Definitely include a call to action - but make it inspiring so people will want to act. You don’t want to end with a burdensome list of to-dos. What could be: We’ll be bringing in experts from Germany to help.Īs you move back and forth between what is and what could be, the audience will find the latter more and more alluring. What is: The new clients will require extensive retooling in manufacturing. What could be: Two of them have the potential to bring in more revenue than our best clients do now. What is: We have six new clients on our roster. What could be: Q4 numbers must be strong for us to pay out bonuses. What is: We missed our Q3 forecast by 15%. Here’s one way you could structure the middle of your presentation: Revenues are down, but you want to motivate employees to make up for it.
Now that people in your audience realize their world is off-kilter, keep playing up the contrast between what is and what could be. Once you establish that gap, use the rest of the presentation to bridge it What could be: But what if we could solve the worst of our problems by bringing in a couple of powerhouse clients? Well, we can. What is: We fell short of our Q3 financial goals partly because we’re understaffed and everyone’s spread too thin. The gap between the two will throw the audience a bit off balance, and that’s a good thing - it jars them out of complacency. This creates a bond between you and them, and opens them up to hear your ideas for change.Īfter you set that baseline of what is, introduce your vision of what could be. People should be nodding their heads in recognition because you’re articulating what they already understand. Start by describing life as the audience knows it.
Here’s how it looks when you chart it out:Īnd here’s how to do it in your own presentations. And by following Aristotle’s three-part story structure (beginning, middle, end), they create a message that’s easy to digest, remember, and retell.
That tension helps them persuade the audience to adopt a new mindset or behave differently - to move from what is to what could be. After studying hundreds of speeches, I’ve found that the most effective presenters use the same techniques as great storytellers: By reminding people of the status quo and then revealing the path to a better way, they set up a conflict that needs to be resolved.