You’re Bored Because Business Leaders are Scared Wimpy Wimp Wimps

I’ve suffered through countless boring, seemingly pointless speeches and presentations given by geniuses in their field. C-suite executives, industry leaders, etc. I've witnessed critical sales presentations fall flat when they should have inspired action.

Why is this happening?

Short answer: Scared wimpy wimp wimp executives and business leaders refuse to do the one thing that is proven to inspire action.

Precursor to Long answer: When you focus on facts you fail to inspire.

Now, the long-answer part...

There is a reason those late-night tear-jerker commercials trying to get you to donate money to kids in need don’t rely on facts.

“Approximately 9 million children in the US are foods insecure. That’s 1 in 9 children.” That fact is terribly sad but the message is uninspiring. They couldn’t make much of an impact if they just gave you facts about child hunger.

Instead, to inspire you to take action right now, they tell you about “5-year-old Sammy. His family couldn’t afford dinner last night. And, Sammy won’t have any breakfast to eat before going to school today.” I mean, how can you not feel compelled to stop reading this and immediately donate money to help Sammy? And this is a fictitious example!

Executives and business leaders refuse to employ this technique because they are scared. They're scared wimpy wimp wimps, to be exact!

They hide behind their facts and figures because they are afraid to include any sort of “feeling” in their messaging.

Successful TV shows and movies include feelings, evoke emotions, and therefore inspire action. What actions, you ask? Buying a ticket. Clicking to watch. Simply WATCHING.

You don't watch a show on Netflix because of its ratings. You may check it out because of those facts but you won't stick around unless it's delivering on the emotion you desire. Ted Lasso? You want to feel uplifted. Succession? You want to feel superior. Mission: Impossible? You want to feel a thrill. Marvel Movies: you want to feel your bladder almost explode because those movies are too dang long!

Not "Motion pictures," "Emotion pictures."

An early mentor of mine referred to motion pictures as “Emotion Pictures.” The moving image isn't what moves you. The emotion is what moves you.

So, be brave, executive! You don't give speeches for your health. You give them to inspire some action. So, please put your version of Sammy in your speech. That way, if I have to sit through your presentation, I won't want to gauge my own eyeballs out with a nearby dull butter knife.

Use Every Tool at Your Disposal or You Might as Well Put Your Speech in the Disposal

You know, 94% of executives who read this will ignore it. Kim won’t. Kim is an executive preparing a presentation that could finally win back the whale her predecessor lost that almost put the company out of business. Kim enrolled the asynchronous "On-demand Dazzle" program. She shared the draft of her speech with us. We reviewed the speech and sent some clarifying questions, We then provided Kim with a few creative ways to make her presentation action-worthy and memorable. She was able to ask as many clarifying questions she needed to feel secure.

Kim now enters the arena full of confidence, knowing she has done everything in her power to create the possibility of inspiring action and becoming branded in the brain of her audience.

Email jason@showandbiz.com if you are interested in some On-demand Dazzle.

Now, go create something excellent that you can be proud of!