Lecture Seven Semester 2, 2016 Jason Harding (PhD)
Lecturer Jason Harding Details Name: Jason Harding (PhD) Location: G27, 2.16A, Gold Coast Campus Phone: (07) 555 27941 Email: j.harding@griffith.edu.au 1220hsl Website: www.1220hsl.com
There is nothing more inspirational than a bold idea delivered by a great speaker Carmine Gallo 2014
1 Talk Like TED
Talk Like TED Ideas are the currency of the twenty first century Some people are exceptionally good at presenting their ideas. Some are not There is nothing more inspirational than a bold idea delivered by a great speaker Ideas, effectively packaged and delivered, can change the world
Talk Like TED In March 2012, civil rights attorney Bryan Stevensen delivered a talk to 1000 people attending the annual TED conference in Long Beach California He received the longest standing ovation in TED history, and his presentation has been viewed nearly two million times online For 18 minutes Stevensen held the audience spellbound by appealing to their heads and their hearts He did not use a PowerPoint presentation. He offered no visuals, no slides, no props The power of his narrative carried the day
Talk Like TED In March 2011, professor David Christian launched a movement to teach Big History in schools after delivering a riveting 18-minute TED talk backed by visually engaging slides and intriguing graphics Big History teaches students how the world evolved and its place in the universe Christian s presentation, which covers 13 billion years of history in 18 minutes, has been viewed more than one million times
Talk Like TED Stevensen and Christian have seemingly different presentation styles One tells stories, the other delivers mountains of data with image rich slides Yet both are captivating, entertaining, and inspiring because they share nine secrets Today I want to tell you about 6 of those
Talk Like TED When you present ideas you essentially are trying to stand out in a sea of ideas It is easy to remain invisible Daniel Pink notes, in To Sell Is Human, Like it or not we are all in sales now You need to be able to sell yourself and your ideas persuasively There are three components of an inspiring presentation. The most engaging presentations are: Emotional They touch your heart Novel They teach you something new Memorable They present content in ways you ll never forget
Talk Like TED Emotional - Passion Emotional - Passion Great communicators reach your head and touch your heart Most people who do a presentation forget the heart part The key part of the TED format is that you have humans connecting to humans in a direct and almost vulnerable way. You are on stage naked, so to speak. The talks that work best are the ones where people can really sense that humanity. The emotions, dreams, imagination. Chris Anderson, Curator, TED
Talk Like TED Emotional - Passion Passion is the thing that will help you create the highest expression of your talent Larry Smith, TEDx, November 2011 Dig deep to identify your unique and meaningful connection to your presentation topic Passion leads to mastery and your presentation is nothing without it, but keep in mind that what fires you might not be that obvious (we will touch on this shortly) Why does passion work? Because passion is contagious, literally. You cannot inspire others unless you are inspired yourself You stand a greater chance of persuading and inspiring your listeners if you express an enthusiastic, passionate, and meaningful connection to your topic
Talk Like TED Emotional - Passion The most popular TED speakers share something in common with the most engaging communicators in any field, a passion, and obsession they must share with others So ask yourself what it is that you are passionate about. However the specific questions you ask yourself here will lead to very different answers A few examples Howard Schultz, the founder of Starbucks, is passionate about coffee so much as he is passionate about creating a third place between work and home Aimee Mullins, a Paralympian, model, and actress, isn t passionate about prosthetics; she is passionate unleashing human potential Tony Hsieh, the founder of online retailer Zappos, isn t passionate about shoes, he is passionate about delivering hapiness
Talk Like TED Emotional - Passion Now when you replace the question, what are you passionate about? with what makes your heart sing? your answers become more profound Example. A leader in the agribusiness community of California - heads an association of strawberry growers, an important crop for the state. Question 1: What do you do? I m CEO of the California Strawberry Commission Question 2: What are you passionate about? I m passionate about promoting California Strawberries Question 3: What makes your heart sing? The American Dream. My parents were immigrants and worked in the fields. Eventually they were able to buy an acre of land and grew it from there. With strawberries, you don t need a lot of land and you don t need to own it; you can lease it. It s a stepping stone to the American Dream
Talk Like TED Emotional - Passion A passion is something that is intensely meaningful and core to a person s identity Your passion defines you Successful speakers can t wait to share their ideas Successful speakers have charisma, and charisma is directly associated with how much passion the speaker has for their content Passion mobilizes a person s energy and enhances his or her commitment to a goal And motivated and energized speakers are always more interesting and engaging than bored and passive ones However
Talk Like TED Emotional - Passion You need to check the quality of you re your motivation Is it selfish or altruistic? Is it aimed at just a few or at the great number? Is it aimed at their short term or long term good? If your only goal is to make a sale or to elevate your stature, you might fail to connect with your audience (and place a lot of pressure on yourself in the process) If, however, your goal is more altruistic giving your audience information to help them live better lives you ll make a deeper connection and feel more comfortable in your role
Talk Like TED Emotional - Passion If you find your topic fascinating and interesting and wonderful, its more likely that your audience will as well So you need to work out what you find fascinating and interesting and wonderful You need to work out where your passion lies You need to work out what makes your heart sing
Talk Like TED Emotional - Storytelling Emotional Storytelling Tell stories to reach people s heart s and minds Stories stimulate and engage the human brain, helping the speaker connect with the audience and making it much more likely that the audience will agree with the speaker s point of view You have to get folks to trust you. If you start withy something too esoteric and disconnected from the lives of everyday people, its harder for people to engage. I often talk about family members because most of us have family members that we have a relationship to Brian Stevensen In that context there is a power in identity When we create the right kind of identity, we can say things to the world around us that they don t actually believe makes sense. We can get them to do things that they don t think they can do
