Rehearse Talk

Walk every slide once, all the way through, in real time. Use → for each step. Don't skim. Speak the words you'd say to the audience out loud (or in your head — but full sentences).

As you go, capture issues into a punch list. For each slide, check:

• Does the title match what I'm actually saying?
• Are there speaker notes? Do they match what I'd actually need to remember? If empty and you stumble, add notes.
• Are there too many bullets? Lists with >5 items lose people.
• Are the diagram steps in the right order? Diagrams should unfold in the order you naturally explain them.
• Do code snippets render legibly? If you can't read them on your own monitor, the audience can't either.
• Does the transition out of the slide land? Awkward transitions are usually a sign that two slides should be merged or reordered.

Note the elapsed time per act. Press Esc to open the overview between acts and screenshot/record the timer reading. After the run, you'll know which acts are bleeding minutes.

Stop when the timer hits the target. That's your real run length. If you're not done yet, you're over budget — see the "Cutting" section below.

Run the punch list. For each captured issue:

• Fix typos and notes inline.
• Use the add-slide skill to add or merge slides if needed.
• Use the theme-deck skill if the issue is visual.
• Use the write-diagram skill if a diagram needs work.

Do a second clean run. This one should hit the target time without surprises. If it doesn't, do a third.

Final dress rehearsal in fullscreen.

• Press F for browser fullscreen.
• Open exactly the apps you'll have open during the talk.
• Close the notes pane (N).
• Walk it once more, no stops.