Nancy Duarte, founder and CEO of Duarte Inc. and an expert in communication strategies, shares her insights on successful presentations. She emphasizes that the audience should always be the hero, not the speaker. Duarte discusses how empathy, storytelling, and structured narratives are key to engaging communication. She also highlights the importance of internal communication in shaping organizational culture, and offers practical tips for presenters to connect genuinely with their audience. It's all about understanding others to ensure ideas resonate!
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insights INSIGHT
Audience Expectations
Modern audiences have higher expectations for presentations and demand value.
They are less patient with poorly executed presentations and seek engaging content.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Empathy-Driven Presentations
Prioritize empathy by focusing on the audience's needs and how they will adopt your idea.
Structure presentations with a clear beginning, middle, and end, and create a push-pull dynamic.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Analyzing Great Speeches
Nancy Duarte analyzed famous speeches like "I Have a Dream" and Steve Jobs' iPhone launch.
She discovered a rhythmic cadence in great storytelling that creates influence by moving people from "what is" to "what could be."
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The Art and Science of Creating Great Presentations
Nancy Duarte
slide:ology, written by Nancy Duarte, combines conceptual thinking and inspirational design to help readers create influential presentations. The book provides practical approaches to visual story development, including connecting with specific audiences, turning ideas into informative graphics, and utilizing presentation technology effectively. It also includes insightful case studies from leading brands and emphasizes the importance of being a visual thinker to create impactful presentations.
Illuminate
David Corbin
Resonate
Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences
Nancy Duarte
In 'Resonate,' Nancy Duarte focuses on the art of storytelling in presentations, emphasizing the importance of making the audience the hero and the presenter the mentor. The book explores how to structure presentations using mythic structures and the hero's journey, contrasting 'what is' with 'what could be' to create engagement. Duarte provides practical advice on understanding the audience, creating emotional contrasts, and using visual and delivery techniques to make presentations memorable and impactful. The book includes case studies, sample presentation slides, and dramatic techniques to help presenters deliver persuasive and transformative presentations[2][3][5].
It’s easy to feel like the star of the show when giving a presentation. But according to communication guru Nancy Duarte, you’re not the hero of this story.
For Duarte, founder and CEO of world-renowned communication consulting firm Duarte Inc, effective communication is built on the foundation of empathy, which means considering your audience first and foremost. “All the attention is on us. But in reality, the audience is the one,” she says. “If they don’t leave with your idea adopted, your idea is going to die.”
How can presenters use empathy to put their audience at center stage? As Duarte discusses with host Matt Abrahams in this episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, it’s about seeking to understand before you start speaking.
Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques 
