Your slides should not be your notes. · Compelling Communicators

Your slides should not be your notes.

Every year when I take on new TEDx speakers, I start with the same suggestion: you probably don't need slides. And if you think you do, you need to justify every single one.

What does it add to the talk? What's its purpose?

I push back on slides because they're so often thoughtlessly included. People treat them as a crutch, a place to put their talking points so they don't forget what to say next.

But slides are there for your audience, not for you.

A TEDx talk isn't a lecture. It's a performance. The focus should be YOU, not your slides.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀.

They can help explain complex concepts visually. They can show something the audience can't easily imagine from words alone. They can convey emotion through images, especially faces, because we're wired to read them.

But every slide must earn its place.

If you're using slides as a safety net, you're making the presentation about your comfort, not your audience's experience.

Next time you're preparing a talk, go through each slide and ask: what does this add for the people watching? If the answer is "it helps me remember what to say" -that slide needs to go!

What's the worst use of slides you've ever seen? 😉

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