Big conference talk or presentation coming up soon? I recently gave a talk at #PM15 for their peer-to-peer TEDx style talks dubbed PMx.

I decided to put together this 3-step framework that anyone can use when giving a talk or presenting. It can be 5 or 5,000 people in the room, the same principles still apply.

1. Resonate with Your Audience

I have a saying that I use often:

“We’re all soldiers of the same struggle.”

Indeed we’re all human and the same wind blows on us all.

I knew there would be entrepreneurs and podcasters in the audience just like. People who struggle and feel inadequate when it comes to downloads and listenership. I choose to weave this into the meat and potatoes of my talk so we’d share a common bond.

2. Apply The Rule of 3 and Practice, Practice, Practice

Scott Schwertly taught me the rule of 3 when I interviewed him on Event Supremacy. It goes a little something like this: 1.. 2.. 3.. I forget. After the third point or topic your audience will get lost or won’t remember what you said. Hence the importance of keeping things simple.

Another piece of advice Scott gave me? Practice at least 8x before presenting (you’ll see I don’t have note cards in the video).

My talk had one underlying theme, “How will you get up?” and I made a point to beat it into everyone’s head by saying it at least 3 times. I also broke my talk down into three segments:

• Introduction (Segment 1)
  • Personal story on getting knocked down
    • How will you get up?
• Meat & potatoes (Segment 2)
  • What getting knocked down will look like – listenership, downloads, etc.
    • How will you get up?
• Main story (Segment 3)
  • Mike Tyson vs. James “Buster” Douglas
    • How will you get up?
    • Call-To-Action

3. Craft a Compelling Story

I took inspiration from my life and the challenges I’d been facing in my business. One of my friends posted a video in the comments of my Facebook post when I opened up about how bad things had gotten. It was an E.T. compilation and one of clips was Mike Tyson getting knocked out by Buster Douglas.

I loved the this story! The insurmountable odds that Buster had to overcome to win was mind-blowing. This was the perfect story to incorporate into my talk – Heart of a Campion: How To Get Up

 

The End Result

I got feedback from a few of the attendees. They said it resonated with them and they left the room feeling inspired. For me that’s a win. My talk was a testament to the power of being vulnerable. The power of allowing others to relate to what you’re going through and being able to take away a lesson.

Have your ever been inspired to give a talk at a conference or event? Why not give it a shot? I challenge you to get outside of that comfy box of complancey.

Here’s a GoPro edit I whipped up if you want to see the final product:

Quick side note: GoPro’s are not ideal for recording your talks lol. 🙂

Please pass this along to another podcaster or entrepreneur that needs  their spirits lifted.  And always remember that while the journey is yours, you’re never alone.

With love,
Vernon

P.S. My mom said she loved it, but the language wasn’t cool. I told her I loved her and that I have a weird way of expressing myself by being 100% authentic.