I delivered my Tedx Talk on Thursday, November 21, 2024 and will continue to unpack this journey with you and hopefully translate it into tools you can use in your daily leadership. The full talk will be live and online in late January 2025. This blog is one of my favorite topics - how to craft a compelling message that changes hearts and minds and influences others to take action.
To recap:
Part One: How do you find a single idea you are passionate about spreading?
Part Two (Today): How to construct a short, compelling talk to change hearts and minds.
Part Three (Coming Soon): How to deal with the overwhelming nerves and anxiety of high-stakes presentations.
As it became clear that my Tedx Talk would be about what I call the “pedestal problem," I had to figure out how to tell it in a compelling story. The pedestal problem is our tendency to put others on a pedestal, thinking that because they have a higher title, more experience or even more charisma than us, then they must know best. Then, our ideas and insights don't matter or there's no room for our expertise. Thus, we silence our insights and intuition about making our work, and the world, a better place.
As I considered how to tell my story, I googled every Ted best practice and looked at tools to “deliver great Ted talks.” This became overwhelming and I realized I was putting some of these Ted talk “experts” on a pedestal - thinking that they must have it all figured out!
So, I laughed at myself for being human and committing the the exact offense I would be talking about. This is when I realized that I could trust my gut on how to put this talk together. I could trust my nearly 20 years of training experience and models to design presentations that reach all audiences.
To keep it simple (I'll unpack it in more detail below so you can apply it), one of the most basic and time-tested models I use to build presentations is called 4MAT. It basically assumes that there are four types of learners and your presentation should feature content to appeal to each of them to remain engaged.
So, what does it look like to apply this concept to ANY short Ted style talk where you are trying to compel others to action with an idea?
Here are the four types (which type are you?):
The WHY person:
These people need to understand the WHY of the message by connecting with the main idea. This helps you INSPIRE an audience to be open for learning.
You can speak to the why person by opening your talk with a quick assessment (like what I'm doing right here!) or relatable story.
The WHAT person:
These folks need to see the data and helps you INFORM your audience. Did you know that we are 22 times more likely to remember a fact when it has been wrapped in a story? (Credit: Cognitive psychologist Jerome Bruner)
You can demonstrate your expertise and become believable to them by showing them the research.
The HOW person:
These listeners need to understand the process or a see a practical framework. It helps you ILLUSTRATE the idea to your audience. (Again, like I'm sharing here in a four-part framework.)
You can appeal to these listeners by showing them a three step process or tip framework to consider.
The SO WHAT person:
These participants are always asking, “So what? How do I apply this? If I do this, what happens? What's next?" This helps you show others how to TRANSFER your idea into action. (Keep reading for how to apply this more deeply!)
You can engage these participants by asking for personal reflection and discussing what's possible, case studies or skills practice.
🔥 If this feels overwhelming, let's go back to basics. A great way to make ANY of your talks as a leader more compelling is simply to make sure that you illustrate the why, the what, the how and the “so what” factor. Start there and you may find that you can do a better job of compelling hearts and minds into action. If you want to see how I applied this specifically to my talk so you can improve a presentation or talk of your own, keep reading!
(WANT KELLI TO COME AND TEACH YOUR LEADERS TO BE MORE
COMPELLING COMMUNICATORS?)
PUT THIS IDEA INTO ACTION
Now it's your turn. Think of an upcoming presentation you have or idea you want to share. This model even works for a social media post or email to inform, educate and inspire others to action.
Give this framework a try and see if it sparks something for you. (I'd love to know what comes up for you - email me!):
1. INSPIRE: For the WHY person:
In my talk, I chose to begin with a compelling hook, “Have you ever opened a jar of crisco and slathered it all over your body?” I followed this with a story about how I listened to a high schooler's expertise about “good” sunscreen choices when I was 12.
The goal was to pique interest and encourage the listener to reflect back on poor advice they took as a young person. I wanted them to see themselves in my story and following frameworks.
For you:
What is a shocking question you could ask your audience or readers?
What is a relatable story you can share - personal or something in pop culture? (It can even be, do you remember that Back to The Future scene…)
2. INFORM: For the WHAT person:
In my talk, I chose to feature a cognitive psychology fact - something called authority bias - which means we are more likely to be influenced by the opinions and judgments of perceived authority figures like teachers, leaders, politicians, etc. I also shared examples of the pedestal problem in real life to inform listeners of what it looks, sounds and feels like.
For you:
What is a shocking or counterintuitive statistic or fact related to your topic?
What surprising research can you share?
3. ILLUSTRATE: For the HOW person:
In my talk, I used a counterintuitive approach in that I did NOT give them advice in a “how to.” I didn't want them to put me or the advice I could give them on a pedestal! Instead, I gave them a framework of three self-coaching questions they could ask themselves to pull others off the pedestal and reconnect to themselves and their leadership potential.
For you:
Is there a diagram you can show to illustrate your point? (i.e. venn diagram, list, 4-box, simple flow chart, etc).
Is there a 3-5 step process to follow?
Is there a word you can make with the first letters of your key points?
Provide them a tool or framework to reference (like my diagram above).
4. TRANSFER: For the SO WHAT person:
In my talk, I asked them to consider what ideas or insights they were silencing because they had someone on a pedestal. I also encouraged them to apply the questions (from above) to take action on creating their future.
For you:
Ask them to reflect on their aha moments or key learnings and how they will apply it today or this week.
Ask them to consider what they will stop, start or continue to do.
Ask them to pick one project/task they will apply your message to.
Ask them to consider what their first step will be today to implement your message.
TRY THIS NEXT:
I've given you alot to process! If you feel overwhelmed, go back to a recent presentation or email communication and ask yourself, did I communicate the why, what, how and so what? Where could I have done this better for next time?
_________
Kelli Thompson is a leadership & executive coach, award-winning speaker and author of Closing The Confidence Gap. She is on a mission to help women advance to the rooms where decisions are made. She offers executive coaching, leadership workshops and keynote speaking to lead with more clarity and confidence.
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