Talk Like TED Emotional - Storytelling Narrative is the most powerful way to break down resistance Narrative is the most powerful way to engage an audience You need data, facts, and analysis to challenge people, but you also need narrative to get people comfortable enough to care about something that you are advocating for Your audience needs to be willing to go on a journey And storytelling is the ultimate tool of persuasion Storytelling is data with a soul Brene Brown And there is always a story
Talk Like TED Emotional - Storytelling There are three simple, effective types of stories Personal Stories Stories About Other People Stories About Brand Success We all love stories. We re born for them. Stories affirm who we are. We all want affirmations that our lives have meaning. And nothing does a greater affirmation than when we connect through stories. It can cross the barriers of time, past, present and future, and allow us to experience the similarities between ourselves and through others, real and imagined Andrew Stanton, write of Toy Story, TED February 2012 What we often do is fall into presentation mode and forget that the most effective way of delivering information is through the emotional connection of a story. Stories make concepts real and tangible But as the noise level of modern life has become almost deafening, the ability to tell a purposeful story that can truly be heard is increasingly in demand
Talk Like TED Storytelling Great speakers are mavericks, adventurers, and rule-bending rebels who take risks. They tell stories to express their passion for their subject and to connect with their audiences. Stories illustrate, illuminate, and inspire
Talk Like TED Emotional Have A Conversation Emotional Have a Conversation It takes practice to appear natural Practice and internalise your content so that you can deliver the presentation as comfortably as having a conversation with a friend True persuasion occurs only after you have built an emotional rapport with your listeners and have gained their trust If your voice, gestures, and body language and incongruent with your words, your listeners will distrust your message Be totally authentic Thomas Doby And authenticity does not occur naturally. That s right: authenticity does not occur naturally
Talk Like TED Emotional Have A Conversation An authentic presentation requires hours of hard work Digging deeper into your soul than you ever have choosing the right words that best represent the way you feel about your topic, delivering those words for maximum impact, and making sure that your non-verbal communication your gestures, facial expressions, and body language are consistent with your message If you don t practice having a conversation, you will be thinking about a million other things instead of being focussed on your story and making an emotional connection with your listener And remember, your strength as a speaker comes from the inside Your delivery and gestures will enhance your overall message but without passion your presence will be severely diminished
Talk Like TED Novel Teach Me Something Novel Teach Me Something New Novelty recognition is a hard wired survival tool all humans share. Our brains are trained to look for something brilliant and new, something that stands out, something that looks delicious Dr. A. K. Pradeep, Author, The Buying Brain Novelty is the single most effective way to capture a person s attention YouTube trends manager Kevin Alloca told a TED audience that in a world where two days of videos get uploaded every minute, Only that which is truly unique and unexpected can stand out The brain cannot ignore novelty
Talk Like TED Novel Teach Me Something Reveal information that s completely new to your audience, packaged differently, or that offers a fresh way to solve an old problem The human brain loves novelty An unfamiliar, unusual, or unexpected element in a presentation intrigues the audience, jolts them out of their preconceived notions, and quickly gives them a new way of looking at the world Curiosity is the most important thing you own. And imagination is a force that can actually manifest reality James Cameron When you jolt someone out of their preconceived notions, you can inform. You can put so much information into that mind because it s in full receiving mode
Talk Like TED Novel Teach Me Something On education but applicable to all presentations When you walk into a classroom you have two jobs: one is to teach and the other is to recruit everyone in that classroom to join the pursuit of truth Robert Ballard, Deep Sea Explorer As long as you relate your topic to the audience by teaching them something they can use in their daily lives, you ll hook them too Reveal information that is completely new to your audience, is packaged differently, or offers a fresh and novel way to solve an old problem Every superhero has an origin story. So do you. Don t follow someone else s. Create your own masterpiece Oliver Uberti, TEDx Speaker And Designer
Talk Like TED Novel Lighten Up Over the past century a sense of humour has become a highly prized personal characteristic Rod A. Martin, Psychologist Don t take yourself (or your topic) too seriously. The brain loves humour. Give your audience something to smile about Humour lowers defenses, making your audience more receptive to your message It also makes you seem more likable, and people are more willing to do business with or support something they like However, keep in mind that a poorly told, or worse, a well-delivered but tactless joke can diminish your reputation with your audience very quickly
Talk Like TED Memorable Stay In Your Lane Be authentic, open, and transparent Most people can spot a phony. If you try to be something or someone you are not, you will fail to gain the trust of your audience And it takes courage to stay in your lane And staying in your lane is more than just sticking to topics you know very well. It is about being personal - vulnerable This is about being the best representation of yourself you can possibly be. This is about being your authentic self Carmine Galo
Talk Like TED One Final Note Failure to communicate effectively in business is a fast road to failure It means startups won t get funded, products, won t get sold, projects won t get backing, and careers won t soar The ability to deliver a presentation or pitch yourself and your ideas could quite easily mean the difference between enjoying acclaim and toiling in hopeless obscurity You re still alive. That means your life has purpose. You were meant for greatness. Don t sabotage your potential because you can t communicate your ideas Go get em guys