in time to see the large red-shouldered hawk lift off the deck onto the railing, and then into the trees.

I have seen this many times before, he is a regular visitor, and he, or other members of his family, have a nest in our trees.

This time he took me with him when he flew.

For a fleeting split second, I felt something, realized something, completely different than I had ever felt or realized before.

I realized that although we try to explain how birds, bees, and butterflies fly, we really can’t explain the how of it. There are apparently rational explanations; their wings fit this way or that, wing size, wing velocity, but the answer truly is, we only have a speculative knowledge of how it works.

In that moment, as the hawk lifted, and took me with him, I knew why we couldn’t truly understand how these beautiful creatures fly. It is because we are trying to find the answer within a flat-line experience.

We don’t see the realm that they live in; the wings are really for us, for them flight is just another means of movement.

The inhabitants of Flatland knew only one dimension. The story revolves around a 3-dimensional object coming into view, which could not be seen by those who only saw 2-dimensions. When one of the characters has a perception shifting moment and sees the 3-dimensional object, he tries to explain to everyone else what he saw. However, in their flatland realm, they couldn’t see it, so assumed he was crazy.

In some ways, it resembles Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. In this story, a group of people have been restrained in such a way that they can only see one blank wall in front of them. On that wall, shadows of people walking behind them are reflected as they walk in front of a fire.

For the people who can only see that wall, that is the whole of reality. When one of them is freed, he sees the people, the sun, and the rest of the world. He returns to tell them what he has seen. They don’t believe him.

In both cases an enlarged and expanded perception revealed what is always present, but not visible in a limited perception of the world.

For that split second, I realized the hawk doesn’t fly in our “realm. ” He doesn’t fly in our experience of how the world works. He flies in another realm altogether where flying doesn’t require wings really, just a different perception of the world.

There have always been prophets, scientists, and spiritual seekers who consistently strive to shift their perception to see what is already present, and then tell us about what they have found. Sometimes we listen. Sometimes we act on what we have learned. Mostly, we ignore the possibilities.

Nature is a living example of the many realms that exists outside of our 4-dimensional world.

Watch any part of nature with the desire to know outside of the five senses and it will open the doors of perception to see the unlimited Reality that is already present. Sometimes this Reality “leaks” into our current life and shifts the outcome into more than is possible within the perception of human.

Imagine what we would live like if we consistently choose to see beyond the very limited abilities of our five senses. This choice could be our intent for our lives – to “know as we are known.” To follow the guidance of those that have told us that the Truth will set us free.

This is what the man in Flatland and The Cave tried to tell their friends and relatives. This is what the hawk helped me shift my perception to see.

Are you with me? Let’s be those that listen and follow, and shift to this spiritual perception of Reality, and then share it with those that are willing to shift with us.

Thank you my hawk friend. It was a perfect gift.

Are you planning to replace your old multimedia equipment? Are you looking for ways to improve your industrial productivity and to enhance office operations? Are you searching for ways to change your business presentations? Are you planning to buy new equipment for the conference room? If so, you can select from variety of technological innovations that suit your budget, your needs, your preferences and you lifestyles.

Technological innovations become the byword of everyone in the world attributed to its benefits to companies, households, schools and individuals like you. It revolutionizes the lives of both companies and consumers by lowering the prices of goods and services and providing easy access to information.

Multimedia equipment is one of the myriad technological innovations in the market. Equipment like projectors, flat screen plasma television and touch screen television and monitors not only help employees and students in their school and business presentations, but it also serve as a medium in advertising and marketing products and services of companies. It also aids journalists in delivering quality news to the public.

Regardless of the venue of multimedia business presentations, either in a boardroom or classroom, you can have a unique and effective presentation using user friendly applications. Knowing how to use and integrate these applications help you obtain a successful presentation.

Tips to consider in business presentations:

• You should allocate enough time to prepare all the things needed in your presentation. Make sure that you arrive earlier than the scheduled time.
• Assess first who are your audience, the purpose of the presentation. When you use PowerPoint slides, avoid integrating background music because it affect your discussion. Avoid talking over videos, instead give your discussion before or after the video.
• Use graphics, photographs, charts and graphs to your presentation. These visual makes your presentation unique and original. It also enhances the overall issues and message that you want to impart to your audience.
• When using a slide, use a blank slide or a simple slide containing a logo as a background visual for parts without audio or visual components. In this way, you can prevent your audience to continue watching the slide show.
• Timing is vital in every presentation. In a PowerPoint presentation, use manual transition instead of automated to give you control to when you advance to the next part or your topic. It also gives more time for the audience to raise questions and to keep them engaged.
• It is important that you choose the right equipment for the task, like projectors, computers, flat screen monitors and many more. Before the scheduled presentation, double-check with facility operators to know the availability of the equipment and to evaluate if all of them are properly functioning and without complications. You should also use wireless equipment if possible, like laser pointer or wireless computer mouse. Never forget to keep your presentation space organize.
• Allocate time to practice your presentation before your schedule. During the event, make it a point to establish eye contact with your audience and speak clearly. If you are nervous, take a long deep breath to remove the tension.

Presentation is a performance — and stage fright is common. Think about it. You stand in front of an audience and hope to engage them from your very first word. You want to separate yourself from the parade of vendors coming before and after you, so you think about every facet and plan for every contingency. And because you are nervous about it, you may write down what you want to say — to be sure you get it right.

But somewhere between the clear thoughts in your head and their expression as you write, what you want to say transmogrifies into another language. It becomes stilted, pretentious, maybe even condescending. You want to be impressive, so you try to sound impressive.

Conversely, you decide not to write it down because you want to sound authentic and spontaneous — and because you plan to make good eye contact as you speak. But when you deliver, you search for the biggest, heaviest, most impressive word you can think of. Maybe you believe bigger words sound more professional. Perhaps you need to prove that you are educated or seasoned. Could be you want to demonstrate your facility with a dictionary. It doesn’t matter why you do it. What matters is to stop!

A recent article in the journal of Applied Cognitive Psychology reports that when a speaker uses complicated or unnecessarily long words, listeners — no matter their level or status — evaluate the intelligence of the speaker lower than they otherwise would. In other words, if they struggle to understand you, they assume it must be your fault.

If you want to perform at your best when you present, it’s clear you must avoid the fifth fatal flaw.

You choose words to impress.

When you meet a friend for coffee, you don’t say you utilized your computer today; you say you used it. You don’t ask if she’ll facilitate with your report; you ask if she’ll help. And you don’t asked the server to interface with your needs, you ask him to bring you a menu. There are lots of “you” and “I” and “we” in friendly conversation because real people use personal pronouns. Lots of them.

There is very little passive voice in real conversation because real people generally use clear, uncomplicated, assertive sentences. And while those ten dollar words may not be all that hard to understand, you know instinctively that they interfere with real communication.

Indeed, when you’re talking with a friend, you choose a ten cent word because you know it works best. Why look for the longest word you can find when a short, crisp alternative works better conversationally? Don’t talk to impress; talk to express.

Real people engaged in friendly conversation use real, everyday language to communicate without pretension or an air of self importance. Speak to express, not to impress. You’ll be less nervous and more importantly, your audience will respond more positively. Impress them with clarity, simplicity and authenticity.

Yes, a presentation is a performance and the best performers look and sound like real people. So when you want to engage your audience right from the get-go, capture their attention with a friendly conversational style. Your audience will be happier – -and so will you, because it’s just plain easier on your nerves to be yourself. I call it shirtsleeve English. Use it.

P.S. Discover more about fatal flaws and how to eliminate them in the next article.