The Truth in Ten

Curious about the power of AI in storytelling? The host playfully interviews an AI, exploring its role as a collaborative creative partner. They discuss Hemingway's masterful brevity in storytelling and strategies to overcome public speaking anxiety. Personal anecdotes add spice, with tips on rethinking presentations. Plus, listeners learn to dissect narratives and discover the magic of surprise in storytelling, creating emotional impact. It's a delightful journey into blending technology with the art of narrative.

Explore the art of persuasive storytelling and learn how a powerful TED Talk inspired $1.3 million in donations without a direct ask. Discover the six critical elements that make stories resonate emotionally and rationally with audiences. Dive into the transformative journey of a civil rights lawyer committed to justice, and understand how personal narratives shed light on the impacts of mass incarceration and racial bias. Experience the inspiring legacy of figures like Rosa Parks and the role of storytelling in driving social change.

Explore the genius of Theodore Sorensen, the mastermind behind JFK's legendary speeches. Discover how impactful storytelling can shape history and engage audiences. Uncover a simple framework that emphasizes clarity, charity, brevity, and levity, providing modern communicators with essential tools. Learn how to transform your communication style, making your words resonate and leave a lasting impression.

How Do You Turn a Presentation into a Performance?   In the second episode of The Truth in Ten Podcast, host Jeremy Connell-Waite takes you on a journey to discover how the world's most famous spoken word poet, Amanda Gorman,  overcame her fear of public speaking (and a speech impediment).   Just two weeks after hundreds of protesters stood on the exact same spot and stormed the Capitol Building, 22-year old Amanda had just 6-minutes to try and heal a nation with her words, with millions all around the world watching to see what she'd say.   74% of people suffer from Glossophobia (the fear of public speaking) according to the National Mental Health Institute.   This episode is not just a profile of Amanda, it's a storytelling masterclass for anyone who struggles with public speaking and wants to be a better communicator.     SHOW LINKS: Amanda Gorman's performance of The Hill We Climb Amanda's Masterclass on Writing & Performing   EPISODE TRANSCRIPT: How Do You Turn A Presentation Into a Performance? On 6th January 2021 at 2:10pm on on a freezing cold Wednesday afternoon, the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of Donald Trump supporters in an attempted self-coup, two months after his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. 174 injured in the attack. 1,200 charged for playing a role in the attack. 2 bombs were discovered. 5 people died.   On TV it looked like a civil war was breaking out. People were asking the question “How could this happen?” But just two weeks later, a nervous “skinny young Black girl” stood on those very same steps to read a poem she wrote at the Inauguration ceremony of President Biden. Tensions couldn’t have been higher. The world was watching.  No pressure. [THE HILL WE CLIMB] Within minutes, it felt like everyone on the internet was asking a different question: “What was the poet’s name?” “Who was that incredible young woman?” Her name… is AMANDA GORMAN. And what’s astonishing about this story is not that she was only 22 when she wrote this powerful poem to try and heal a nation, or that she gave such an electrifying performance when she read it in front of 40M people on US TV (and millions more around the world).  Or even the fact that she took just 6 minutes to capture global attention, seeing her poem printed in newspapers all over the world the next day. As amazing as that was. No. It was that not long before that moment that she was terrified of public speaking. Many of us are, right?  But Amanda had good reason to be. She has an auditory processing disorder which means she is hypersensitive to sound. She also had a serious speech impediment which made it especially difficult to pronounce her “R’s”. Not ideal for a spoken word poet. And especially one who’s name is GORMAN. But not ideal for a spoken word poet! She’d be writing about environmentalism and protecting “earth”– but she couldn’t say “EARTH” properly when she reads her poem  out loud, so she had to use words like “planet” or globe” instead. According to the National Institute of Mental Health 74% of us suffer from Glossophobia in some form like Amanda did. The fear of public speaking. 10% are terrified of speaking in front of people.  10% of the population loves speaking in front of people.  80% fall somewhere in the middle.   So how did Amanda go from a someone who only liked reading and writing because she couldn’t pronounce her “R’s” – to the confident and compelling performer who spoke truth on the steps of the Capitol Building in front of world leaders? Let’s back up a bit first.   When she was 15, Amada saw Malala Yousafzai giving her Nobel prize acceptance speech, she was so impacted by it that she decided right there and then that she also wanted to speak on a global stage; she just didn’t have the tool’s or techniques to be able to do it yet.     