TEDx is a prestigious event. A globally recognized platform for people to share their ideas. It's a live event followed by a video of your talk that can be listened to around the world via the TEDx video channel. It's been known to kickstart speaking opportunities and even careers.

When I tell folks I've done a TEDx I get two responses; "wow, that's amazing" and "What's a TEDx?" It's held in high regard by those who know it, but that's not everyone. I like to think of it as a badge of honour that lets people know you're an informed and interesting person worth knowing.

I did TEDx Warrington (UK) in 2022. It was supposed to take place in 2019 but got postponed due to the pandemic, so I had a lot of time to mull over my idea. What follows is just my advice, my takeaways and knowledge from taking part combined with my years of performance and speaking experience. I was also part of the TEDx Warrington selection team, on the inside looking out, in 2023 and those secrets I'll take to my grave!

If you are successful in making the shortlist it can be very stressful.

If you are successful in making the shortlist it can be still very stressful. My own experience was no cakewalk, I was finalized as a speaker towards the end of the process, after going through the speaker coaching process (and being on the speaker panel the following year I understand why). My advice here is don't place too much pressure on getting what you want, and look after yourself. The selection is governed by a lot of factors. Yes, it's a great event to be part of and a great experience but remember, It's just a talk. In a room in a building somewhere in the world, while outside there is ice cream to eat and pets to hug.

You don't have to be an experienced speaker to do TEDx. I might suggest being comfortable speaking in public and having some stage presentation experience, however in my experience, the strength of the idea comes first and the energy and honesty of the speaker can (I've seen it happen) trump experience.
When I submitted I had 20 years of stand-up comedy under my belt, and once or twice had to put my ego in a box and leave it outside. Too much experience can be a disadvantage.

Your idea.

The TEDx tagline is 'ideas worth sharing', so that's the first question, do you have an interesting idea you really want to share?

• Be original, nothing is too unusual (within reason)
• Avoid bandwagons. If your talk is about something current or in the zeitgeist you'll probably be competing with other people in the same space, make sure your angle is unique
• An idea is not a book or a product, don't try to sell anything in your talk.
• Anything science-based needs to be backed up with facts. If you mentioned it in your talk you'll need to provide evidence that can withstand the scrutiny of a fine-toothed comb.

Every TEDx event will be different at some level. There is a very detailed model provided by TEDx itself, but each event will necessitate some flexibility (venue, location, staffing, etc). Events can be themed, so basing your idea on one of the themes of the event can benefit you too.

Video submission.

At this early stage events can differ, most have a video submission process. This is a 2-minute video of you on camera explaining your idea and getting the organizers excited to discover why it's worth hearing.

• Make the most of being seen, use body language.
• Don't spend 30 seconds telling people who you are, they can read that in your submission text. Just introduce yourself briefly and get straight to your idea.
• Don't waffle, be super clear about your idea.
• If you're uncomfortable watching and listening to yourself on video now is a really good time to get over that.
• Avoid using the word passionate, everybody uses the word passionate.

That first one again, use body language. If you have the space record yourself from the waist up, so we see your whole upper body. If you're using a phone stick it in landscape mode to capture your arms flapping about as you get excited about the subject you're talking about. Rather, think of yourself as a TV presenter in a documentary. Allow yourself to be fully seen. This will give you a little more credibility and give those watching a better idea of you as a person.

Selection process.

Once the event submission deadline has passed, you'll find out if you've been successful in reaching the longlist/shortlist. This is the list of possible candidates for the event. Again just going from experience, the candidates are narrowed down until the final selection are invited to a face-to-face rough run-through, to present their idea in person. it's not a guarantee you'll be on stage, it's an offer to be part of the process.

This is by no means what your final talk will look or sound like, it's an opportunity to share the first draft of your talk in full. At the face-to-face event you'll meet the team who are putting the event together.

Most events provide TEDx coaching, a very experienced speaker who is assigned to you to help you develop and refine your talk. Listen to them, take on board their feedback and prepare to do the hard work. My TEDx coach was Catherine Sandland and she was ace.

My Talk went through six revisions, and talking to other speakers they likewise went through a similar number of revisions from the initial idea to the final script. This can be a tough part of the process as you can also be limited for time.

• Less is more. Even if you're offered longer stick to 10 minutes. It's not just a live event it's the video too and short-form content often gets more clicks.
• Don't get precious at this stage, edit your talk mercilessly.
• Remember to use body language, and find something to do with your hands.
• Plant your feet and stand firm whilst speaking.

Work with your coach, edit your talk, and help the other speakers, be a team player in the lead up to the event. That's really as much as can be asked of you at this stage.

The TEDx event day.

Some of this is common sense. Have an early night the day before, eat healthily and drink plenty of water. The event day can be hectic, with a lot of moving parts and people, which is easy to get caught up in. Add to that your own stresses and excitement and it's important to give yourself a moment. Look for quite a space, if you're fortunate like our event there was a quiet space designated for speakers before going on stage.

