Last week I went to my first graduation ceremony since my own in 1990. Mine was filled with caps, gowns, traditional music, flags and honorary degrees. But this one at Hampshire College, settled on a pristine and isolated swath of land 5 miles outside of Amherst, MA, embodied a different spirit. One that was authentic […]
The Graduation Speech. Read More »
Every now and then, we get an invitation to work with a different type of client – and we love the opportunity to adapt what we do for someone new. So when Skyler Rogers, a senior at BGSU and former TEDxBGSU organizer, reached out for some help with his business competition pitch (an old concept
Winning the Business Competition Read More »
Last week, we suggested an outrageous idea to a client who was addicted to PowerPoint (as in she had sent at least 200 pages of slides in 4 decks). While we were helping her to narrow down a presentation to 15 slides, we also suggested they use a black slide when one of the 5
Dare to fade to black Read More »
Last week we re-launched our Influential Storytelling class. Like all good motors, it needed a tune up, and just in time too. These 15 participants came together from 7 different organizations to get down to the business of “story.” One of the attendees in his evaluation said: “It is rare that one experiences something
Our Influential Storytelling Class Read More »
As I was dropping my son off in his kindergarten room he was quizzing me about how and why rental cars worked. I don’t know where the question was sparked; I know better than to ask. As I was unpacking his bag and helping him shove his oversized lunchbox in his cubby, I attempted to
An analogy please with some sprinkles on top Read More »
My favorite quote from the TED Conference this year was from the (now former) head of DARPA, the defense agency that plans our strategic responses on surprise attacks, Regina Dugan. She said: “If you want to learn to fly, you have to FLY.” It seemed so simple. But for an agency that fails all the time in its
On March 8, 2012 I was privileged to give the hardest talk of my life – a eulogy for my father. This is an audio capture of the church service of the four remembrances with a slide show of images of him throughout his life. He died on March 3, a few hours after
Remembrances of the life of William W. Milligan Read More »
Every car has four wheels, a radiator and glove compartment. It is not those things that make a car fancy, fast or memorable. But without those things it would not be a car. After attending my second TED conference and beginning to preparing our 5th TEDx event, I thought it was time to take a stab at my interpretation
The arc, or rather petals of a TED talk Read More »
(Live from TEDActive 2012) I was asked to play Bob Costas, or rather Mary Corillo, by a fellow TEDactive attendee during session 8 at TED2012. In other words, sit next to me and give me a play by play of what these speakers are doing to rock the house or in contrast, find a way
How not to give a TED talk Read More »
Using a word like curriculum sounds rather formal, as we really intend for this to be a guide to inspire and adapt for your own TEDx kids/youth situation. This is a six week model with the sixth “class” being the TEDxKids event itself. We recommend keeping your student logistics to a minimum. Don’t try to
TEDxKids@NBCC: Our Curriculum (help yourself!) Read More »
announcing
the motivated speaker
six principles to unlock your communication potential
In this book you will discover the six essential threshold concepts needed to give talks like the best TED speakers and Fortune 500 leaders.
The book will deliver May 2025.
Stay tuned for the launch!