Amanda thought “Whatever you’re struggling with - chances are there’s someone from the past who has walked a similar path. Maybe not exactly the same path. But someone who can inspire you to keep moving forward – especially if others are telling you that something you want to do - can’t (or shouldn’t) be done.”   Amanda always loved reading Maya Angelou’s poetry, and she learned that Maya, her hero, was mute for several years. One of the world’s greatest spoken word poets, another powerful black woman – didn’t just have a speech impediment, she didn’t even speak for 5 years! This became an “aha moment” for her. Amanda said, “If Maya can do it, so can I.” Amanda continued to struggle for a couple more years, and she continued to write furiously, but then she stumbled across another political writer. One who was also famous for writing furiously. Alexander Hamilton. Lin Manuel’s “Hamilton” musical had just opened off-Broadway and Amanda became obsessed with one of the main songs. [AARON BURR] Learning this song off by heart and reciting it over-and-over became her training regimen.  "It just compacts the ‘R’ sound over and over again." said said. "I would listen to the track of 'Aaron Burr, Sir,' and try to do it over and over and over again, and I told myself, 'If you can do this song, you can speak this sound wherever.'" With the help of a speaking coach – and a lot of bravery practicing at open mic’s in front of friendly audiences – Amanda started to bring her words to life off the page.  She started to experiment more with rhyme, alliteration, rhetorical devices like repetition, meter and stressed syllables… Her training regimen made her ask questions like “does this need to live on the page - or does this need to come to life on a stage?” Because there’s a difference. Let me give you an example. Listen to this part of her Inauguration poem again and you’ll see what I mean, because some things are written to be performed. [HILL WE CLIMB] When you really want to inspire an audience, you might have something in your mind that doesn’t quite make sense on the page, but it comes to life when spoken. Like “Justice vs Just is”… Impressive.  Amanda stopped seeing her speech impediment as a crutch. She started to treat it as a gift and a strength. If you watch the video of Amanda performing this poem, you’ll also notice something else... Her speaking and pronunciation is almost flawless, but it’s not that - she’s reading her poem. Does that strike you as strange for a performer? It did for me. Performers don’t read their own words! But this is another way Amanda has faced her fears to turn her presentations into performances. She doesn’t memorise her poems for when she reads them out loud. For a spoken word poet (or any performer for that matter) that was a new concept to me. Of course great performers memorise their words??? Nope. Not Amanda. Remember, Amanda is still a nervous public speaker. She just needs to do a good job of hiding it.  Here’s a real piece of golden advice for you to take away from this episode: You don’t need to worry about memorising your words - it’s how you bring it to life that matters. Some presenters worry that having notes might make your performance sound wooden, or worse still – look like you’ve not rehearsed. No. Having a script to read from tells your audience at that you’ve done your homework and you’ve come prepared. What’s important is that you speak from the heart. Instead of worrying about your words and what to say next, you can focus on speaking with pride and compassion but show your flaws.  Don’t worry about remembering your words. Worry about remembering WHY you wrote them. And then transfer that feeling to your audience. That’s an important distinction. Fear (of public speaking) never really goes away… which is why it’s important for you to have the tools available for when you’re asked to perform in any mission critical moment. I LOVE that Amanda included a reference to Hamilton in her inauguration poem as a nod to the musical which empowered her to find her voice (she called it her “speech pathology”)… [HISTORY HAS ITS EYES ON US] And now the musical… [HAMILTON] That’s a nice touch.   In a full circle moment, Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote Amanda’s profile for her TIME 100 Next ranking: “If the hardest part of an artist’s job is to fully and honestly meet the moment, Amanda delivered a master class. She spoke truth to power and embodied clear-eyed hope to a weary nation. She revealed us to ourselves.” And she’s continuing to speak truth today. Amanda is still only 26 but her words, and a wisdom beyond her words, have put her on the cover of every magazine. She’s written Nike ads, performed at the Superbowl and been photographer by Annie Leibovitz for the cover story of Vogue. On Good Morning America not too long ago - Robin Wright asked if she was serious about a joke she made about running for president in 2036: [GMA]   -- The Truth in Ten is a cross between a podcast series and a storytelling masterclass. Each short episode shines a light on a different inspirational leader; someone who shared a short story which changed the world in some way. This is a show for anyone who wants to make a difference by sharing their story. --        