Another wonderful thing done at TEDx Warrington was speakers who came offstage were taken to a different space to those who had not yet been on stage. This meant relieved and elated speakers who had delivered their talks already didn't interfere with the nervous excitement of those yet to go up.

Once you're on stage.

Too late. No advice I can give you as it's happening now, just enjoy it.

Feedback

It's not the end of the world if you don't make the selection process. Events can use understudies or stand bys. What you can do is politely ask for feedback from the organizers. If you're willing to ask for good honest constructive criticism and let yourself take it on board, you can always have another crack at it next year with a new idea.

Are you thinking of doing a talk? Need some TEDx coaching? I can't promise you'll make the shortlist, but I can give you everything you need to make a great impression.

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Joining organiser and networking superhero Kirsty James and a lovely select bunch to watch submissions from this year's candidates, and offer my input as a comedian and former TEDx speaker.

It's been fascinating watching all the videos and hearing potential candidates share their ideas. People's stories from so many different backgrounds and personal experiences, all wanting to share their ideas on the red dot.

I've taught stand-up comedy skills for many years, and while humour is only one aspect of a TEDx talk, coaching people with what they want to say, and how they say it so is something I have a lot of experience in doing effectively. Turning a waffly 20 into a tight 10, so to speak.

It's all under wraps right now so I can't possibly tell you who will be speaking and what about, but there are some fascinating talks this year, it promises to be an amazing night full of ideas, emotion and learning.

TEDx Warrington 2023 is on November 16th.

Stand up, speak up!

Are you looking to improve your performance skills, get better with advanced presenting or add humour to a talk? If you want to hold an audience in the palm of your hand, I can help with online and face-to-face training.

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It was amazing to be part of TEDx Warrington in 2022. With gears set in motion for this year's event in November, I thought it time to reflect on what has happened since and provide a few tips for anyone wanting to stand on the red dot themselves.

Tedx Warrington should have happened in 2019 and paused due to the pandemic. So speakers had to re-submit. If you don't know the process, no-one simply walks onto the TEDx stage. You have to be selected through a process of elimination by a panel. You're scrutinised on your soft skills and hard facts and whether you have an idea worth sharing. That's why TEDx is a badge of achievement that many speakers seek it.

TEDx Warrington came at a pivotal time for me. My goals were changing and I'm sure I'm not the only one who used lockdown to look ahead imagining what life would feel like five or even ten years from now.
2022 was an opportunity to renew my stage persona and voice, combining the comedian with the educator, humour with experience. I think it did just that.

This year I've been invited on the speaker panel, crikey! It's a responsibility alright, but I reckon I'm well placed to offer practical advice, and having been on the red dot, understand whats needed.

So you want to do a TED talk? Here are my personal three tips to help your video submission shine;

Be interesting.

There are a lot of TEDx videos on personal development, a lot. Be different. No subject matter is two quirky or unusual if it's delivered clearly. If you find you're self-editing or thinking "people don't want to hear this" you're doing yourself an injustice before you start. If your subject's a bit odd - embrace it.

Be aware.

Gaining confidence from speaking in front of an audience is something everyone should learn. With this comes knowledge of how you are seen in the flesh, on screen, and how others see us. With your TEDx submission video, frame and light yourself as best you can to show that you have considered how you are seen, and want to be seen by others.

Be human.

If you're a professor or a certified master expert person, great, but let the audience see you as a human being. Hiding behind credentials, waving them about verbally or using them to gain authority just isn't needed. It should be what got you where you are, not who you are.

Thinking of applying for a TEDx talk?

If you need advice on how to add humour or make your pitch as snappy as possible and you think a 1-on-1 session would help, get in touch.

Useful links;

TEDx Warrington

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I'm at the halfway point and already seeing benefits. From practical networking to personal effectiveness and growth hacking.   Here are a handful of thoughts on what I've taken so it so far.

A timely kick in the pants.
Naturally, being self employed means I have to  be proactive, and speculative. With all the goodwill in the world, bad habits can creep into work patterns over time, my work patterns. The very nature of opting to go on a course to grow my business, creating a new 'business model canvas' is healthy. Being asked questions that poke at the corners of where I want to go with my niche ' stand up comedy techniques for presenting and public speaking'  training is a very welcome and invited kick in the pants.

Better networking.
Delivering training on presenting and public speaking skills using techniques from my experience in stand up comedy, is a bit niche and a bit of a mouthful to explain concisely. I've always found networking a challenge not because of a lack of confidence, actually the opposite. I'm happy to talk and listen, but always found follow ups quite low. Learning that potential clients are more likely to look online for the kind of training I provide took the impetus off attending live events where I wasn't speaking.
The advantage of the focused nature of the Spark 2 Scale programme is, I find,  that I'm in the room with other business minds eager to grow. That common goal really helps.  Like me they're looking to pick up skills, and of course the best business offers are made when you're not looking for them.

