Lessons
Class Introduction
07:38 2Defining Brand
06:54 3Finding Your Mindset
03:14 4Winning A Job vs. Getting A Job
09:16 5Busy Is A Decision
02:33 6Honing your Mindset
04:02 7Generators vs. Drains
03:58 8Developing Your Mission (Statement)
10:27Identifying Table Stakes
05:18 10Characterizing Leadership
07:04 11Crafting Your Message
06:27 12How to Master Presentation
07:31 13The Importance of Being Trustworthy
02:30 14How to Achieve Success at your Interview–Part 1
10:32 15How to Achieve Success at your Interview–Part 2
14:00 16Artificial Harmony
04:14 17Developing Your Methodology
07:24 18How to Get the Interview
11:03 19Tips on Self Promotion
05:40 20Email Best and Worst Practices
06:50 21Creating a Stellar Resume and Cover Letter
05:49 22Set Big Goals and Final Q&A
04:30Lesson Info
How to Master Presentation
So I wanna talk a little bit about what a presentation actually is. So in the same way that I deconstructed what positioning is. I wanna to deconstruct what an actual presentation is. Because I think we use the word selling and presenting. We almost use these simultaneously to convey the same thing. And I wanna really talk very seriously about what a presentation actually is. So you know, what is expected when you are showing your work. Because their presentation in many ways is a performance where you are taking somebody through the body of your work in a way that is engaging and inspiring and also educational. So let's talk about a presentation. What is a presentation? So a presentation in my mind. A presentation is the art of storytelling, and selling. So you're not only entertaining With the story, but you're also selling with the story. So you're talking about who you are in a way that is not only engaging and memorable but believable and inspirational. The only way something can ...
be believable is if it's true. The only way something can be believable is if it's true. Let's think back to the question I asked you earlier this morning, who here lies? Who here has ever been lied to? Who here knows whenever anybody is lying to them? Which means if you deconstruct that framework, we tend to know when people are lying to us. It's a sense that we have and whenever you do it to somebody else, assume that they know. I don't know what it is about designers, but we always think we're smarter than everybody else. (laughing) We always do and somehow we think that we're the exception. That we can get away with this and nobody is going to know. I'm here to tell you everybody always knows, always knows. So, there is no other alternative but to show up authentically. So when I talk about selling, I am talking about the process of showing up authentically as is okay. Presenting is selling and storytelling. When you are presenting yourself you are telling stories in a way and I don't mean fables. I mean actual entertaining vignettes and anecdotes about yourself in a way that is engaging and in a way that people feel inspired by. Because when people feel inspired by the things that you're sharing with them, then they wanna capture that and own that. And that's when you're offered the job. So a presentation is the process of selling an idea. You're selling the idea. And what is the idea? The idea is, I'm the person you should hire. I want to win this job. I want this job more than anything else that I've ever wanted and my whole life up until this point. And the goal of presenting yourself. The goal of presenting your work is inspiring somebody to take the action you want them to take. What is that action? Pick me, I'm the girl, I'm the one, I'm the person that you want to hire to do this really special job. So a good presentation. A good presentation is a work of art, It's a skill. And it's something that you have to practice and learn. And practice and learn and practice and learn. A great presentation. A super spectacular presentation, is a combination of skill of art, of Intelligence and leadership. I believe that selling your ideas is as important as having them. If you are not able to sell your ideas, then nobody's going to ever know that you have them. If you haven't taken a presentation training class, I urge you to take one. And I urge you to take a class wherein you are being videotaped while you present. It will horrify you. (laughing) You will come out of that experience, devastated. But you will learn all the things that you don't know that you don't know. (laughing) Right there in that experience. How do we learn how to talk about our work? How do we learn how to talk about ourselves? And if you aren't able to talk about what your benefit is and the work that you're doing. What the benefit that has to an organization, then all it is, is a beauty contest. And beauty contests are entirely as we've talked about, subjective, entirely subjective. So you need to be able to talk about your work in a way that conveys what it is you intend, what it is you believe, why it's important, and how you can justify the decisions that you've made about how you've gone about making the work. Ultimately, though, I want you to understand something. Ideas are easy. Ideas are easy, strategy is much, much much harder. So I can ask everybody in this room to come up with an idea for a beautiful, carbonated soft drink label. Give you a funny little name and everybody can go off and create a beautiful label in probably an hour or two. But if I said to everybody in this room, now I want you to go back and think of a reason for a new carbonated soft drink to exist. You know, perform different activities than others. It is a lot of carbonated soft drinks out in the market. Be a lot harder to come up with a reason why this should exist. If you could come up with a reason why you've done all the things you've done in your portfolio, it will resonate much stronger with people who will then be able to understand your intentions. And sometimes understanding the intentions are more important than the results. And so if you can't, if you don't know why you chose something, if you don't know why you chose this typeface, if you don't know why you chose this color, If you don't know why you chose this order of things, then how is anybody else going to understand? Even if you have to re-engineer the reasons why. Then re-engineer the reasons why. But come up with a sense of what was the strategy behind this work and the same way that you're coming up with a strategy for your benefit. What was the reason that I designed this, this way? Because ultimately, presenting your work, presenting your ideas is a skill that you have to master in the marketplace. Otherwise, if you cannot articulate what is special and unique about you, and what you've done. Nobody is going to magically be able to understand it.
Ratings and Reviews
Hilary Larson
I was not expecting to get so much out of this accelerated class! Debbie is a captivating speaker who manages to get her points across directly while maintaining a strong sense of relatability with her audience. I really look forward to taking what I have learned here with me as I move forward in my career as a visual artist. Highly recommended.
Michelle
This class is for a specific audience - young or new-to-the-field designers. It is NOT a branding class for the regular person. The class description is misleading. However, there are bits and tips that anyone can benefit from, but you have to sit through the entire presentation to get those bits and tips. I am not a designer. Because I had the all-access pass, I dipped in and out of different classes, speeding up and skipping as needed. I found enough value in this Fast Class: A Brand Called You to watch it, rather than the long one. I can see how this would benefit new designers as they job hunt.
Matías Obando Ruiz
Debbie the OG