In addition to expertly running a multi-billion dollar company, Steve Jobs has a gift for public speaking and presentation delivery. He’s conversational, enthusiastic and understatedly dramatic. Even if your personal presentation style is different than Jobs’, you can still learn a great many lessons from watching and analyzing his presentations. Below are three particularly helpful secrets that aren’t necessarily as noticeable as stunning visuals or simple slide layouts.
Say It Like You Mean It
Perhaps the greatest reason Jobs is so charismatic is that he loves his work. His enthusiasm for his products and company is infectious. Walking away from a Jobs presentation without being completely fired up about his subject is nearly impossible because he conveys his passion so sincerely. If Jobs believes a product is the greatest thing to ever happen to the world, he’s not afraid to say so. Presenters consistently undersell their messages for fear of not meeting expectations. Unfortunately, this tactic also lowers the audience’s enthusiasm for the message. If you really believe in what you are saying, your audience will too. Remember how people slept on the street for days just to pay top dollar for an iPhone? Do you think that would have happened if Jobs had told his marketing team, “Yeah, this iPhone will be pretty cool, but I’m not 100% sure it’s the best thing ever”?
Find the Snap, Crackle, Pop
There’s a reason advertisers strive to find the perfect catch phrase – it works. The Yellow Pages likes to “Let your fingers do the walking.” L’Oreal believes you deserve the best “Because you’re worth it.” Wendy’s wants to know, “Where’s the beef?” By virtue of just watching TV, you already know all of this. Jobs’ uses this same principle to make his presentations easy to follow. When he introduced the iPhone, he told the audience, “Today Apple is going to reinvent the phone.” Not only is that sentence dramatic and exciting, it’s easy to remember. The audience knows what the entire presentation is about. To prevent his audience from becoming lost in the excitement, Jobs repeats this message throughout the presentation. Instead of thinking “Wow! I’m really excited, but I totally forgot why!” audience members can anchor themselves with Jobs’ simple message to remember, “Wow! I’m really excited! Today Apple is going to reinvent the phone!”
Practice to Perfection
Jobs’ relaxed demeanor is due in large part to his commitment to practicing his presentations. You might think that he’s such an experienced public speaker that he could give a presentation without a second thought. Not true. All experts practice their craft to exhaustion. Take, for example, professional athletes. Public speaking requires the same devotion. Jobs appears calm and collected because he has rehearsed, rehearsed and rehearsed some more.
If you’re not naturally keen on practicing, think about it in terms of cost – overtime salary required to practice speech: $550; hours of therapy to combat fear of public speaking: $4000; new projector to display PowerPoint masterpiece: $600; delivering the best presentation of your life: priceless.