Thinking big.
The anticipation of having a growth strategist look over my new business plan with a fine tooth comb and a big red pen was a bit daunting. Despite recent successes, it was outside of my comfort zone, and some of my hidden worries (impostor syndrome or feeling like an amateur) were threatening t show themselves.
Wonderful then to sit down and have all that negative thinking evaporate as my adviser shared my enthusiasm for what I was doing and it's growth potential. Helping open doors, look at big goals and point out flaws in a way that was practical and constructive.

Prep for the next step.
I've three new projects lined up, and as I'm writing this blog. Both leads came from the preparation I put in before starting the programme. I don't want it to sound like bragging. ( I'm currently reading the book 'How to toot your own horn without blowing it' - Peggy Klaus). However once I'd signed up to the course I wanted to have clarity about my outcomes. Updating the website, re-writing  marketing content and polishing my elevator pitch, the little jobs that get pushed back received the extra attention they deserved and got results.

Supportive and sharing.
I'm aware through the many books I've read that business is people. Whatever the size. I'm influenced by my environment and the people I choose to work with. I shouldn't have been surprised when the second masterclass was on personal effectiveness.  Clapping my hands under the table when the handouts touched on the 'the map is not the territory' one of my favourite phrases about planning and adapting to change.
Spark 2 Scale has provided an inspiring environment for my business goals and I'm glad to be part of it.

Links:
The Business Growth Hub

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On the 14th November I was invited by community business organisation Power to Change to deliver a break out session at the Locality Convention in Manchester. If you were there, hello! Public speaking   workshop. storytelling workshop  

Big thanks to Claire and the team at Power to Change for inviting me along. It was really quite inspiring to be around so many community leaders, people who 'get things done' for the betterment of their local communities.

The session was about providing practical techniques that would get their voices heard at local authority level,  to gain funding for their projects. It was a bit whistle stop as I tried to cram in a lot from what I've learned over the years;  being confident and comfortable speaking and sharing to developing empathy in a narrative.  I was  aware these attendees probably had their own story to tell, and indeed they did.  Everyone I spoke to over the afternoon and evening reception had an incredible story to tell. Choices they had made, often selflessly,  to make things better for those around them. Events they had made happen, goals achieved or journeys that had just begun with a sentence along the lines of  "...so I quit my regular job to go do this instead".

The strength of character in the room was tangible ( I even shared a bit of my own story)  and I was pretty humbled at the end of the session when co-organiser Charlotte showed me the feedback from attendees while I sold some of my books.

Power to Change put on a great evening reception, highlighting the history of community business with a book launch and a play  by the Manchester Shakespeare Company.

Not a bad way to spend my birthday.

Excellent workshop on telling your story led by @JohnCooper_uk, Charlotte and Clare #Locality17 pic.twitter.com/7n08SMxdEJ

— DewsburyParkMansion (@DewsParkMansion) November 14, 2017

Amazing workshop @JohnCooper_uk thank you for making the storytelling so much fun... @Locality17 pic.twitter.com/kpBDQ0MrXZ

— Hero (@CoalvilleHero) November 14, 2017

• Find out more about training  with John.
• Get in touch.

Links:

• Locality
• Power to change

workshops for community businesses. training for community business. 

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I started my podcast in late 2016, interviewing people who use improvisation techniques in their work. Six months and fifteen episodes later and already it's paid off in more ways than I can think.

Fifteen isn't a massive number of episodes for a podcast, but the original intention was to 'box it off' as a project with a beginning and an end so it didn't turn into a spiralling not-for-profit time sink. Focus on quality, not quantity, find great guests willing to give up an hour of their time to be interviewed about their work.

It's been enlightening listening to different points of view, and stories of people in different parts of the world and how they teach the 'way' of improv in different environments. I'm getting a lot of great feedback and it's evolved into one of the most enjoyable things I do.

Check out the Bring a brick website and have a listen.

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I've just delivered a couple of talks at 'WMUG', a group run by Mike Little one of the co-founders of the crazily popular WordPress system. The first was on podcasting and the second was on 'Real World Clients'.

I've already posted on how I created the podcast over on my design blog, and if you're interested the podcast itself, interviewing people who use applied improvisation in their work, it's here.

Real World Clients.

Despite doing stand up comedy forever I've never got up and talked about my design work - ever, let alone my experiences with clients. I'm totally comfortable getting up and talking. In fact chatting to the group beforehand, I think that was my worry. In comparison to being Danny Pensive this was a 'zero pressure gig'. My desire to entertain, rather than inform could easily take me take me way off topic very quickly. Without high stakes I could get sloppy.

Having said that I was really worried about throwing myself under the bus. There would be other developers in the room and I wasn't just telling stories, but also talking about my work processes, potentially laying myself open for judgement. So actually there was a bit of pressure, but not the kind that i'm used to. That's good, a bit of performance pressure is better than not at all.

So I dipped back down the last five or six years of work history and picked out a dozen or so projects, then mashed them all together. Mixing old real world situations I've come up against with a bit traditional narrative structure. A call to action here and a stink of death there and pretty soon had something I could work with and relate back to WordPress.

It was a success I thought, in fact putting my comedians head back on...I think there might be a show in this.

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