Bullets are made to hit. But only if you aim.

You want impact. So you fire off bullets. Lots of them. But... what are you aiming at?

Without one clear target, you’re shooting wildly – and scoring low. A bit like an intern-cowboy... firing for the first time. Boom. Everything on screen at once. To the great annoyance of your audience. They get hit with a bullet barrage and zone out before the first one even lands. No one’s following anymore. Or worse, they read your bullets a second time because they’ve lost track of where you are.

Bullets belong in a handout.
Or a blog post. Or on a website. Because there, the reader’s at the wheel – they decide what to read, when, and how often. During a presentation? You’re at the wheel. So it better be clear.

What works better?
One sentence per slide, paired with a strong visual. Nobody remembers a list of seven points anyway. People can’t listen, read, and remember all at once. So keep it simple.

But if bullets are absolutely necessary...

• Use no more than three per slide.
• Put your strongest one first – the others won’t stick.
• Keep them short: three to four words. Say the rest out loud.
• Need more? Use another slide with a slightly different title.
• Make bullets appear one by one. Use PowerPoint’s Appear animation. The green star with sparkles. Don’t make them fly in, spin, or explode. Just appear. On click. Clean and calm.
• Say upfront: “There are only three.” Your audience will relax.
• Pause after each bullet. Let it sink in.

Why this works

• Your pacing stays sharp and focused. No chaos.
• Each bullet gets its moment. Better than a salvo that leaves your audience’s head spinning.
• They stop reading ahead and start listening to you.

Bottom line
Use bullets like a sniper. Not a cowboy with a twitchy trigger finger.