How Do You Turn a Moment into a Movement?   In this pilot episode of The Truth in Ten Podcast, host Jeremy Connell-Waite takes you behind the scenes of a ten-minute presentation which won not one, but two Academy Awards! It's a presentation which Jeremy has given many times himself, and he shares some insights about where the presentation came from, and what you can learn from it.   "Sorry I gave such a long presentation. I didn't have enough time to create a shorter one!"  SHOW LINKS An Inconvenient Truth Day After Tomorrow Nancy Duarte Interview Duarte Inc. Storytelling Resources Al Gore The Coming Global Superstorm [Book] An Inconvenient Truth [Movie] Truth In Ten [Al Gore's Slideshow] Truth In Ten [Jeremy's Slideshow] Join Climate Reality Leadership Corps   -- The Truth in Ten is a cross between a podcast series and a storytelling masterclass. Each short episode shines a light on a different inspirational leader; someone who shared a short story which changed the world in some way. This is a show for anyone who wants to make a difference by sharing their story. --   S01 E01: FULL TRANSCRIPT How Do You Turn A Moment Into A Movement?   On 27th May, 2004 the movie “The Day After Tomorrow” premiered in New York.  You remember the film?  [CLIP]  Great movie.  It’s a science fiction disaster movie with Jake Gyllenhall and Dennis Quaid, based on a book called “The Coming Global Superstorm”.  The book warned that global warming might produce sudden and catastrophic climate change events.  It was one of the top grossing films of the year.  Anyway – after the premier there was a “Global Warming Townhall” to discuss climate change. And as part of that townhall meeting, there was a panel. The former US Vice-President Al Gore was one of the panellists. And as part of that panel, he had 10 minutes to make his case, so he presented a 10-minute version of a slide show that he’d been working on about the climate crisis.  [INCONVENIENT TRUTH CLIP]  One of the people in the audience that day was a movie producer called Laurie David. She said afterwards that she was “floored” by his presentation.  Interesting sidenote: Laurie David was married to Larry David at the time (the creator of Seinfeld & Curb Your Enthusiasm) – and they both know a thing or two about storytelling and how to capture an audience’s attention. (Laurie & Larry David. Bit of a mouthful at dinner parties!) As soon as the evening was over, Laurie asked Al Gore if he would present his slideshow to her influential friends in New York and LA. She thought it was the most powerful and clear explanation of global warming she’d ever seen, and she decided right there and then that she would make it her mission to get everyone she knew to see it too. Now Laurie is a movie producer, so Laurie did what Laurie does best… She assembled a small team and asked them to explore the possibility of turning Al’s ten minute slide show into a movie. As far as they knew, nothing like this had ever been done before – but Al Gore wasn’t convinced. Since losing the race to become US president 4 years earlier, he’d decided to focus all his attenion on the climate crisis, and he’d now given this presentation thousands of times. He had slaved over this deck for years and spent hundreds of hours presenting it. This slideshow was his baby, and he didn’t want to put that baby, as fragile as it was, into the hands of any Hollywood movie makers. Hollywood executives might corrupt the story. They might take their “creative licence” too far and undermine the integrity of the message. It was a real concern. But Laurie assured Al that the message was more important than the money - and that what was at stake was the planet, saying "None of us are going to make a dime at the box office anyway!” He reluctantly allowed her to explore the possibility so they met up with director Davis Guggenheim (ER, 24, NYPD Blue, Deadwood, He Named Me Malala and Netflix’s Inside Bill’s Brain). He’s a big deal. He’s even made a film for IBM! But Guggenheim wasn’t convinced it would work either. Until, that is, he saw the 10 minute presentation for himself and he was “blown away." (His words). He left that meeting thinking that global warming was the most important issue in the world – and he admitted that he had no idea how to make a film out of it, but he wanted to try. Not easy! Guggenheim’s films usually take a couple of years. But An Inconvenient Truth needed to be filmed and produced in a matter of months - and on a really tight budget of just $1.5M. Remember - that this all started with just ONE 10-minute slideshow. Have that in the back of your mind the next time you’re putting a presentation together. That’s the power of a great story. Great stories create urgency and can inspire audience’s to act. And act quickly. When asked about the project, Guggenheim said "We all felt like we were on a mission from God just to make it as fast as we could. We just felt like it was urgent. The clock was ticking, and people had to see it.” So what happened next? How do you turn a slideshow into a movie? How do you turn all