Presentation Thinking™

Ever wonder who works behind the scenes of a teleprompter? Or who even uses teleprompting anymore?? As it turns out, a lot of people - including Oprah!  In this special interview episode, we sit down with Jill Richardson of K2 Productions to chat about her decade-long experience working as a teleprompter. From high profile corporate events to celebs, she has seen—and helped put on—hundreds of pres...

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a Nigerian writer whose 2009 TED Talk has over 33 MILLION views—and we all know that a well-viewed TED Talk is a clear indication of an effective speaker.  Titled “The Danger of a Single Story” , Chimamanda’s talk illustrates both the power and the burden that stories can have. Growing up only reading books by American/British authors, it took her many years to learn th...

It’s time to practice what we preach—with Mikey’s first keynote speaker experience!  We were so excited when Product Marketing Alliance asked Mikey to give a keynote talk at their recent Product Marketing Summit in NYC.  But what topics to fit into a 30 minute pre-lunch slot?? Demo vignettes, of course!  As part of Mikey’s Road to the TED Talk journey , this episode dives into the content, deck cr...

Having worn an abundance of hats, Jen Jones leads with true empathy for her teams as the CMO for CommerceTools. As part of our collaborative series with the Product Marketing Alliance, Mikey got to interview Jen on Product Marketing Life— check it out here ! For this episode, we pull out her super quotable highlights on networking, capitalizing on storytelling opportunities and her journey to the...

We were lucky enough to collaborate with the Product Marketing Life Podcast where Mikey interviewed personal hero and incredible Product Marketing Manager, Esther Yoon from RingCentral . (If you like this episode, tune into the full ‘sode over there and give Product Marketing Alliance a follow!) We really dig into the amazing takeaways with quotable highlights from that conversation and—you guesse...

Jonathan Pitts knows how to collaborate with an audience. An improv performer, expert and teacher for over 15 years, working in various environments, giving workshops and speaking to different audiences has kinda been his job. If you know improv, you know the “Yes, and…” approach can be applied to many aspects of work and life—that’s especially true for presenters. With an upcoming workshop called...

Rukma Sen is always looking to find a good story. Whether she’s being the rockstar Product Marketing Manager for Google that she is or working through her “Five Why” framework, Rukma is passionate about creating “human to human” messaging. Having studied English Literature in college, our conversation circled around finding the story in every project, product marketing insights and tips for public...

Advertisers have been vying for your attention (and paying big bucks for airtime) ever since the Super Bowl began. So what sticks out in 2023 and how can a brand tell its story in a memorable way? What’s cringe and what’s catchy? Creative Director and ad guru Jeff Thomas joins us to go through “milestone” ads over the years, groundbreaking storytelling strategies and what our faves were from this...

What’s the forecast say for presentations in 2023? Rainy with a sprinkle of G Slides? GhostRanch Creative Director Allie Wilson and Kelsey Jones, Director of Account Management, join Presentation Thinking to get their presentation meteorology skills on! They’re experts in what they highlight as the “Three C’s” to look out for: Cohesion, Composability & Continued Learning. Tune in for some fres...

Boris Hristov was destined to improve the world of presentations. Following his exposure to presentations with the all-too-common “Death by PowerPoint” phenomenon, he would later found his presentation agency called 356 Labs . With the arrival of the pandemic, they created the Present to Succeed conference, the world’s largest gathering for presentation skills. We’ve been longtime fans of 356 Labs...

Ever wonder if there’s ONE thing you need to be doing to improve your presentations? The Rancheros have answers. When GhostRanch retreated to Palm Springs for a “Winter Workation” last week, we did hot-seat style interviews! From art director to designer to technical director, we got advice that people (like you!) can easily implement to level-up their presentations. And for good measure, we asked...

Tony Fadell might not be a name you know, but it’s attached to products used around the world. Starting his career at Apple with Steve Jobs and designing the early iPod, Fadell later went on to invent the Google Nest smart thermostat. His TED Talk, The First Secret of Great Design , illustrates how breaking habituation is the first step in observing everyday problems around us that innovators can...

Tamsen Webster knows how to get to the heart of things, or rather—the Red Thread. A strategic messaging expert and TED Talk aficionado, Tamsen has been working with brands and individuals to hone a talk, craft a message and get to the ROOT of a mission for almost 25 years. Mikey and Molly are already big fans of her book, Find Your Red Thread: Make Your Big Ideas Irresistible . In this episode, we...

