I know my work, but I am no maker of graphics and presentations to bring what I know to life to those who cannot grasp what it is that I do. It is funny how I work with complicated machinery and computer programs, but I cannot make a decent Powerpoint that will wow those who hold the purse strings to the grant money. Since I am operating on a low budget and am almost a one-person operation, I use a Powerpoint agency to make the presentations I need to grab the attention of those who fund the work.
I know that I should take time to learn how to work the software as it is well within my capability to do so. However, after 16 and 20-hour days working on the actual project work, I have zero interest in doing any other work. Even though it is for funding, I put it off too long every single time. I can’t farm it out to graduate assistants as they are doing real work on the project too. Farming it out to a Powerpoint agency that puts together the presentations for me is the best choice. I give them the notes, pictures, charts and my talking points, and they put together the presentations for me. I watch them run before I go do a presentation, and they wow me. I would give money if I had grants to offer.
I would suggest that others in my position get the help they need to make their presentations look great and run smooth. The last thing you want is a media failure during a talk. That makes you look like an amateur no matter if you are the most knowledgeable person on the planet for the stuff you are actually talking about. A great presentation can mean a working budget or a closed project for me.