Why Graduation Speeches Should Be Like TED Talks

It’s that time of year again! Time for commencement addresses at colleges and universities across the world. 

Quick back-of-the-envelope calculation: There are more than 4,700 degree-granting colleges and universities in the US. That’s at least 4,700 commencement addresses at America’s institutions of higher learning. 

And this estimate doesn’t account for the commencement ceremonies that are often held separately by the several graduate schools that typically belong to a university. Nor does it include the more than 37,000 public and private secondary schools in the US, most of which are also likely to feature their own commencement addresses. 

That’s a lot of commencement speeches— in just the US alone.

Do you remember your college commencement address? Even if you’re a recent grad, and you do remember who the speaker was and what he said, were you inspired? Was it memorable?

I watched several commencement speeches on Youtube recently, and I was struck by how similar they all were to each other: The speaker stands behind a podium and reads a prepared text in front of thousands of graduates and their families. 

While some of the speakers I watched were inspiring, I couldn’t help but wonder if there were a more compelling way they could get their message across. 

Speakers change and their words of wisdom may be different each year, but the format has remained the same since I graduated decades ago (and probably for a lot longer than that).

But why be chained to tradition? Why not shake things up and try a fresh format that has been proven to engage and inspire audiences around the world?

Why not try delivering commencement speeches as…TED Talks?

Since the first TED conference in 1984, thousands of TED Talks with “ideas worth spreading” have inspired and educated millions of people around the world. 

Done well, a TED Talk has the power to provoke deep thinking around topics that matter. They might even motivate you to make life-altering decisions. 

And isn’t this what commencement addresses aim to do, after all?

Here are a few things commencement speakers can learn from TED Talkers:

TED Talkers engage more directly with the audience.

Podiums limit a speaker’s ability to move across a stage and animate their delivery with physical gestures that make their speeches more engaging. Most of the speakers I watched recently spent much of their time looking down at their prepared speech, rather than at the audience, to whom they were supposedly addressing their message. 

I say push the podium aside and let the speaker establish eye contact with their audience! Free them from the invisible chain that ties them to the podium and let them roam the stage like a true TED Talker!

They’re more visually compelling.

Today’s commencement addresses consist of the speaker and the podium?—?and nothing else. (Snore). Why not do what TED Talkers do and show some photos and charts? Or how about adding a well-timed video clip or audio soundbite to jazz things up? They'll inject energy into the speaker's presentation and allow her to deliver information in more entertaining and engaging formats.

There’s a hard stop at 18 minutes.

TED Talk speakers are given a maximum of 18 minutes to present their ideas in the most innovative and engaging ways they can. So why not set a time limit to commencement speeches? Knowing he has a limited time to deliver his speech should focus the speaker’s energy on delivering his message in the most impactful way that he possibly can.

Limiting the speaker’s time also has a practical side benefit: Since many commencement speeches are delivered outside in the sweltering summer months of May and June, it’ll mean less time students will have to wait in their full-body-length, heat-trapping graduation gowns. 

They won’t cost a lot.

Many colleges and universities invest tens of thousands of dollars to entice big names to travel to their campuses to deliver commencement speeches. At a time when college tuition and fees have reached stratospheric levels and debt loads are pressing down mercilessly on fresh graduates, the argument for shelling out big bucks to lure famous speakers is increasingly untenable. 

But with a TED Talk approach, universities can invite speakers who may not be particularly famous, but who can deliver meaningful and inspiring messages in an entertaining way?—?and without the four or five-figure price tag.

Now that’s an “idea worth spreading”, isn't it?

What do you think? Should commencement speeches be more like TED Talks? Please share your thoughts in the comments.

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