Want your audience to remember your key line? Go to black.

With my TEDx speakers, we usually start the talk with a blank, black slide. The screen is empty. The audience has nothing to look at except the speaker.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁.

When you finally click to your first active slide, it grabs attention. It should happen at a meaningful moment, when the visual actually adds something.

But the real trick is what comes next.

When you're about to deliver a key line, the moment you want the audience to remember, click to a blank slide first.

Their eyes will snap to you. And when you deliver that line, it's YOU they'll associate with it. Not some image. Not some text. You.

This is about controlling attention. Slides pull focus. When the screen is active, the audience looks at the screen. When it's blank, they look at you.

Most speakers leave their slides up the whole time, competing with their own visuals for attention. The blank slide puts you back in control.

It's simple. But it makes your key moments land harder.

Have you ever used a blank slide strategically? 😉

2 comments