ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Get your favourite flag ready as we break down one of Thomas' all-time favourite TED Talks. We're watching "Roman Mars: Why city flags may be the worst-designed thing you've never noticed". And yes, it's a talk about flags. But it's also a masterclass in taking a topic your audience doesn't think they care about and making it fascinating. Kate was cautious to begin with, but by the end, gave it a perfect 10/10 rating!
Roman Mars combines storytelling, humour, visuals, audio clips, and careful choreography to showcase mastery in multimedia presentations. Thomas has loved this talk for a decade and Kate had somehow managed to avoid watching it until this week. We analyse exactly what works, spot minor slip-ups, and even discuss what happened in the years since this talk.
What You'll Learn:
- How to make an audience care about a topic they weren't expecting to care about
- Why teaching your audience a simple framework can change how they see everything that follows
- How humour can emerge naturally from setting up and then breaking expectations
- How to successfully manage audio, visuals and multiple voices in a live presentation
- Why explaining an unusual presentation format upfront helps an audience settle into it
- The six key principles of flag design (trust us, you do actually care about these!)
- What to do when something goes wrong in a highly choreographed presentation
- Why a strong message can inspire action long after the presentation is over
Our Ratings:
Thomas: 9.9/10
Kate: 10/10
Watch It Yourself:
Roman Mars: Why city flags may be the worst-designed thing you've never noticed
https://www.ted.com/talks/roman_mars_why_city_flags_may_be_the_worst_designed_thing_you_ve_never_noticed
Resources and Links:
- 99% Invisible: https://99percentinvisible.org/
- Good Flag, Bad Flag: https://nava.org/good-flag-bad-flag
- Email us: podcast@presentationboss.com.au
- The Presentation Boss Podcast: presentationboss.com.au/podcast
- Kate on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/data-storytelling
- Thomas on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/data-storytelling-au
