What’s My Line?
I hate the thought of forgetting something important.
I prepare before any webinar that I deliver – even if, like Viva Survivor, I have delivered the session many, many times before.
- I have a 1-page session sheet on my desk. I write it out again before every session.
- I also have a prompt sheet on-screen with key points and timings. Again, this gets reviewed before every session.
- And I take at least an hour to look over my slides in parallel to reading my notes.
I have shared Viva Survivor with postgraduate researchers over 350 times. And yet, every time before I start, I think, “Wait, what do I say?”
You can’t take notes like mine to your viva. Your examiners are looking for a presentation not a conversation. But still you can do things to help yourself if you think you’re going to forget something.
- You can annotate your thesis with helpful notes.
- Invest time in reviewing your thesis’ key sections.
- And it’s essential to rehearse responding to questions to help how you feel.
The last point is especially helpful.
Like me, you might feel bad at the thought of forgetting something that matters. Like my situation though, there are an abundance of things you can try to help you remember.