Speakers guide

You’ve been selected to give a talk at TEDxBratislava. Congrats! You’re doing great so far. Now what? Over the years, the folks at TED have come up with a few do’s and don’ts on how to give a great talk. Though these steps are in no way comprehensive; they contain some guiding principles that have been known to work.

How we work

TEDxBratislava isn’t a typical conference. Our audience has high expectations of the speakers, and our curation team works with speakers well in advance of the conference to help shape presentations that will succeed on the TEDxBratislava stage. This is the place to give the talk of your life!

The TED Conference tagline is “ideas worth sharing”, and at TEDxBratislava we hold the notion of “worth sharing” to several standards:

The presentation must be a debut (never seen before)
The speaker (or the speaker’s invention) must have a potential to touch many lives
Any science must be accompanied by clear experimental proof

TED does not pay speakers, nor does TEDxBratislava. We may be able to assist with travel costs and/or hotel accommodations, depending on how our relations with corporate partners develop.

Most speakers will be with us for the entire day of activities, soaking up the inspiration and connecting with other fascinating attendees. Of course the video will be produced online as a lasting testament after the event. We are committed to creating an experience that’s tremendously fulfilling and beneficial on all sides.

An additional benefit of speaking at TEDxBratislava is that all our videos will be reviewed by the main TED Conference team, and the best may be elevated to the official “TEDTalks” and broadcast as part of the tremendously popular video podcast series with over 1,000,000,000 views so far.

Offered free to the public, TED Talks have proven extraordinarily effective at spreading ideas. Some presentations from TEDx events have had many millions of views on YouTube, and can be a tremendous platform for speakers to increase their visibility.

7 steps to a perfect speech

TEDxBratislava takes seriously its responsibility to verify the validity and peer-reviewed status of all numerical or scientific statements, as well as the legality and copyright status of all creative works incorporated – including images. We cannot allow unreviewed content to be presented, so a last-minute submission might result in a canceled talk. To make our cooperation smooth, please read following advice.

Step 1: Get familiar with the form

What is a TEDx Talk?

TEDx Talks are a showcase for speakers presenting well-formed ideas in under 18 minutes. If you haven’t seen a TEDx Talk, go to TED.com and watch at least one. Like this one: Phil Plait: How to defend Earth from asteroids

Why 18 minutes?

Because it works. An audience is good at focusing on one subject at a time in relatively short chunks.

But, really, can I go over 18 minutes?

No — it wouldn’t be a TEDx Talk. The time limit is part of what makes TEDx Talks work.

It is a requirement of the TED Conferences that no presentation may exceed 18 minutes. Beyond that, each TEDx event chooses its own structure. At TEDxBratislava, the day is divided into four sessions, and we will announce the exact schedule on the day of the event.

And remember: Shorter talks are not lesser talks. It may only take 5 minutes to make your point unforgettably. Like this one: Joe Smith: How to use a paper towel

Step 2: Develop an idea

What makes a good idea for a talk?

Like a good magazine article, your idea can be new or surprising, or challenge a belief your audience already has. Or it can be a great basic idea with a compelling new argument behind it.

An idea isn’t just a story or a list of facts. A good idea takes evidence or observations and draws a larger conclusion.

Do I need to be an expert on my topic?

You do not need to be the world’s foremost expert on the topic, but you do have to be an expert. Please remember that the audience relies on you to give accurate information, so whatever you say in your talk, please fact-check — especially facts you may take for granted: statistics, historical anecdotes, scientific stats. If you’re drawing an example from a discipline that is not your main area of knowledge, use research from widely accepted and peer-reviewed sources, and, if at all possible, consult with experts directly.

Is my idea ready?

Write your idea down in one or two sentences. Ask yourself three questions:

Is my idea new?

Are you telling people something you’re pretty sure they have not heard before?

Is it interesting?

Think about how your idea might apply to a room full of varied kinds of people. Who might be interested in it?

Is it factual and realistic?

If you are presenting new research, make sure your idea is backed by data and peer-reviewed. If you are presenting a call to action, make sure it can be executed by members of your audience.

If you answered “no” to any of these questions, refine your idea. Ask someone you respect who doesn’t work in your field, and if they answer “no” to any of these questions, refine your idea.