What we learned starting a presentation podcast and where (we hope) it’s going. This episode’s “Year in Review” peels back the curtain so we can tell you EXACTLY how many regular listeners we have, which episodes came out on top and how many nicknames Mikey has gifted the ‘cast. It’s been a journey—From figuring out what the heck to talk about, to getting folks to interview, to avoiding over-enunc...

When Mikey is asked to return to his college Alma Mater and present to a club for business leaders, he is posed with the challenge: How do you engage & inspire young people with a presentation? Thus began the pod’s first endeavor into a motivational presentation. We discuss the story Mikey shared, how he prepped and exactly how many laughs he got. "Is this deck ready to pitch?" As Captain Ron...

Life is better in color - and presentations are more strategic with it, too. Associate Creative Director Lindsay Hadley AKA our resident “Color Commentator” joins the pod to discuss palettes, Pantone and the impact color can make on any project. How much is too much color? How do you find a memorable color combo? And what can Pantone’s Color of the Year tell us? Join this “Color theory 101” to pai...

You’ve probably heard of motivational speaker & “guru” Simon Sinek. Mikey and Molly dive into Sinek’s early 00s TED Talk, How Great Leaders Inspire Action . It’s inspiring, of course. It’s also a masterclass in great presentation skills. His use of repetition, a simple diagram and even—dare we say—the lack of slides are all perfectly executed. Whether you’re a Simon skeptic or stan, there’s a...

Aimée Mazara calls herself a Visual Journalist. Based in the Dominican Republic, her illustrations take on a dynamic watercolor-esque quality—you can feel the movement of the streets; the markets. Focusing on everyday life scenes, Aimée tends to start conversations with locals for inspiration. Her art has even been a method for fundraising and raising awareness for a neighbor in need. It was so mu...

Aimée Mazara calls herself a Visual Journalist. Based in the Dominican Republic, her illustrations take on a dynamic watercolor-esque quality—you can feel the movement of the streets; the markets. Focusing on everyday life scenes, Aimée tends to start conversations with locals for inspiration. Her art has even been a method for fundraising and raising awareness for a neighbor in need. It was so mu...

Molly reports back after attending this year’s STORY Conference in Nashville—a self-explanatory event about, well, storytelling. This immersive conference experience took us to Neverland—complete with fairy dust, Lost Boys running around and a mermaid in the fountain. From Narrative Strategists at NASA to the writer of Beauty and the Beast, the variety and caliber of speakers was stunning. This wa...

Illustrator Derek Abella might call himself “a silly little guy who draws”, but his creative work has garnered national and cultural significance. With soft lines, beautiful gradients and blended shapes, Derek’s work makes otherwise hard-to-depict subjects approachable AND beautiful. We discuss his creative journey as an artist and peel back the curtain on his process—with a lot of valuable takeaw...

Visual Designer Isabela Humphrey has always loved to draw, growing up surrounded by a family of creative people. But her journey to becoming a successful designer wasn’t so straightforward. From studying fashion design to side-hustling with card-making, Isabela is further proof that there are limitless pathways to becoming a full time illustrator. Her clients now include Apartment Therapy, Refiner...

For this episode’s “Presentation Book Club” discussing Making Numbers Count , we brought on our favorite CFO and the biggest “numbers guy” we know— Kip McCauley . Kip and Mikey break down their takeaways from Chip Heath and Karla Starr’s 2022 book, Making Numbers Count. How can we most effectively communicate data and numbers? It’s all about painting pictures, comparing them to human terms or tran...

We’ve arrived at the SEVENTH and final of the 7 Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories —Rebirth. While “rebirth” conjures up images of a phoenix rising from the ashes, we now might also think of a wilting rose in a castle or the Ghost of Christmas Past. Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast & A Christmas Carol are all familiar classics that can be considered a “rebirth” plot. A dark shadow, menacing...

Lianna Patch knows the power of making someone laugh. In fact, she’s built her own business around it. Punchline Copy is one of many projects for this speaker, stand-up and professional conversion copywriter. After Mikey saw her present in Mexico City, we did a classic cold email to get her aboard the pod—and boy, was it worth it. From copywriting tips like her very professional “We-We" process, t...