Episode #83: How To Select Data For Presentations In Business In Japan

Why do executives feel overwhelmed by presentations packed with data?

Because most presenters default to “more is better,” audiences leave under water, not enlightened. Slide decks often overflow with charts, bullet points, and “just-in-case” details. The presenter is proud of the work and wants to show everything—yet the audience’s attention and memory can’t absorb a firehose of information.

When people are hit with rapid-fire data, each new point cancels the one before it. Visual overload weakens comprehension, and the core message disappears under the weight of the content.

Mini-summary: Too much data creates cognitive overload, so audiences forget both the facts and your main point.

Enough data is the amount required to prove one central message—not everything you know. A persuasive presentation selects only what supports the outcome you want: to entertain, inform, or (most often in business) persuade.

If your goal is persuasion, data should be evidence in service of a narrative, not the narrative itself. You can keep extra slides as backup for Q&A, but they don’t belong in the main flow unless they directly advance your argument.

Mini-summary: Use only the data that strengthens your single core message and desired business outcome.

The audience gets “shredded.” They can’t recall what mattered because there were too many “key” messages. Instead of leaving convinced and energized, they walk out thinking, “What hit me?”

Overstuffed decks trigger these results:

• Low retention of facts

• Confusion about priorities

• Weak commitment to next steps

• Reduced trust in the presenter’s judgment

Mini-summary: Too much content erases clarity and reduces persuasion, even if the data is excellent.

Because they become attached to effort. If a graph took hours to build, it feels painful to cut it. If a bullet point is “technically true,” it seems risky to remove it.

This is data mania: the belief that volume equals value. But audiences don’t reward effort—they reward clarity, relevance, and meaning.

Mini-summary: Presenters overload slides because they value their work, not the audience’s processing limits.

Be ruthless—like Marie Kondo. Keep only what you love because it supports the message. Everything else goes to the reserve bench.

A practical filter:

1. What is my one central message?

2. Which 2–4 key points prove it?

3. Which data directly supports those points?

4. What can move to Q&A backup?

Mini-summary: Trim by message: if a slide doesn’t support the core idea, it doesn’t belong in the main deck.

What structure makes a presentation clear, memorable, and persuasive?

A strong structure carries the audience without overload:

• Blockbuster opening to grab attention

• Limited key points matched to time available

• Strong evidence tied to each point

• Powerful close #1 to seal commitment

• Powerful close #2 after Q&A to restate the message

Keep the delivery short and snappy. Aim to leave people wanting more, not wishing it would end.

Mini-summary: Great presentations rely on disciplined structure, not a mountain of slides.

Engaged employees are self-motivated. The self-motivated are inspired. Inspired staff grow your business—but only if leaders communicate with focus and conviction.

Through leadership and presentation training in Tokyo (東京, Tokyo), Dale Carnegie helps leaders energize teams by delivering messages that are clear, human, and persuasive—especially in Japan’s complex business environment spanning Japanese companies (日本企業, Japanese companies) and multinational firms (外資系企業, foreign-affiliated companies).

Mini-summary: Focused presentations inspire people; inspiration fuels engagement and business growth.

• Less is more. Data should support persuasion, not replace it.

• One message wins. Multiple “key messages” create zero impact.

• Structure beats volume. Strong openings, few points, and powerful closes drive retention.

• Backup belongs in Q&A. Keep extra slides for those who want depth.

Founded in the U.S. in 1912, Dale Carnegie Training has supported individuals and companies worldwide for over a century in leadership, sales, presentation, executive coaching, and DEI. Our Tokyo office, established in 1963, has been empowering both Japanese and multinational corporate clients ever since.