If your TEDx event organizing team answers “no” to any of these questions, refine your idea.

Step 3: Make an outline and script

What is the best structure for a talk?

There are many theories on the best structure for a great presentation. (Nancy Duarte presents one here.) There’s no single trick to it, but here is at least one structure that we’ve found to work particularly well:

Start by making your audience care, using a relatable example or an intriguing idea.
Explain your idea clearly and with conviction.
Describe your evidence and how and why your idea could be implemented.
End by addressing how your idea could affect your audience if they were to accept it.

Whatever structure you decide on, remember:

The primary goal of your talk is to communicate an idea effectively, not to tell a story or to evoke emotions. These are tools, not an end in themselves.
Your structure should be invisible to the audience. In other words, don’t talk about how you’re going to talk about your topic – just talk about it!

Introduction

A strong introduction is crucial.
Draw in your audience members with something they care about.
If it’s a topic the general TED audience thinks about a lot, start with a clear statement of what the idea is.
- If it’s a field they never think about, start off by invoking something they do think about a lot and relate that concept to your idea.
- If the idea is something fun, but not something the audience would ever think about, open with a surprising and cool fact or declaration of relevance (not a statistic!).
- If it’s a heavy topic, find an understated and frank way to get off the ground; don’t force people to feel emotional.
Get your idea out as quickly as possible.
Don’t focus too much on yourself.
Don’t open with a string of stats.

Body

In presenting your topic and evidence:

Make a list of all the evidence you want to use: Think about items that your audience already knows about and the things you’ll need to convince them of.
- Order all of the items in your list based on what a person needs to know before they can understand the next point, and from least to most exciting. Now cut out everything you possibly can without losing the integrity of your argument. You will most likely need to cut things that you think are important.
  - Consider making this list with a trusted friend, someone who isn’t an expert in your field.
Spend more time on new information: If your audience needs to be reminded of old or common information, be brief.
Use empirical evidence, and limit anecdotal evidence.
Don’t use too much jargon, or explain new terminology.
(Respectfully) address any controversies in your claims, including legitimate counterarguments, reasons you might be wrong, or doubts your audience might have about your idea.
Don’t let citations interrupt the flow of your explanation: Save them for after you’ve made your point, or place them in the fine print of your slides.
Slides: Note anything in your outline that is best expressed visually and plan accordingly in your script. See Step 4.

Conclusion

Find a landing point in your conclusion that will leave your audience feeling positive toward you and your idea’s chances for success. Don’t use your conclusion to simply summarize what you’ve already said; tell your audience how your idea might affect their lives if it’s implemented.
Avoid ending with a pitch (such as soliciting funds, showing a book cover, using corporate logos).
If appropriate, give your audience a call to action.

Script

Once you’re settled on your outline, start writing a script. Be concise, but write in a way that feels natural to you. Use present tense and strong, interesting verbs.

Step 4: Create slides

Should I use slides?

Slides can be helpful for the audience, but they are by no means necessary or relevant to every talk. Ask yourself: Would my slides help and clarify information for the audience, or would they distract and confuse them? Some great examples of slides can be found in the talks by Dan Phillips, Jarrett Krosoczka and Rick Guidotti on TED.com. The most important rule for slides: Keep it simple.

I’ve never made slides before. Where do I start?

Assess your own skill level. You can make great simple slides if you stick to photographic images, running edge-to-edge. If your slide ideas are more complex and involve type, consider working with a designer.

The TEDxBratislava team can provide you with help, so don’t be shy about asking!

What goes in my slides?

Images and photos: To help the audience remember a person, place or thing you mention, you might use images or photos.

– People will understand that the images represent what you’re saying, so there is no need to verbally describe the images onscreen.

Graphs and infographics

– Keep graphs visually clear, even if the content is complex. Each graph should make only one point.

No slide should support more than one point.

What should the slides look like?

Use as little text as possible — if your audience is reading, they are not listening.
Avoid using bullet points. Consider putting different points on different slides.

How should the slides be formatted?

