You want to give a TEDx Talk? Here's where you start.

As a #TEDx curator and #speakercoach I get asked this a lot. A LOT. How do I give a #TEDxTalk? And how do I get selected? As our event’s YouTube and TED.com views catapulted to over 20 million views (with an average of 8 speakers a year and a total of 70 speakers), we began asking precisely that. What would you tell someone interested in giving a TEDx Talk? Well, this is the first part of my answer. I'll be posting more about this, storytelling, and communication so be sure to follow me.

We’ve had a lot of success getting TEDx talks selected as TEDx Editor’s Picks on YouTube, TED Shorts, TED Ideas, social media promotion, and featured on TED.com. Our success at TEDxCU is due to an incredible team of undergraduate students (yes, you read that right) and myself in identifying good ideas, even if the idea wasn’t obvious from the application. We are very good at spotting the beginnings of a good idea and it’s usually not the idea the person presents to us.

The first question I ask: Why do you want to give a TEDx Talk?

As you think about this question, do any of these responses resonate with you?

1. I’m a good speaker and want to get on the speaking circuit.

2. I want to promote and/or build my business.

3. I want a career change.

4. I want people to know my name.

5. I want to write a book and it seems like this would help.

If any of these resonate with you, I’d suggest that you don’t have an idea worth spreading. Yes, I said it. TED and TEDx Talks are not about you. If your talk is about you, your business, your own awesomeness, that’s not a TED or TEDx Talk. Instead, we call these talks “Why I am so great!” If you aren’t getting any interest from TEDx events, think about if your speaker application could be read like this—is this about an idea or about me? If it’s about you, good luck with that. I’ll talk more about the kinds of applications I most frequently see in a later post.

The second question I ask: What's your idea?

Your idea is also known as your throughline.

What I'm about to say is crucial. So, listen up. It's vitally important for you to understand this about any communication you will ever create in your life. Your talk is about one idea.

Notice how the five responses above started with the word “I”. This is always a sign that you haven’t worked out your idea yet. When the talk is about you, it’s not a TED or TEDx talk. When the primary pronoun in your speech manuscript is “I”, this is a sign to any curator that this is more about you than your idea. Yes, you can be a character in your story but you are not the story. The idea is the story.

So, go back to the drawing board and think very carefully about WHY you want to do this and WHAT the idea is.

Think of it like this: The idea is your gift to the world. It’s not a pithy or catchy phrase. It’s not an acronym that you’ve created. The idea is simple. The idea can be stated in 4-8 words. After you state your idea, there should be no mystery precisely what you’re talking about. Pithy, catchy, cute, clever ideas/titles have one thing in common: they use language nobody immediately understands. Nothing is cute or clever if the audience doesn't immediately understand what you're saying. This is precisely how NOT to get selected and, more importantly, how not to reach the audience.

Sometimes people respond, “But Jeff, don’t I want to keep a little mystery in the topic of my talk? Don’t I want the audience guessing? Or on the edge of their seat?”

NO! If you want to do that, you’ve already lost your audience. People are more inclined to listen and hear what you’re saying if they have a general idea about where you’re going. And this is the biggest difference, by far, between spoken and written word. In written word, the audience can read something over and over again. In spoken word, you only have one opportunity. Take advantage of your opportunity and always remember:

Simplicity

Simplicity

Simplicity

When you do this, you will avoid the second biggest mistake people make: cram 5-7 talks into one.

Remember, your next presentation isn’t your last opportunity to speak. It’s your next opportunity. So, what is a specific idea you think could help someone? Again, stop thinking about your talk as your last opportunity because your talk will try to do way too much. When this happens you won’t even be able to get through the door.

This is the biggest piece of advice I can give you if you want to be known as a great communicator: Communication is never about you, it’s always about the person you’re speaking with. When you make this small adjustment in your mindset, you will be able to think about the idea from the audience’s point of view. When you do this, you have the beginnings of an idea worth spreading.