How to Speak

Patrick Winston: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Unzc731iCUY
"Your success in life will be determined largely by your ability to speak, your ability to write, and the quality of your ideas. In that order."

These are my notes on the video above.

Summary

• Tell people up front what they will know or learn by the end of the talk.
• Tell them what you are telling them 3 times.
• Fence in your idea - showing how its different.

How to start

• Don't start with a joke.
• Start with a promise - tell people what they will know at the end of the hour that they didn't know at the start of the hour.

Samples

• Tell them what you want to tell them, tell them again, and then tell them a third time.
• At any given moment, people will be fogged out.
• Build a fence - fence in your idea. Clarify what makes your idea different.
• Verbal Punctuation - because people fog out, you need a way to get them back in. A seam in the talk for them to get back on.
• Ask a question - 7 seconds. Ask a question and wait 7 seconds. Not too hard and not too easy. If it is too obvious people are too embarrassed to say it.

Time and Place

• 11am. Most people are awake by then.
• Place - well lit. When lights are dim it signals going to sleep. Keep the lights full up.
• Place should be cased - go early to where you will speak so you can look at it all.
• Reasonably populated - Right sized place more than half full.

Boards, Props, Slides

Boards

• Graphic quality - drawings etc.
• Speed - the speed at which you can write on a blackboard is about the same speed as people being able to absorb ideas.
• Target - hands can point at the board. Rather than just being in pockets.

Props

• Can be impactful. Is often the most memorable.

Empathetic mirroring - people always prefer the blackboard over slides. They can feel as though they are writing on the board.

Slides

• Exposing ideas not teaching ideas.
• Slides have too many words.
• Slides are condiments, not the main event.
• Get rid of words, be as close to slides as possible physically.
• Eliminate clutter.
• Get rid of title.
• One language processor - either read or listen. Can't do both.
• 40 -50 point smallest size on slides.
• Don't turn your head away from the audience.
• You can get away with one complicated slide.

Special Cases

• Informing talks - start with a promise.
• Inspiration - high schoolers on a survey were inspired by words "you can do it." Senior faculty were inspired by being shown how to see a problem in a new way. But what cut across them all is passion. Exhibiting passion about what you are doing.
• How to think - how do you teach people how to think? - Provide them with the stories they need to know, the questions they need to ask about those stories, mechanisms for analyzing the stories, ways of putting stories together, and ways of evaluating the accuracy of the stories.

Persuading

• 5 minutes to establish vision and show what you've done in Job Talks.
• vision - Problem that somebody cares about. And something new in your approach.
• Done something - listing the steps that are needed to provide a solution.

Getting Famous

• Once you have the job, you need to think about how you will be recognized for what you do. Why should you care about getting famous? - your ideas are like children, don't send them out without the right care!

How to get Famous

• Winston Star - 5S's.
  • Symbol - associated with your work.
  • Slogan - phrase that provides handle on your work. One shot learning.
  • Surprise -
  • Salient - an idea that sticks out.
  • Story - how you did it, how it works, why its important.

How to stop

• Final slide and final words.
• No thank yous, no questions, no conclusions,
• Final slide should be "Contributions" - what did you contribute to the people?
• Joke at the end is okay.
• Saying thank you is a weak move. You are saying that people stayed out of politeness.