On Fridays, we dip into the Six Minutes article archive in search of one of the most memorable articles. We’ll dust it off, shine a light on it, and consider it from a new perspective.
This week, we’re reaching back to January 2008 to learn techniques for presenting data by observing the famous TED talk of Hans Rosling.
Well-designed charts in your slide deck can convey meaningful insights where words alone would struggle to do so.
Poorly-designed charts in your slide deck can smother your presentation with confusion and invite mocking from your audience.
Do you know the difference?
In this article, we introduce four core principles for designing charts for slides, and then derive twenty practical guidelines you can use. We also feature many examples to illustrate these guidelines.
Has this ever happened to you?
You’ve discovered a fascinating statistic that clinches your persuasive argument. You save it for your last point, and deliver it clearly. You expect a wave of emotion to hit your audience, but…
Nothing. Your audience doesn’t react at all. Do they not get it?
If this sounds familiar, then you are not alone. A Six Minutes subscriber, Akiko Takeshita, sends this question via email:
I wonder if you have any advice for working statistics into a speech. Sometimes it works for me, but I often feel like the audience isn’t impacted by the statistic when the statistic seems very powerful to me. What am I doing wrong?
In this article, we examine the importance of using statistics in your speech, and how to do so effectively.
Imagine that you are writing your next great speech. As you scour your mind for the fact that will clinch your case, you will discover one of two things: either you know it, or you don’t.
Most of the time, you won’t know every piece of information you need to make a compelling argument, but you can find it.
The seventh Toastmasters speech project encourages you to go beyond your own knowledge and opinions, and fill in the gaps with various forms of research.
This article of the Toastmasters Speech Series examines the primary goals of this project, provides tips and techniques, and links to numerous sample speeches.
Ban the banalities that bog down most speech openings.
Defer the customary “nice-to-be-here” platitudes.
Direct your audience more into fawning than yawning over your speech opening. How?
Start your speech better by diving in! Instead of gingerly dipping your toes into the proverbial speaking pool, open with a splash! Pattern your platform performance after the TEASE opening which Saturday Night Live has made famous for more than 25 years.
Note: I originally wrote this article as a guest article for professional writer John Hewitt’s “Poewar” website. However, the article disappeared when the site was reorganized, so it has been published below for readers to enjoy.
Including facts and statistics in your writing lends credibility to your assertions and grounds them in reality. Quoting a statistic from a credible source means that your arguments are no longer just your arguments: you stand united with experts. Continue Reading »
Visualizing Information for Advocacy: An Introduction to Information Design teaches you how to visually communicate your ideas.
This free ebook was created by John Emerson as a tool to help advocacy groups:
You may not speak on behalf of an advocacy group, but every time you speak, you are attempting to deliver a message. Your message will be more compelling if you understand and apply the visualization principles in this guide.
Hans Rosling presented a fantastic talk at TED. The delivery was inspiring, the mood was electric, and it was all about statistics. Yes, statistics – a topic most often associated with dry and boring presentations.
Hans Rosling uses six simple techniques for presenting data which transform a run-of-the-mill presentation into a must-see presentation.
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