How Many Messages to Cover in a Speech - Public Speaking Video Lecture

so how many messages should you include
in your speech or your presentation well
before we talk about that let's step
back and let me ask you a question think
of the best presenter you've seen in the
last year someone in your field not just
somebody you saw on TV not a
professional comedian or a politician
but somebody in your field where you saw
them in person at a conference
preferably not somebody who works in
your company think of this person think
of this presentation and now think of
every specific message point you
remember from that speech I don't mean
that they were funny or you like the way
they walked around or their style I mean
actual content actual message points if
you had to get up in front of a white
board and diagram their speech tell me
every message you could remember from
that speech now I've asked that question
for years and years of my clients all
over the world and for years when I
asked people that sometimes I say I
don't know I don't remember anything or
they remember one message or two again
this is from the best speaker they've
seen in the last year occasionally three
every once in a while people remember
four messages and once every six months
somebody will remember five messages
five key points five themes and all the
years I've been asking this question
I've never had anyone come up with more
than five ideas that they remember so
that's why I just start off from the
Assumption up don't try to communicate
more than five key ideas five themes
five messages in your speech because
you're not going to be successful do you
really think everyone you speak to has a
memory better than yours if you can't
remember more than five from the best
speaker you've seen why do
think anyone will remember more messages
from you people always yeah TJ i
understand i get it makes perfect sense
but my audience is different they expect
me to do the public no they're not your
audience is not different your audience
is not smarter than you your audience is
not going to remember more than five
ideas so people think in the real world
their choice is in my thorough and
hardworking and really show everyone how
smart I am by covering 80 points or am I
kind of lazy and laid back and just
cover a handful that's what people think
their choice is obviously if that is the
choice you go with a hard-working 80 I
live in the real world in the real world
the choice is are you communicating five
points remember it's not communication
unless people not only understand it but
remember it the real world choice is do
you communicate a handful of ideas five
or do you communicate absolutely nothing
because that's what happens to most
speakers so when you're coming up with
the number of points number of messages
for your presentation focus on five or
fewer