Check with your event organizing team about tech specs (resolution and aspect ratio) before you start making your slides. If in doubt, make them 1920×1080 pixels at a 16:9 aspect ratio.
Use the broadcast-safe zones in PowerPoint or Keynote. Don’t put any information or visuals in the far corners of your slides.
Use font size 42 points or larger.
Choose a common sans serif font (like Helvetica or Verdana) over a serif font (like Times).

– If you use a custom font, make sure to send it to the TEDxBratislava event organizers ahead of time.

I want to use an image I found off Google Image Search but I don’t know where it came from. It’s of the Simpsons.

Don’t.

This is important: Only use images that you own or have permission to use. If you use an image under a Creative Commons license, cite the source at the bottom of your slide.

Step 5: Rehearse

I’ve said my talk once in my head. Is that enough?

Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse! We can’t stress this enough. Rehearse until you’re completely comfortable in front of other people: different groups of people, people you love, people you fear, small groups, large groups, peers, people who aren’t experts in your field. Listen to the criticisms and rehearse, rehearse, rehearse.

If someone says you sound “over-rehearsed,” this actually means you sound stilted and unnatural. Keep rehearsing, and focus on talking like you’re speaking to just one person in a spontaneous one-way conversation.

Timing

Time yourself. Practice with the clock winding down in front of you. Do it until you get the timing right every time.

Posture

Practice standing still, planted firmly in one spot on stage. Have a friend watch you and stop you from pacing back and forth or shifting your weight from leg to leg.

Stage time

Ask your organizer to get as much time as you can for dress-rehearsal, on stage, with the clicker and the confidence monitor. The closer to the actual conditions on stage, the better.

Step 6: Give your talk

Inhale. Exhale. Do it like you practiced.

Step 7: Savor the glory

Congrats, you’re done! Bask in the praise you get over how you seemed so relaxed and spontaneous.

Best practices for presentation

Are you going to use a visual presentation? Here is a sum of advice we’ve come to during the years. Please don’t take offense at the strictness of the deadlines – it’s a matter of protection for us all.

Format:

Keep the quantity of text on each slide to a minimum. Preferably no more than 3 bullet points. Even better is to make just one point at a time.
Use very large fonts (we suggest 72-128 points, and seriously try hard to avoid less than 60pt). Everyone, including the back row, must be able to read every word.
However, single images are best choice, one at a time – compelling photos or meaningful graphs.
Remember, the presentation is on a WIDE-screen display (16:9 ratio, or 1920×1080, full HD). Powerpoint will often “default” to a 4:3 ratio or 1024×768 pixels, and that’s not the same shape as our display. If you are using elements from a previous presentation of yours, and have difficulty adapting it to our dimensions, ask our team for assistance as soon as possible.
Avoid using ‘transitions’ or any kind of animations – they are often tiresome and they tend to be represented poorly in video. Don’t use timing, it will be better if you click through the presentation manually. You will have a remote control for your presentation and there will be no objects between you and the audience (apart from the two displays at your feet.)
If you use “builds,” where parts of a slide are revealed gradually, best to make a separate slide for each stage of the build (rather than counting on the presentation software to “behave” properly.)
During the conference, you will have feet TWO displays at your. One will show the current slide (being projected behind you), and the other will show the NEXT slide, along with a countdown timer for your presentation. Our two-display setup will allow you to see your NEXT slide before it appears, and it will be at your feet.
Save the presentation as .ppt/pptx. We will check your slides and export your presentation to pdf once it’s done. If you use special font, please send us also .otf file.
If you use video (.mp4, .mpeg, .avi,…) or .gif, please include this file into your attachement. Deadline for final version is 25.6.

Content:

We strongly recommend that you only display text slides after speaking their contents. If you show text and then read it, the audience has gotten through it faster than you, and you’ll start be boring for them. This is a mistake we have seen in countless corporate presentations, and even top-tier training programs. Trust us, don’t read your own slides.
The best use of slides will REMIND the audience of the point you just made, or to ILLUSTRATE an idea in a way that can’t be spoken. (A portrait might show the intensity of an emotional drama, or a graph could convey the significance of numerical data).
Slides can also be used as PLACEHOLDERS describing the arc of your presentation’s content. (For instance, the first slide might say: “A journey of three cities”, then the second could be “1. London”, followed by “2. Paris” and “3. Rome”, over the course of your talk. In this way the text helps to frame your subject matter and to focus any wandering minds.)
Images should be 300dpi (.jpg, .png) or 720p. All images must be either your own, or Creative Commons with Non-Commercial Derivative Attribution rights, or else licensed and credited to the source. Feel free to use your own images/ photos. You can use Shutterstock images. Please read the text below:

