Putting Your Best Foot Forward Embarking on Your TEDx Journey
By Debra Wallace
saying. The main philosophy of TEDx is that you are giving a gift to the audience and that gift now belongs to the TEDx universe.” For Young, his favorite part of the TEDx process is “bringing people together to share ideas, energy, and camaraderie.” He is also aware that a successful talk can bolster the career, company, or brand of the speaker. “If you are trying to be someone else, or if you are trying to sound like a TEDx speaker, it won’t work,” said Young, an experienced professional speaker and speaking coach, who worked with several of the recent presenters on their talks. Of the 100 most watched TEDx talks, a researcher broke down the content and discovered that 65 percent of them created an emotional connection, 25 percent used logic, reason, or statistics, and 10 percent focused on personality or background. “So, the best advice I can offer,” said Young, “is to be authentic.” Every TEDx organization in the nation has its own platform, and Young said that because Wilmington is a ‘business hub’ it is known for business, leadership, entrepreneurship, science, and aspirational growth. “I always want to hear from people who are talking about relevance.”
are Lisa Yeung, M.D. who spoke about Better than Logic: How to Make Your Most Important Decisions; Joy Vanichkul on the topic of Intelligent Beauty, and Jules Weldon and Stacey Pierce on their message, Give Up Your Stuff, Not Your Dreams. Dr. Lisa Yeung’s talk on How to Make Your Most Important Decisions focused on the fact that she believes “we often get stuck in indecision, not because we don't know the answer, but because we are fighting our intuition and we think we need to justify it with logic, reason, and other's opinions.” Although Dr. Yeung finished writing her final draft “much later” than she expected, she said that she trusted the process while she allowed the talk to unfold. The experience solidified her belief in the message she shared on stage: “Our Intuition is much more powerful than logic, reason, and even expert opinion. So, after you consider the necessary and relevant information and perspectives, trust your intuition.” During her talk, she shared two personal stories and three client stories that illustrate her point in different ways. “It's not necessarily easy to trust your intuition—it can be scary, uncomfortable, and even disruptive,” explained Dr. Yeung.
When it comes to approaching a major endeavor like your first TEDx talk, it is always best to be as prepared as possible so that you will shine during your big moment. While talking to organizers and several recent participants, it is crystal clear that there is no one single path to follow, but there is certainly sage advice that can be invaluable. Some 25 speakers—most of them Bellwether members—prepared for their TEDxWilmington talk on Saturday, April 29. The talks were 18 minutes in length and packed a memorable and powerful punch. Organizer Dr. Dan Young has successfully worked closely with dozens of speakers during the past 10 years and strongly believes that each of us has our own method for approaching a TEDx talk. But he offers crucial advice that could make the difference between a dud…and a dazzling presentation. “Everyone has his or her own way to prepare, but the key ingredient for a successful presentation is flow,” explains Young, co- founder/owner of the Leadership Excellence Academy for Nonprofits. “With that flow, the audience feels as if it is transported into your world for a bit,” he added. “They have a true emotional connection to what you are
Among the recent TEDx speakers, who are also Bellwether members,
“But it is often more than worth it to trust your intuition and live
Page 29
Powered by FlippingBook