Besides listening to the great content that Nancy shared, one of the first things I observed is how Nancy incorporated her own presentation techniques. By including her techniques, Nancy showed the effectiveness of them.
Highlighting Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Steve Jobs, Nancy shared speaker-approaches that are effective for any speaker and any presentation. For example, when speaking about the launch of one of his new products, Steve Jobs was unapologetic about the greatness of his product; Nancy said that he marveled over it. As presenters, we have to believe in our idea and marvel over it. If we do not believe in what we are sharing then it will be difficult to convince listeners. Nancy noted that Steve also kept the audience physically involved via clapping and laughing. In keeping the audience physically involved, the audience probably felt that their role in Steve's presentation mattered just as much as the content he was presenting.
Nancy discussed how Dr. King and Steve Jobs both presented ideas of "what is" vs. "what could be". Using this technique was especially effective for Dr. King because he used a familiar metaphor comparing present life to what could be if politician-made-promises were kept. Nancy noted that Dr. King used words that reached into the hearts of audience members and he connected with them through familiar songs and scriptures. In addition to connecting with the audience on a very personal level, Nancy shared how Dr. King painted scenes with his words making listeners dream of a better world. While the content is different, Nancy showed us how Dr. King and Steve Jobs used techniques that not only mirror each other, but the techniques were also effective. Like Dr. King, Nancy noted that Steve Jobs used storytelling to help his listeners journey with him.
As I am growing as a leader, I am learning a lot of useful tips along the way. Two tips that I find most impacting are: 1) believe what I am speaking about 2) include the audience in the story. I find these tips most powerful because they involve connecting with the audience. Speakers could have great content, however, if it seems that there is internal-disinterest or a glaze in their (the speaker's) eyes, audience members will not connect; ultimately, people want to feel connected. In addition to keeping the audience involved, it is important that I believe what I am speaking; just like speaker-distance is communicated, disbelief is also negatively communicated. Dr. King and Steve Jobs were such powerful speakers because they fully believed in what they were speaking and they fully connected with those they were speaking.
http://www.ted.com/talks/nancy_duarte_the_secret_structure_of_great_talks
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