Our friends at Shutterstock have offered to allow TEDx Bratislava speakers the opportunity to use Shutterstock images in their presentations free of charge. All images are high-resolution and non-watermarked. The only requirement is that speakers provide attribution on slides that use Shutterstock images (“Images courtesy of Shutterstock” is fine). If you’re interested, please take the following steps:

Please set up a “browse only account” at shutterstock.com/subscribe.mhtml
Once you have done this, please fill out this form agreeing to Shutterstock’s standard terms of use
Once you have completed the first two steps, please email Jon Feinstein at speakers@shutterstock.com with “TEDxBratislava Speaker” in the subject line, your username, and a brief confirmation that you completed the first steps.

Shutterstock require attribution for any images used. This can be as simple as “Images Courtesy of Shutterstock” as an image credit on the slides that incorporate our images.

Video, or anything which plays audio, MUST be submitted in advance. (Our theatre crew must run sound checks, etc.)
Remember, the display will be quite large and full HD (1920×1080 pixels). Do not scale up small images for your slides, because they will look bad! Make sure you use high resolution images.
If you would like assistance in locating images suitable to supplement your presentation, please notify our art volunteers as soon as possible.
We can also help to create graphs for your data, including line graphs, pie charts, and the standard visual idioms. If you would like assistance, please let us know right away so we can match your needs with one of our team members.

Please bear in mind:

You will not be able to attach your laptop to our A/V system
You will not be able to bring a flash drive or other media for your talk
Absolutely no changes will be accepted after the Friday before the conference.
It is seriously important to submit your presentations 1-2 weeks in advance, so that we can still have the final week to make any necessary changes!

Restrictions

Like science itself, these guidelines will likely change over time as we run into new challenges and come across new issues. Let us know what works for you and if you believe we should propose an adjustment to the guidelines, don’t be shy about letting us know. The TEDx team is constantly updating its rules and guidelines, so if you have a strong point to make, it might help future TEDx organizers.

Guideline 1: No selling from the stage

If it’s essential to a talk that the speaker mention what they do and describe the businesses that they’re in, they should. But speakers may never use the TED or TEDx stage to pitch their products or services, plug their books, or ask for funding. It’s a ﬁne line between shameless self-promotion and wholesome self-reporting so just remember this rule of thumb: “if it feels like an advertisement, it probably is.”

Guideline 2: No political agendas

Politics and policy are key parts of the global conversation. But the TED and TEDx stages are not the place for partisan politics, nor for extremist or inﬂammatory positions. Speakers should not advocate for parties, party platforms and political leaders in their talks — nor should they insult or belittle political adversaries. Advise speakers to focus on discussing concrete problems and solutions.

Guideline 3: No religious proselytizing (including new age beliefs)

We don’t book speakers who attempt to prove or persuade of the correctness of a single religion, deity or belief system, whether through rhetoric or “scientiﬁc proof.”

Be wary of presentations promoting new age beliefs, including concepts such as quantum consciousness, Gaia theory, archaeoastronomy, and drug-induced spiritual epiphanies. Speakers can be honest about their beliefs, but should not use the stage to promote them.

Guideline 4: Only good science

Science is a big part of the TED universe, and it’s important that TEDx organizers sustain our reputation as a credible forum for sharing ideas that matter. It’s not always easy to distinguish between real science and pseudoscience, and purveyors of false wisdom typically share their theories with as much sincerity and earnestness as legitimate researchers.

Indeed, the more willing a speaker is to abandon scientiﬁc underpinning, the easier it is for them to make attention-grabbing claims. So beware being seduced by “wow.” We want talks to be interesting. But before that, they must be credible. Here are some things to look for — and to avoid.

