I recently sat down with my speaking coach, Mike Pacchione, for this totally unprecedented episode where we dissect, minute by minute, my full keynote speech from this year's Craft + Commerce conference. We’re not holding anything back. Mike points out my flaws, celebrates my strengths, and reveals all the chaos that happens backstage that the audience never sees. If you've ever delivered a product launch, feared public speaking, or just want to understand the art of a compelling presentation, you'll learn so much from our candid conversation.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
01:03 Breaking Down the Keynote
02:22 The Chaos Before the Stage
04:02 The Missing Walk-Out Music
07:44 The "Be a Zero" Concept
09:47 Avoiding Speaker Voice
13:17 Building Tension and Specificity
19:19 The Stephen Colbert Joke
20:52 The Dad's Wisdom Story
28:16 The Challenge of Technical Terms
34:03 Debating Product Announcement Timing
40:35 The Elusive Applause Moment
48:29 Katie's Spotlighting an Audience Member
53:05 The Landing Page Humiliation Slide
01:01:00 The New York City Event Space Announcement
01:07:07 The Closing and Audience Reaction
01:12:00 Rehearsal Techniques and Speaker Notes
If you enjoyed this episode, please like and subscribe, share it with your friends, and leave a review. I read every single one.
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Follow Mike:
Freebie: https://bestspeech.co/nathan
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Featured in this episode:
Kit: https://www.kit.com
John Koenig - The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows: https://www.youtube.com/user/johnkoenig
The State Change Method - Wes Kao: https://weskao.com
The Happiness Project - Gretchen Rubin: https://gretchenrubin.com/books/the-happiness-project
Tim Urban TED Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_urban_inside_the_mind_of_a_master_procrastinator
Framer: https://www.framer.com
Highlights:
01:03 – Mike critiques my keynote opening
11:50 – The secret behind my opening pause
25:06 – How real-world stories prove product value
31:09 – The unexpected success of a borrowed joke
53:10 – The power of a critical feedback slide
