How to Use Conflict to Shape an Engaging Presentation

Like good movies, great presentations need to be memorable. To be memorable, they need to tell a story that will stay with the audience and that can be talked about further.

Ratatouille, an engaging story about a struggle to achieve a passion

“No conflict, no story. (…) Make things clear, engaging, and memorable by illustrating the struggle” recommends Garr Reynolds, a presentation guru, one of his posts ‘10 tips for improving your presentations & speeches‘. He continues: “We can certainly improve almost any talk by being mindful of what is at stake and what the obstacles are to overcome. Here’s a definition of Story from the book ‘Story Proof': “A character-based narration of a character’s struggles to overcome obstacles and reach an important goal.””

Showing struggle and vulnerability is a great way to connect with an audience and create engagement. Highlight the conflicts at stake, personal or organizational, and do not hesitate to be overly dramatic in the way you present. Your audience will stay with you and will remember what your message is.

Rework your presentation to highlight the conflict and the struggle.

And show the way.