CMU School of Drama


Monday, December 19, 2016

Has TED Really Taught Companies to Be Better Storytellers?

Inc.com: Imagine you had just 18 minutes to rally a team of 150 burned-out employees to stand behind your company¹s new mission. Or convince a dream client to hire your firm to handle their biggest campaign of the year.

The best TED presenters have tapped into the power of storytelling to do far more in their 18 minutes in the spotlight. We've watched them change our minds, open our hearts, and­ even alter our behavior.

So why isn¹t every corporate and nonprofit executive using storytelling in a strategic way to inspire their troops, convince skeptics, and move their agendas forward?

1 comment:

Sarah Boyle said...

I don’t know to what extent TED has changed presentation practices in companies, but at my high school, in addition to watching TED talks, I had a few TED talk style presentation assignments. Our curriculum was definitely shifting from an emphasis on facts to share in a presentation to an overall narrative, even if it was not a personal story. Obviously, TED presenters have an advantage in their presentation since they have help, from someone like the author of this article, to create their visuals and tailor their presentation to the TED format. Most people do not have and are not going to hire a professional, so these talks not only serve to learn about the stated topic, but also how to be a better presenter. The TED creators have been successful at creating an effective and interesting format, and focused storytelling is a big part of that. Hopefully it is leading to a better presenters in every area.