those numbers into a narrative? Enter Nancy Duarte. She’s one of my hero’s and one of the people I most look up to in the world of business storytelling. If you don’t know her, watch her TED Talk. Duarte. D.U.A.R.T.E. Her Californian presentation company, Duarte Design, was approached to condense and update Al Gore’s slide deck, mostly by adding some video and animation. It was already a pretty good slide show, but it needed more drama to make it engaging on the silver screen. Another interesting side note in this story - Al Gore was on the board of Apple! He knew Steve Jobs pretty well, so he had a pretty good presentation coach! That’s why Al Gore’s slides have always had a similar style to the one’s Steve used in his keynotes. But still, Nancy made them better. And once Al Gore saw how devoted this small but motivated team were to his cause, and how impressive the new slides were, he agreed to go ahead and make the movie. An Inconvenient Truth opened in 2006 in New York, just a few blocks away from where Al Gore gave his 10-minute slideshow just two years earlier. The trailer claimed it was “the most terrifying film you will ever see”. At the Sundance Film Festival, the movie received THREE standing ovations. Six weeks later, it won two Oscars. Unheard of. In his acceptance speech, Gore gave a brief speech. Just 48 words. That’s BREVITY for you: “My fellow Americans, people all over the world, we need to solve the climate crisis. It's not a political issue; it's a moral issue. We have everything we need to get started, with the possible exception of the will to act. That's a renewable resource. Let's renew it.” So… A 10-minute presentation. An Academy Award winning documentary. And a 48-word speech. Right after the film launched, Al Gore founded The Climate Reality Project of the back of the film’s surprise success. He trained 1,000 activists that year, teaching each of them how to give his 10-minute presentation about the climate crisis to their friends and colleagues. He called it “The Truth in Ten.” In 2019 I became one of those leaders when I became part of the Climate Reality Leadership Corps. I’ve now given Al Gore’s The Truth in Ten presentation dozens of times to thousands of people over the last few years, and as you’ve probably figured out by now, I love the title of this presentation so much that I named this podcast after it. Because I’d like this show to shine a light on some short stories from a few inspirational people who made a real difference – and hopefully their words and their process might inspire you to become a better storyteller yourself. Here’s the thing about the process behind Al Gore’s slideshow… Truth in Ten is an unusual thing to present. It breaks all the rules of presenting. There’s a lot of charts (with sexy animations of course – thanks Nancy!). There’s a lot of stories. You need to explain the science clearly but you have to make it interesting and easy to understand. There’s a clear Aristo-telian 3-act structure: “Must we change? Can we change? Will we change?” There’s 55 slides and you need to speed up and slow down the transitions to create drama and anticipation, but that still works out at an average of one slide every 11 seconds. That’s fast! (And not easy to do). There’s a cadence and a rhythm to the way it’s presented. Intense slides with lots of words sit alongside dramatic photos of wildfires and floods. A few of the photos are so dramatic I’ve broken down myself a few times when presenting them. It’s emotional. (Both for the person presenting it and the audience listening to it). And finally, you need to speak at around 180 words a minute – which is usually never a good idea for any audience. This presentation shouldn’t work. But it does. Because this is not your average presentation. This is a 10-minute presentation which took FOUR years to create. It’s given birth to a double Oscar-winning documentary - which to this day, is still one of the highest grossing documentaries of all-time. It’s a presentation which changed the world. Political agenda aside, and whatever your view of Al Gore, he took a master-deck of 615 slides and turned it into 10 minutes of truth which got the world talking. That’s a feat in itself. Anyone can speak for a long time with a lot of slides. You might bore the audience but it’s not that hard.   But not enough of us know how to impact an audience in under 10 minutes. For anyone who wants to be an effective storyteller (given how short attention spans are these days) – this is something we should you should study: inspirational people who used storytelling to turn moments into movements. So... What’s the real message behind this episode? The purpose of every story is to make an audience FEEL something. That’s what transformational storytelling is all about. Whether it’s a movie, a book, a song, a play, a poem or a keynote. And if there’s one thing that Al Gore has taught me to do – and the tens of thousands of climate leaders he’s personally trained as part of his Climate Reality Project – it’s that the purpose of a story – A “Mission Critical Story” (like The Truth in Ten) – is not just to get an audience to FEEL something, it’s to get an audience to DO something. [APPLAUSE]