Who knew? 3 things a bank can teach you about public speaking

If you look carefully, you can often learn great public-speaking tips from all kinds of places. (Not just from obvious ones, like courses.)

Let’s check out an example…

As my LinkedIn profile can tell you, I work at CommBank (Commonwealth Bank of Australia, also known as CBA).

Recently, CommBank’s values were updated, so they’re now succinctly expressed in just 3 words:

• Care
• Courage
• Commitment

When I first heard those words, I was struck by how well they work together. And as I reflected on exactly why that is, I realised it’s because they have these 3 traits:

2 ways to use modern, ALL‑CAPS slides – without typos!

Do you sometimes follow the design trend of using uppercase text for headings or other short labels on your slides?

Recently, I’ve twice seen presen­tations with very modern-looking slides using all-uppercase text in brief cap­tions.

My logo can help you be a better speaker – here’s how

Even if you’re a regular reader here, it’s quite unlikely you know what my logo looks like. So check it out:

The logo’s shape and colours represent tech­niques you can use

The logo’s shape and colours represent techniques you can use to make your public speaking more effective. In this post, you’ll find:

• What those techniques are.
• Links where you can learn more.

If you’re short of time, you can click a heading in this post’s contents list:

4 speaking tips from a pro with 2+ million fans – @TomFrankly [Video] ·

If you had to focus on just 4 things to make your next talk great, which would you pick?

That’s a tough call, because so many factors go into a talk. Which is just one reason I was intrigued by the video below.

Another reason I was intrigued?
The video quotes 3 experts I’ve also quoted before:

• Chris Anderson
• Michael Port
• Marcus Sheridan

In the 7½-minute video, Thomas Frank (who has over 2 million YouTube subscribers) explains the 4 aspects of your talk that he recommends you focus on…

To save you time, this clip skips the first 60 seconds (and the last 90) of the original video (when he sets up his topic and promotes some courses).
If you like, you can watch the full 10-minute version on YouTube.

Let’s look at each of the 4 aspects Thomas believes can make your talk great. You can click any of these links to skip ahead – or, just scroll down…

Avoid my mistakes in your Ignite talk – part 2 [Video]

If you’ve read my last post, you’ll know I was inspired by Aaron Beverly (World Champion of Public Speaking 2019) to write a self-critique of one of my talks.

In today’s post, I discuss what are (to me) the strongest aspects and weakest aspects of my talk.

Why not watch my 5-minute presentation below, and judge for yourself?

Then, feel free to share your viewpoint in the comment box at the bottom of this post.

Here’s what you’ll find in the rest of this post – you can click any of these links to skip ahead:

Avoid my mistakes in your Ignite talk – part 1 [Video]

Short of time? Skip the intro

If you’re thinking of speaking at an Ignite night, this post can help you avoid the mistakes I made in my own Ignite talk.

And even if you give some other kind of speech, the tips you’ll find in this post (like about humour, gestures and opening lines) should still help.

In this post and my next, you’ll find a critique of various aspects of my talk on this 3-point scale:

Don’t speak like you’re stuck in the 90s – do this instead [Video]

Have you ever heard a presenter say something that stood out – but for all the wrong reasons?

Several times recently, I’ve heard public speakers (in webinars or on video) say something that met that description.

I wonder how you would’ve reacted if you’d heard those speakers.

To me, it made them sound dated, and out of touch with how audiences speak. (Gaffs like that damage the speaker – and their message.)

Yet all the speakers did was say 3 letters and the word “dot”. (In fact, one letter 3 times in a row.)

You’ve probably guessed what they said:

Where’s your talk going? Map it with this 2×2 grid [Video]

In this 3-minute video by Kelly Decker, you’ll see a quick way to form an extremely high-level view of your talk or presentation:

And read below for tips to fix the problem that Kelly describes.

Kelly’s the president of Decker Communications, whose content I’ve featured before. (Years ago I shared a post of theirs about pausing when you present, and last year I published a video from them about speaking on a panel.)

I love the way Kelly’s “roadmap” makes you think of your talk in 2 dimensions:

Want cool PowerPoint slides? Add a “roadmap” to them [Video]

Have you seen Pat Flynn’s great video about making slides? Right now, it’s had almost 1½ million views, and it’s called:

How to Create an Awesome Slide Presentation
(for Keynote or PowerPoint)

In his video, Pat shares pro tips to make your slideshows more engaging. So I highly recommend you watch it. (You’ll find it at the bottom of this post.)

 

My how-to video

Meanwhile, in the 1^st of the videos below, you’ll see the precise steps you can use to implement one of Pat’s tips. That is, to add what he calls a “roadmap” to your slides.

So, watch my 6-minute, hands-on video to see what’s meant by a roadmap, and learn exactly how you can add one in PowerPoint:

Make your talk engaging – 5 tips to add emotional elements [PACE principles: part 4]

Short of time? Skip to the tips

When you present at work (or at a conference or other speaking event), do you aim to make people feel some­thing specific?

If you do, you’ll have a far higher chance of engaging people, and therefore of achieving your talk’s goal. But if you don’t, your talk’s likely to be quickly forgotten – in less time than it took you to present!

Not convinced? Well, many speaking professionals suggest using emotional elements. For instance, in his book The Naked Presenter, Garr Reynolds writes:

“Content alone is never sufficient.
We need an emotional connection…”
Garr Reynolds

And former president of the National Speakers’ Association, Patricia Fripp says: