This article was printed in Southwest Airline’s Spirit Magazine.
Article transcript:
Communication coach Carmine Gallo shares his tips for preparing a TED-worthy presentation.
- Follow the 18-minute Rule“Whether you’re a humble academic researcher or Bono, each TED presenter is given no more than 18 minutes to speak,” Gallo says. “Research shows that speeches exceeding 20 minutes increase the anxiety levels of those listening, so be mindful of the length of your talk to ensure a positive experience.”
- Share Your Passion“Dig deep to identify what about your topic makes your heart sing. As Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor was preparing her TED talk about the day she had a stroke, she was focused on the medical takeaways. A friend suggested she speak instead to what her stroke taught her about spirituality. The talk now has more than 10 million views.”
- Think Visually“Employ visuals to take audience members on a journey that drives your message home. Undersea explorer Robert Ballard’s talk featured 57 slides that contained only photos. Because the slides didn’t use words, they complemented his story instead of detracting from it. When information is delivered verbally, we remember about 10 percent of what’s said. When you add a picture, retention goes up to 65 percent.”
- Tell a Story“In public speaking, you want your audience to like you. You can accomplish this by establishing an emotional connection through storytelling. Neuroscientists have discovered that when a story is being told, speaker and listener are literally in sync, meaning the brain lights up in the same region for both parties.”
- Practice Being Natural“While it sounds counter intuitive to say that the more you practice, the more natural you’ll look and sound, it’s not. Practice allows you to internalize your content, making it easier to focus on nuances of communication like tone and body language. It also gives you confidence.”
Carmine Gallo is an independent, objective communication expert and is not affiliated with TED Conferences, LLC