A Creative and Impactful Way to Shine on the Red Dot

I recently received so much positive feedback on my recent evaluation of Carl Seidman’s TEDx talk I’ve evaluated another. If you missed that evaluation, (CLICK HERE )

My friend Bill Stainton is an expert in creativity and innovative thinking. His TEDxStanleyPark talk from 2017 is one of the finest examples I've seen of demonstrating his expertise while also demonstrating his topic within the talk.

For a better understanding of his talk, watch it before reading further CLICK HERE .

His talk is creative and innovative. Here’s why.

An Opening That Immediately Grabs Attention

He opens with a question…

“Do do you like sitting next to weird people?"

This elicits a big laugh and more importantly, sets up the premise of the entire talk.

47 seconds into his presentation, Bill introduces the implications of avoiding people who are different from us,?

“We’re actually cutting ourselves off from the people and experiences that can lead to our most creative ideas.”

He also introduces a metaphor he will repeat nine times in the talk - “cocoon.” This term represents the figurative shell most people live in that blinds them to opportunities.?

In less than one minute, you have the premise, you’re introduced to a problem that is universal, and you’ve also heard the first reference to a key metaphor.?

This is a textbook method to grab an audience's attention and keep their interest.

His personal story of sitting next to the woman is relatable. Most people hide in their “cocoon” on airplanes.?His description of putting on his headphones and only having a conversation in the last five minutes is an experience we’ve each had.

He also connects with us at a deeper level when he admits “I’d completely written her off…because she was different from me.”?

This is a risky moment of self-disclosure, and it connects us to him because whether we want to publicly admit it or not, we’ve also done this.

In less than five minutes, we relate to and like Bill because he's just like us.

Making the Talk More Personal

5 minutes into the talk, he asks a question and challenges us by thinking about the cost of staying in our “cocoons.” This not only relates to us individually, but as communities, and the world.?

He's pushing us out of our comfort zone, which is the mark of an excellent speaker.

If speakers leave audiences feeling the same way they did before they heard a speech, they're not going to change. It sounds like a contradiction, but in order to help people, we need to push them into a zone of discomfort in order to help them think differently and persuade them to take new actions.

A New Perspective

At the 5:20 mark, Bill shifts our thinking by redefining creativity. He gives us an everyday example (deconstructing a joke) to help us understand an?abstract concept (creativity).?

At the 7:18 mark, he brilliantly takes our understanding to a new level via use of a simple object - a dot. We can now create a picture in our minds of how creativity works, and it’s easy to understand.

He demonstrates the danger of sameness with the image of blue dots all the same size.?

He then expands our perspective with a picture of different colored dots.

Then he creates a global example with an image of dots of different sizes and shapes.?

By providing a concrete example with dots, Bill has changed our perspective of an abstract concept. We’ll never have a problem understanding how creativity works and how to use it. ?

Proof… and a Major Twist.

At the 9:36 mark, Bill?introduces another personal story to demonstrate the power of creativity under pressure.

He introduces a twist… the actor Johnny Depp was scheduled to be a guest on his TV show.

But, alas, Johnny can’t make it.?

Which sets up the bigger twist.

An obscure and different kind of guy offers to fill in. This ties back to Bill’s original idea of not prejudging people or ideas.

The obscure and different guy who filled in is… the world-famous Bill Nye the Science Guy. But, this was when he was another unknown guy who was different from most others.

Real World Examples to Prove His Idea

He later proves his main point by sharing a couple of vignettes about Guttenberg and how he used creativity to change the world with his printing press. ?

He talks about how the Beatles changed the music world with their creative combination of other musical styles.

Concluding With a Bang

At the 14:45 mark, he begins his conclusion by summarizing his point about creativity, then asking a question, "Can you?” This elicits a big response from the audience.

But, Bill doesn't stop there because if he did he's only given a motivational speech. With his next question, his talk becomes personal when he challenges the audience with two words…

“Will you?”?

This is a challenge to the audience to move beyond the enthusiasm of “That’s a cool idea!” to the action mindset, “Yes, let’s do it!”

He then gives them two specific actions to take…

- Be a dot collector?

- Be a dot connector

Bill closes out his talk by circling back to his opening story. We now have a different perspective on his encounter with the Russian woman.?

He discloses he’ll always have regrets because he allowed his “cocoon” to keep him from engaging in a conversation that might’ve led to new insights and more creative thought.

He then leaves us with the admonition “Don’t Miss out on your great conversations, your great opportunities, and, yes, your great ideas.”

One final time, he reminds us of his key image when he leaves us with the words, “Crack your cocoon today.”

Bill’s talk is meaningful and memorable because it has all the key elements of an idea worth spreading.?

• He personalizes his idea with relevant stories
• He has one clear idea which is universal
• He offers the implications of not changing
• He teases us with the possibilities of a better world if we adopt his idea
• He shares examples of influential people who’ve implemented his idea
• He offers a visual which makes the abstract more concrete

Would you like to leave a meaningful and memorable mark with your talk on the Red Dot? You can do no better than model the format Bill Stainton used to help us see his topic in a new light.

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Would You Like to Shine On The Red Dot

Many people would like to shine on the TEDx Red Dot. Unfortunately, most don't understand there are major differences between a traditional or professional speech and a TEDx talk.?

If you’d like insights into how to give yourself the best chance to audition for, and give the best possible talk on the Red Dot, schedule a brief call with me.

Schedule your no-cost & no-obligation ZOOM call: https://bit.ly/CPR15Laser