Picture Credit: Tammy McConaty
Check out my TEDx talk by clicking here.
This is Episode 12 in my TEDx journey series. In case you missed them, here are the previous entries:
- Episode 1: My Secret to Becoming a TEDx Speaker: The Event Theme
- Episode 2: How I Became a TEDx Speaker: Getting The Acceptance Letter
- Episode 3: Why I Hated My First TEDx Talk Draft: What Was Missing
- Episode 4: Why My Second TEDx Draft Was Worse Than The First
- Episode 5: My TEDx Draft 3: Even Worse than Versions 1 and 2
- Episode 6: My TEDx Draft 4: How I Completely Overhauled My Talk
- Episode 7: How to Write a TEDx Talk You’re Proud Of: The Final Draft
- Episode 8: How I Rehearsed (Unconventionally) For My TEDx Talk
- Episode 9: What to Do The Day Before Your TEDx Talk: Master the Venue
- Episode 10: How I Freaked Out Right Before Giving My TEDx Talk
- Episode 11: The Gamble I Took with My TEDx Opening Story
Like a good meal, a talk’s success hinges on the main course. The appetizer can be phenomenal, the dessert can be breathtaking…
But if the main course sucks, no one will remember the meal well.
In this article I’ll cover how the TED model for presenting contains elements sorely missing from most business presentations, and how you can start using that model today.
2024 is the 40th anniversary of TED talks, and it was this year they decided to change their famous tagline.
TED talks are no longer “Ideas Worth Spreading”. Now TED believes:
“Ideas change everything”
TED’s official website makes the following statement:
“These talks are not for doom-scrolling pleasure. They matter. They can give an individual hope. They offer motivation to discover our better selves”
This is what is missing from our business presentations:
- Executives doom-scroll through slide decks because they have too many things to say
- Managers tune out because there’s no coherent narrative
No.
Presentations must have a core idea of change
In my previous article, I highlight the importance of the “emotionally relevant question”.
This is the question baked into your presentation introduction, which grabs audience attention and makes them emotionally invested in hearing the answer. It is a question that addresses some pain point, challenge, or issue the audience is facing and is something they care sufficiently about.
How you get from that question to its answer is your core idea of change.
Martin Luther King Jr’s famous speech asked the question: “How can we live in a free America – for all people?”
And he answered that question with his “dream”.
- The presentation is about the change from an unequal America to one that upholds the nation’s values.
Steve Job’s famous iPhone announcement speech asked the question: “How can we make phones that are smarter and easier to use?”
And he answered that question with his new product.
- The presentation is about the change from a lacking technological landscape to one that upholds Apple’s values of innovation.
But the core idea doesn’t need to be grand.
I’ve seen great presentations in the workplace ask questions like: “How do we make sales go up next quarter?”
And they answer that question with a data-informed solution.
The presentation could be about the change from losing money in the company to making money again.
And several supporting points can be made:
- Perhaps section 1 outlines the context behind the drop in sales
- Section 2 explores some potential solutions
- And section 3 highlights the top choice…
But every single point and section must tie back to the core idea of change
That’s how you make a presentation more than just a dry list of points, but a living vehicle for change that shows how all those points connect together.
I used the same principle to build my talk for TEDx Logan Circle.
In the introduction I ask the question: “how can we communicate data in a more engaging way?”
And each subsequent section hints at an answer.
1. The first section explores my background in music
- As a science-minded person, my work failed to resonate because it focused on analysis and theory rather than emotional engagement.
2. In the second section, I show the same problem in the data industry
- I saw technical presentations fail to motivate action because they did not engage on an emotional, human level.
3. The third section of the talk brings those lessons together
- I demonstrate how we must add harmony and emotional depth to our data storytelling by saying not just what the numbers are, but what they mean and what people should do about them.
In this way, the entire talk is built around one core idea of change:
From poor, boring data communication to effective, inspiring data storytelling through the lens of music.
For your next presentation, TED or otherwise, remember: ideas are are not worth spreading. We have plenty of ideas and data in our organizations.
Great ideas are what change everything.
And by constructing our presentations around one core idea of change, we can help our audiences transform their thinking and memorably discover new ways of seeing the world.
Coming up next in the series is Episode 13: “When Things Go Wrong During Your TEDx Talk: 3 Pro Tips”...
Before getting to the end of the series, you can also check out the TEDx talk below!
