If you’ve got a presentation to give at work or school — or are perhaps getting ready to speak at a TEDx event? — we recommend these talks to help get you pumped up.
Thanks to college near-classmate (a year behind) Larry Fagan MD for this, which was in turn pointed out to him by one of his students, Sarah Aerni. (I met Larry for the first time last month at the Stanford Medicine X conference!)
All told these will take 80 minutes. If you’re not willing to spend that on being a better speaker, you’re not a cadet. :) The roster of talks:
- Julian Treasure: How to speak so that people want to listen A whole lot of practical skill in these ten minutes. (If you don’t care about “so people want to listen,” you haven’t been paying attention to this series.)
- Amy Cuddy: Your body language shapes who you are. Guaranteed to make you laugh and think.
- Joe Kowan: How I beat stage fright
- Melissa Marshall: Talk nerdy to me <=oo, I haven’t even watched this (as I write, here) and I’m already in love
- Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action <= he spoke at the TEDx where I did
- Sebastian Wernicke: Lies, damned lies and statistics (about TEDTalks) <= I used Sebastian’s thinking in planning my talk
- Megan Washington: Why I live in mortal dread of public speaking
- Clint Smith: The danger of silence – a five minute talk with 263 comments. Why?? Pay attention and think.
Enjoy, and learn.
This is the latest in the Speaker Academy series, which started here.
Next in the series: #27: Impact speakers! Get the “Official TED Guide” to speaking
I spend a lot of time giving presentations and also helping to make good presenters great and also tea forming presenters into educators. It’s always been my opinion that there are three keys to being a more effective presenter:
1. Know your topic
2. Know your audience
3. Connect 1 and 2
Presentation skills can be honed and refned; effective use of the eyes, hands, positioning, voice and cues are easily addressed. Too many presenters fail to connect with their audiences and then combine non-verbal and verbal actions to attempt to deliver what they feel is effective. Many succeed, but many more could be even better with some focused training.
I like to ask people to think of the best presenters (and educators) that they have seen. And also the least effective presenters that hey have encountered. Lists of the qualities in each group then serve as a menu of items to address in group or individual training.
I’m always happy to talk with folks to help them identify opportunities to improve their own presentations skills and styles.
And I continue to refine my own presentations skills!
And Dave, we met as fellow TEDx presenters but you have continued to master the art of presenting. :)
Thanks, Lawrence!
For anyone who doesn’t know Lawrence Sherman, he makes a living being an instructor – globally. He knows what he’s talking about.