Why the Most Powerful Short-Form Speeches Do These 3 Things
Description: Clarity Up founder Brian Miller's top three lessons for delivering impactful TED-style speeches based on extensive experience with Speaker Slam and successful client engagements. Learn how to define a compelling throughline, utilize storytelling effectively, and bring fresh perspectives to common topics to captivate and motivate audiences towards meaningful action.
Since 2018 I've reviewed hundreds of TED-style speaker application proposals in discovery calls and workshops.
I've watched dozens of short-form inspirational talks as a recurring judge for Speaker Slam, the largest inspirational speaking competition in North America.
And I've accepted a small fraction of those as clients for our bespoke, private consulting work, subsequently placing dozens of speakers on the world's most prestigious stages.
Our clients at Conquer the Red Dot® have collectively received over 10,000,000 views and leveraged their talks to create international social movements, quit the 9-5 to build successful businesses, get placed in premium publications like Forbes and People, and even influence policy makers at the national and international levels.
And in this article, I've going to reveal the Top 3 lessons I've learned about delivering powerful and persuasive short-form talks.
3 Lessons I've Learned About Delivering High Impact, Short-Form Speeches
1. Every Talk Needs a Throughline
In his book TED Talks: The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking, head of TED Chris Anderson says:
"[The] throughline [is] the connecting theme that ties together each narrative element. Every talk should have one."
That's all well and good, but what should that throughline be? I'll tell you- it should be an idea.
Trouble is, most people have no idea what an idea is. So, what isn’t an idea?
An idea is not a topic or an issue. Let's break those down.
A topic is a subject area, like 'climate change.'
An issue is a specific aspect of a topic that is open to debate, such as 'carbon emissions.'
But how can you tell if you have an idea?
Well, if I ask you, "What's your idea?" and you tell me 'climate change', you clearly haven't answered my question. Same for 'carbon emissions'.
So, what IS an idea?
An idea proposes a solution and moves people to action.
If you're stuck, try this framework: To ACTION so that IMPACT.
i.e. To start local renewable energy projects so that communities can fight climate change and protect themselves better.
Once you know your throughline - what we at Clarity Up call a core message - then you can keep your entire talk consistent and on message by using it as a filter.
The filter works by continually asking yourself, "Does this thing I'm considering saying immediately and obviously support my throughline?"
If the answer is ever 'no', that thing has no business being in a short-form talk.
When I judge speaking competitions, the most common category I dock major points is "message clarity." You simply cannot afford to deliver an unclear message.
Lesson: When time is of the essence and words are limited, build your talk around a single idea and stick to it.
2. Your Story is There to Serve
Every yahoo on LinkedIn wants to tell you how important storytelling is. And hey - they're right, story IS important.
But a story should never be the purpose of a presentation, particularly in short-form situations. To quote our own resident yahoo - ahem, story specialist - Francisco Mahfuz:
"A story is merely a real-life example that makes a point."
So, what's the point?
No really, that's what you should be asking yourself.
You've got a story, probably a personal story that's deep, meaningful, or moving. But what point are you making with that story?
A story is not an idea
Your story is a vehicle to deliver the idea. The story is there to make the idea tangible, engaging, and relevant by reaching the primitive cave-person parts of our brain.
So yes, tell your story! But be sure that the story is there to serve the core message of your talk.
Pro tip: After telling a story, you can always use the phrase, "So, why did I tell you that?" to snap the audience and yourself back into focus.
Lesson: Explicitly articulate the lesson or purpose of that story after telling it, to ensure your audience is not merely entertained, but fully engaged in the core message of the talk.
3. Persuasive Talks Are Built on Perspective
Do you have a topic that is fairly generic or well-worn? Something like resilience, burnout, or productivity?
Many speakers come from the world of coaching or consulting, where they have great success helping their clients achieve personal transformation.
But when it comes time to speak on stage about it, they find themselves saying the same old things that every other speaker, YouTuber, author, podcaster, and influencer has said about that very same topic.
We receive information differently in one-to-one settings than we do sitting in the audience listening to a speaker on stage.
The same advice that feels personal in a coaching session feels generic on stage. So, how do you deliver a persuasive talk on a generic or well-worn topic?
Lean into your outsider's perspective
Instead of presenting yourself as an insider expert on that topic, find lessons you've learned outside of the generic topic, and use them to create a fresh perspective for the audience.
My topic is human connection, and trust me when I tell you that people have heard the phrase,"listen to understand, not just to respond or reply" before. It's practically a meme at this point.
But because I deliver that message through the lens of what I learned as a professional magician, my audiences are able to 'see' the well-worn communication tropes through a new perspective, and are therefore more likely to take action on them.
So if you speak on resilience, tell me how you learned to be resilient when you grew a business selling knitted cat sweaters.
If you speak on burnout, help me understand its true impact by telling me about how you crashed during your collegiate basketball career and ultimately missed your shot at the NBA.
Bonus - outsiders get paid more. Just saying.
Lesson: Transform a well-worn topic into a work-of-art by leveraging an outsider's perspective.
It's time to stop motivating and starting moving people
These are lessons I learned the hard way, as a professional speaker myself and in our work at Clarity Up, training speakers to not just capture attention but also provoke real change.
Every word and story should serve a purpose, and your unique perspective is your greatest asset.
Remember, the true impact of your talk can extend far beyond the immediate audience—it can inspire actions that resonate across communities.
As you prepare for your next presentation, focus on building a core message as your throughline, ensuring that your story serves the core message, and approaching your topic from an outsider's perspective.
These principles will not only help you deliver the talk of your dreams, but move your audience to action.
Practical Advice on Clear Communication
Get exclusive tips delivered directly to your inbox twice a month.
Topics include:
How to book, write, and deliver TED-style talks
Clear and consistent messaging
Professional speaking
