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The Golden Rule of Public Speaking
How to win at every pitch, presentation, and speaking engagement
Joshua VanDeBrake
[8]Joshua VanDeBrake
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[9]Feb 4 · 4 min read
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Photo by [10]Product School on [11]Unsplash
You have eight seconds.
That’s how long you have to capture your audience’s attention. Eight
seconds. If you can’t convince them in that span of time that what you
have to say is worth listening to, you’ve lost. That’s why [12]TED
advises its speakers to never start with a chart or a graph and instead
begin with a story, bold statement, or a question.
That said, presenting is hard enough without the looming knowledge of
your audience’s short attention spans. In fact, public speaking is
cited as [13]most people’s biggest fear. So why not make the process of
developing a winning presentation a little better?
__________________________________________________________________
The 10–20–30 Rule
Guy Kawasaki is the former Chief Evangelist at Apple, the best-selling
author of more than a dozen books, has served as an advisor to several
dozen companies, and now serves as the Chief Evangelist for [14]Canva,
a popular online graphic design tool.
He gives over 50 keynote speeches per year to companies such as Apple,
Nike, Google, Audi, Microsoft, and Breitling. It’s safe to say he knows
how to capture and hold an audience’s attention. And he’s shared his
golden rule for all of his presentations.
He calls it the 10–20–30 Rule. Don’t use more than ten slides. Don’t
talk for more than 20 minutes. And, my favorite, don’t use less than
30-point font.
__________________________________________________________________
No More Than Ten Slides
In marketing, we know that clear, concise messages drive results.
People remember and act on them. And what is public speaking but a
marketing tool? Because it’s a form of marketing, we can apply this
concept of clear and concise messaging as we trim the presentation and
only include the most important points.
And with that, we arrive at the “10” rule. For visual accompaniment
(such as a PowerPoint), keep it to a maximum of ten slides.
Let’s say you’re giving a presentation about Froot Loops.
* Option A: While talking about the various colors of Froot Loops,
each slide could show a different color, going on and on, and on,
and on... “And now, let’s talk about the packaging.”
* Option B: Instead of showing a different slide for each color, why
not keep it concise and show a single slide with a bowl of Froot
Loops? I mean, it makes sense since [15]they’re all the same
flavor.
Each time you put something new on the screen, your audience’s
attention shifts from what you’re saying to what’s on the screen. And
if you’re constantly flipping through slides, your audience’s attention
gets even more fatigued. They start thinking, “How much longer is this
going to take?”
Having only ten slides will force you to focus on what’s most essential
and impactful. That way, you won’t lose the battle for your audience’s
attention to your slides.
Plus, this will require you to rehearse more. And the more you’ve
rehearsed, the better you know what you’re going to say and the more
comfortable you’re going to be saying it.
So keep your presentation to a maximum of ten slides. Any more than
that and you’re going to lose your audience’s attention. One slide at a
time.
__________________________________________________________________
No Longer Than 20 Minutes
We have short attention spans. [16]It’s a fact. That’s why most experts
recommend maximizing the white space of written content.
Applying this knowledge of less-than-perfect attention spans, we
understand that most people can only focus on a topic for so long. In
the case of a presentation, 20 minutes is a good standard.
Any longer and you’re probably delivering filler content, going on
tangents, or rambling. In fact, TED recommends its speakers to cut
their presentation time in half. And then cut it in half again. Just
like the slides, shorten it for impact.
Pro tip: To make sure you stay under 20 minutes, video yourself doing a
practice run of your talk. In addition to knowing your timing, being
able to hear and see yourself will also give you insight into how
engaging your speech is, how you’re modulating your voice, and what
filler words you’re using.
__________________________________________________________________
No Smaller Than 30-Point Font
As I said, this is my favorite of the three. That’s because bigger
fonts result in fewer words. And fewer words result in fewer things
competing for your audience’s attention. It forces you to be very clear
and concise with your content.
When your slide has a lot of words on it, your audience wonders,
“Should I listen to the speaker or read the slide?” Don’t make them
choose. Oftentimes, instead of choosing to focus on either you or your
slide (which probably has too many words anyway), your audience will
start daydreaming.
Their minds will wander… “I’m hungry. Hmmm… What did I have for
breakfast? Oh, that’s right, Froot Loops!”
Don’t make your audience choose between you and your slides. The
visuals should complement your speech, not distract from it.
__________________________________________________________________
Next Time You’re Speaking
Whether it’s for a keynote about Froot Loops, a VC pitch, or a regular
team check-in, use the 10–20–30 rule to build a winning presentation.
It’ll be even more effective and you’ll do a better job of holding your
audience’s attention.
When you boil it down, you could summarize all of this into the mindset
of “less is more.” Fewer slides, less time, fewer words.
That is the winning formula.
And maybe, using this method, combined with enough practice, you’ll
join the small percentage of people who love public speaking.
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Joshua VanDeBrake
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[23]Joshua VanDeBrake
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Marketing manager by day. Wizard the rest of the time. Ambivert. Millennial.
joshvandebrake.com
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