Who could forget Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech? Or when First Lady Michelle Obama told a group of schoolgirls they could achieve anything and then use their power to help others.
The most powerful presenters are those who communicate inspirational ideas in an impactful way, often reducing their audience to tears.
When you do this, then your ideas, your message, have a chance of forming an important part of history. This is true whether you’re presenting your next big organisational vision or a multimillion-dollar idea.
Be a natural
Steve Jobs, for example, is often referred to as a ‘master presenter’. The power of his communication came from his ability to balance technology (the features and benefits of his products) with genuine excitement for what he was presenting and selling. It was his passion for his products, that we all loved.
But enthusiasm is only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to a powerful presentation.
Jobs didn’t ever just ‘wing’ his presentations. He never pulled up an old pitch from the archives, changed a few facts and presented it like it was new.
Many teams would work feverishly on his new presentation and product launch for months prior to the big event. They’d rehearse on stage for days, like a dance troupe practising their choreographed routine time and time ago.
6 secrets of great communicators
- Use stories to bring your ideas to life.
- Contrast the present against the future with your idea in it.
- Show passion, emotion and excitement.
- Repeat your main message to make it stick.
- Use metaphors to add colour and impact.
- Rehearse – over and over again until the big day.
Say it again
The communicators we all look up to understand that a presentation is an opportunity to influence people to act. Sometimes this might even mean trying to change someone’s mind.
Sure, what’s happening in the present might be good or okay, but imagine what the future would look like with your idea firmly in it? How might this impact someone’s role or career? Would it make life easier? Better? Cheaper?
Metaphors, analogies and stories are a great way of bringing this imagery to life – ‘I have a dream’.
As is repeating this main message throughout your presentation. When you bring the message, the meaning and the delivery all together, you’ll make an impact beyond words.
Isn’t that something you want to be remembered for?
