I know there are a lot of sites, books, DVDs and courses out there that can help you be a better presenter. Personally I have learned a lot more from watching some great presenters in action than I ever picked up from any book. And the plus side is that you’re learning some stuff and picking up useful information at the same time as well.

My favorite two places for watching presenters at work are TED and Ignite.

TED is a non-profit organisation dedicated to spread “ideas worth spreading”, which is very, very broad but their conferences host some of the best and most original minds (and speakers) on the planet. Their basic format is a talk of no more than 18 minutes, sometimes shorter, on original ideas and experiences that help and inspire others. Some deep, some awe-inspiring and some funny, the site has a shedload of different presentations available unde a CC license, so share and enjoy.

Ignite‘s formula is somewhat different: Ignite organises geek events in over 100 cities worldwide, where speakers get 5 minutes to talk on their professions or passions and show 20 slides that auto-advance every 15 seconds, which makes for very concise and quite lively presentations (their tagline: “Enlighten us, but make it quick”).

Granted, not all the speakers on TED or Ignite are brilliant or well-versed in the Art of Gab (or public speaking to you and me), but there are some great gems in there.