Claims made using scientiﬁc language should:

Be testable experimentally.
Have been published in a peer-reviewed journal (beware… there are some dodgy journals out there that seem credible, but aren’t.) For further reading, here’s an article on the topic.
Be based on theories that are also considered credible by experts in the ﬁeld.
Be backed up by experiments that have generated enough data to convince other experts of its legitimacy.
Have proponents who are secure enough to acknowledge areas of doubt and need for further investigation.
Not ﬂy in the face of the broad existing body of scientiﬁc knowledge.
Be presented by a speaker who works for an accredited university and/or has a PhD or other bona ﬁde high level scientiﬁc qualiﬁcation.
Show clear respect for the scientiﬁc method and scientiﬁc thinking generally.

Claims made using scientiﬁc language should not:

Be so obscure or mysterious as to be untestable
Be considered ridiculous by credible scientists in the ﬁeld
Be based on experiments that can not be reproduced by others
Be based on data that do not convincingly corroborate the experimenter’s theoretical claims
Come from overconﬁdent fringe experts
Use over-simpliﬁed interpretations of legitimate studies

Guideline 5: Research Tips and Tricks

We understand that it is sometimes still difﬁcult to know whether an idea is worth spreading or not. You’re not expected to become an expert on all ﬁelds of intellectual thought overnight! Nonetheless, you need to be able to understand at least the big issues in every ﬁeld you present onstage. Here are some tips on how to start researching a topic so you can ﬁgure out whether your content is legit or not. Please note, all statements presented as fact must be vetted!

Consult university websites, reputable science and health blogs, and databases of papers published in respected journals to check up on a potential speaker and verify his/her credentials. If you have access to a local university library, a research librarian can help you source relevant journal articles.
Ask your local university’s PR ofﬁce to connect you to a professor in a relevant ﬁeld. Ask a friendly journalist to fact-check the questionable items to journalistic standards.
Ask the organizers, who can assist with research and fact-checking.

Topics to Avoid

We’ve found that some topics are particularly problematic. We recommend approaching these with the utmost skepticism or avoiding them altogether:

“Healing,” including reiki, energy ﬁelds, alternative health and placebos, crystals, pyramid power.
“Free energy” and perpetual motion machines, alchemy, time travel.
“The neuroscience of [ﬁll in the blank].” We’re not saying all such talks will be nonlegitimate, but for some reason this ﬁeld attracts a lot of goofballs right now.
The misuse of language about quantum physics. Quantum physics is certainly mysterious. Many other things are mysterious too. Some speakers can’t resist using arguing that therefore somehow quantum physics has proven the truth of their particular mystery. It’s bad logic, and a big red flag.

Guideline 6: Presentation rules

The TEDx license requires that we report any breaks from the Content Guidelines to the TED Conferences team. They will then review the content together and make a decision about how to proceed. It could result in an overlay on the video in YouTube alerting viewers that the content is outside TED’s standards.

Alternatively, if the talk raises issues worthy of a broader debate, TED may move the talk off of YouTube and onto its own site, where editorial staff will provide more context and offer a broad array of conversation tools. In extreme cases, TED reserves the right to remove the video altogether. All of these decisions are outside the control of the independently-organized TEDxBratislava team.

Remember, your slides will appear in the videos which are produced and released to the TEDxTalks website. They may live on indefinitely, so it’s in your interests as well as ours to ensure the best possible content.

Displaying a corporate logo in a promotional capacity is not allowed at any time. (You may show company logos to illustrate a point, but not to advertise them. For instance, showing logos for facebook and twitter to supplement a discussion about social media is reasonable. However, if you work for facebook, you may not brand all your slides with a facebook logo – that would constitute advertising.)

It is vital that a draft is received by our team no later than the Friday two weeks before the Conference, because we’ll be too busy to help fix any problems in the final days.

No “last-minute” changes or additions will be permitted, because our team must have time to comment, provide assistance, perform any technical file conversions, and re-check for facts and for copyright compliance.

You will not be able to use your laptop, USB drive, or other media on the day of the conference. Instead, best for you to spend the final days before the event rehearsing the presentation you’ve already got.

The most compelling TED Talks are typically rehearsed in their entirety around 50-100 times. Yes, literally. Start to finish. The whole thing. You can’t overdo it – even if you’re an experienced public speaker. The more you’ve memorized your presentation, the more you can relax on-stage and let your personality through. When the content is automatic, your passion will make you shine!