Being a lover of theater, I welcome Carmaine Gollo’s book, The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs, with open arms. Instead of chapters, he uses scenes. Instead of bullet points, he shares how to use interesting, simple visuals.
John Sculley says, “Marketing is really theater. It’s like staging a performance.”
This quote in Scene 1 is worth the price of the book. If we could look at presenting our ideas as theater instead of selling and manipulating, just imagine how much fun we’d have! The first part of the book speaks to the importance of having a sense of purpose, an antagonist (a common villain the audience can turn against) then a conquering hero. If you’re looking to inspire change in your audience, this is a good way to set the stage.
There are examples throughout the book of Steve Jobs actual speeches and how he incorporates the idea of theater. At the end of each scene, you’ll find director’s notes to help you incorporate the ideas into your own presentation.
Act 3 is about refining and rehearsing your presentation. If you’ve ever seen Steve Jobs speak, chances are you feel his ease and natural way of communicating. Gallo shares his research where he finds that Steve Job’s team spends hundreds of hours on a five-minute demo. (Hundreds!)
You’ll read about the use of metaphors like when Steve Jobs says, “What a computer is to me is the most remarkable tool that we have ever come up with. It’s the equivalent of a bicycle for our minds”
This book will help you craft a message that clearly expresses it in an unforgettable way. Enjoy!