Book Review: Talk Like Ted by Carmine Gallo (@cgalloacademy)
This book wasn’t even on my radar until I received a package from my friend Ellory Wells. In the package, Ellory included Talk Like TED: The 9 Public-Speaking Secrets of the World’s Top Minds by Carmine Gallo with a note inside:
Jon,
I’ve never read this book, but I’ve heard wonderful things! I know you want to be a speaker. You ARE a speaker! If you want to read this book together, let me know; I got myself a copy too. 🙂
See you on stage!
Ellory Wells
I’m glad Ellory sent me the book, and I’m thankful for the note in the front of the book as well.
Talk Like TED is an inspiring and educational read for anyone who does presentations or who wants to present to others. In Talk Like TED
, Carmine Gallo unpacks the research he compiled by studying the most successful TEDTalk speakers. He shares stories and statistics in a way that will help speakers take their craft to the next level.
This was the perfect book for me as I consider future speaking opportunities. Talk Like TED gave me nine “secrets” to improving my speaking, and it gave me hours of TEDTalk presentations to review to help me refine my skills.
If you are a pastor, a teacher, a manager, or a presenter of any kind, I’d recommend picking up a copy of Talk Like TED. If you are a writer, I’d also recommend this book as I believe it will improve your blogs, books, and other writing endeavors. If you have a message that needs to be heard, this book will help you package your message in a way that will get people to listen.
Here are a few of the quotes I highlighted as I read the book:
- “Ideas, effectively packaged and delivered, can change the world.”
- “Great communicators reach your head and touch your heart.”
- “People cannot inspire others unless and until they are inspired themselves.”
- “If you want to help someone, shut up and listen.”
- “Our brains are more active when we hear stories.”
- “An authentic presentation requires hours of work – digging deeper into your soul than you ever have, choosing the right words that best represent the way you feel about your topic, delivering those words for maximum impact, and making sure that your nonverbal communication – your gestures, facial expressions, and body language – are consistent with your message.”
- “Don’t take yourself (or your topic) too seriously. The brain loves humor. Give your audience something to smile about.”
- “You don’t need luck to be an inspiring speaker. You need examples, techniques, passion, and practice. You also need courage – the courage to follow your passion, articulate your ideas simply, and express what makes your heart sing.”
How do you feel about public-speaking? When was the last time you spoke in public? How did it go? Tell me about it in the comments.
(Please note: I received a copy of Talk Like TED for free as a gift from my friend, Ellory Wells. I was not required to provide a favorable review. I truly believe this book can be a helpful tool for taking your speaking opportunities to the next level.
Also to note: There are affiliate links in this post. Should you purchase Talk Like TED by clicking one of these links, I receive a small percentage of the purchase. These funds are used to support The Stretched Blog and to extend ministry and missions to Guatemala. Thank you!)