The theme of all of these pages is simple: The most important thing in a presentation is to talk to people. If you remember this, then it is really difficult to do a bad presentation.
In my experience, the key to a successful presentation is to have something important to say to your audience. It might be important because it is funny, interesting, or helpful, but whatever it is, you need to believe that your audience wants to hear what you have to say. I used the example of talking to a friend in a coffee shop on the Basic Body Language page, and I will use it again here. If you are talking to a friend, you don't usually say things that you think are boring or that won't help them. So don't do it in a presentation either.
Before you do anything else, then, sit down and really think about the presentation task you have been given. How can you do the task in a way that your audience will really want or need to hear? Don't do anything else until you are satisfied that you have something important to say.
Once you have thought carefully about your content, you might be tempted to start writing a script, and carefully note down every single word that you are going to say. This is a terrible idea! Here are some reasons why:
Writing and speaking are very different. If you write everything down, it is likely you will start to speak in an unnatural way. Your audience will want to hear your natural speaking voice.
When you write, you have lots of time to think and get help, so you tend to use language that is much more difficult. In may even be too difficult for you to say fluently.
If you write a script, then you put pressure on yourself to remember a script. This is really difficult to do! Even if you are presenting in your second or third language, it is very unlikely you will completely forget how to speak in a presentation. But it is very easy to completely forget a script.
Of course, a presentation is a different kind of speaking to conversation, and may need to include more difficult language sometimes. There are even things you may need to memorize. However, it's much better to start from a base of speaking that is comfortable for you, and add the more difficult things. In the next section I will give you a way to do this.
Try following this process when you prepare your presentations.
When you have thought of something good to say, make an outline of your presentation. Use as few words as possible. You can even use your first language if you like. The important thing is to NOT plan the English that you will use.
Find a place where you have some privacy, and simply start to talk through your presentation on your own. It is much better if you do this out loud.
If you find something that you cannot say, or something that seems too simple, stop and figure out how to say it better. Write that down on a small sheet of paper.
As you get satisfied with parts of your presentation, make the visuals for them. Remember not to put too much text on the visuals because you will want to read. However, if there is something difficult for both you and the audience, put it on there!
Keep practicing until you can deliver your whole presentation naturally and fluently. It doesn't matter if it's a little different each time, as long as you hit the important points.
If you follow the process above, you should not really need notes, as you are unlikely to forget anything. But it can be reassuring to have notes just in case. If you want to have notes, here is some advice.
If you have notes, they should be for if you forget the difficult parts of your presentation. You should not expect to use them, and it is not good if you do.
Because of this, notes should be as small and hideable as possible. Use a folded piece of paper or note cards, and hold them behind your back or put them in your pocket. I wouldn't recommend using a phone because it can be difficult to unlock.
Use your visuals to structure your presentation and keep you on track. You don't need to put the structure on your notes.