Talk Like Ted: The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of The World's Top Minds
Unleash The Master Within "Passion is the thing that will help you create the highest expression of your talent." - Larry Smith People cannot inspire others unless and only until they are inspired themselves. So, dive deep to identify your own unique and meaningful connections to your respective topics. Have passion in what you talk about, to almost obsess about your topic; passion leads to mastery. Share your excitement with others!
Master the Art of Storytelling "Stories are just data with a soul." - Brené Brown When sharing your idea, make sure to tell a story to reach peoples hearts and minds. Tell a personal story, one that inspires uncommon effort. By telling a story that is stimulating, engaging, and relatable to your audience, this will break down any (and lets be honest, naturally so) walls between you and the audience allowing for a deep and natural connection.
Have a Conversation "Don't fake it till you make it. Fake it till you become it." - Amy Cuddy Practice relentlessly and internalize your content so that you can deliver the presentation as comfortably as having a conversation with a close friend. Don't be afraid to practice your presentation in front of friends or family who will give you feedback. You can also record yourself while presenting to them to watch it back later. P.S. The way you carry yourself can change the way you feel when delivering a presentation, so set yourself up by standing tall (filled with confidence, because you practiced).
Teach Me Something New Reveal information that is either completely new to your audience, packaged in a different/unique way, or offers a refreshing way to look at an old issue. The brain loves novelty, and this unexpected new element intrigues your audience. People are natural explorers of the world, we are naturally addicted to learning because it is joyful to expand and evolutionize ourselves.
Deliver Draw-Dropping Moments A jaw-dropping moment is when the presenter delivers a shocking, impressive, or surprising moment that is so moving and memorable, it grabs the listener's attention and is remembered long after the presentation. Sometimes you need to surprise your audience to get them to really care. Humans are more likely to remember an event that arouses our emotions, so deliver an emotional moment; that is still relatable to the topic at hand.
Lighten Up Our brain also loves humor. Combine humor with this novelty, and you've got presentation gold. Don't take yourself too seriously, just be serious about the work that you do; lighten up and give your audience something to talk about. Remember: you don't have to be funny to be humorous, you just have to be willing to do your homework to keep your presentation entertaining. 5 Ways To Add Humor to Your Speech
Anecdotes, Observations, and Personal Stories
Analogies & Metaphors
Quotes
Video
Photos
Stick to the 18-Minute Rule 18 minutes is the ideal length of time for a solid presentation. Research has shown that too much information prevents the successful transmission of ideas. Thinking, speaking, and listening are all very physically demanding activities. Not only does anxiety affect the presenter, the audience members feel anxiety too, when having to listen for long periods. If you MUST create a longer presentation, build in soft breaks (stories, videos, etc.) every 10 minutes.
Paint a Mental Picture with Multi-sensory Experiences It was found that people who had multi-sensory experiences ALWAYS had much more accurate recall of the information than those who only read or heard the information. In other words, deliver presentations that engage more than one of the senses: sight, touch, sound, taste, and smell. The brain can't tell the difference between what it actually sees and what it imagines, so if you can be as descriptive as possible when painting the setting (the smells, feel, and sounds), you can have your audience imagine, and thus see the situation with you.
Stay in Your Lane "You've got to be able to communicate in life and it's enormously important"..."If you can't communicate and talk to other people and get across your ideas, you're giving up your potential." - Warren Buffett Be authentic, open, and transparent. If you try to be something or someone you're not, you'll fail to gain the trust of your audience. You can learn and do as much as you want, but you can never leave a lasting impression on someone unless you are willing to leave your own mark.
These key ideas are inspired from Carmine Gallo's book "Talk Like Ted". These are not meant to replace the book but to aid in the information provided in the book. Please feel free to download a copy of the document for future re-use!