7 Steps to Getting Your First Tedx Talk - #UnlockingLily Ep. 10

Hello everyone. Welcome to another episode of Unlocking Lily. So it's always been my dream to be a speaker, which led me to quit my day job to work and mentor under Evan full-time. And all of you are coming along for this journey with me. In every episode, I take on a different challenge to help me grow as a speaker. So I just got back from giving my first TEDx talk, and a lot of you guys have been asking me, How did you get in? And look, I get it. Maybe you want to be a professional speaker. Maybe it's on your bucket list. Or maybe you have an idea that you want to share with the rest of the world. Here's the good news. There are 2,000 to 3,000 TEDx events happening every year. Now, the bad news is that the process of applying to becoming a speaker is a little bit complicated. So in this video, I'm gonna make it easy for you and share the 7 steps in getting your first TEDx Talk. Step number 1 is the location. You need to determine how far you are willing to travel. So when you go on their website, ted.com/tedx/events, you are going to see all the TEDx events happening around the world. So for me, I looked at all the TEDx events that were within a 6-hour drive from Toronto. So you really want to think about how far are you willing to travel, because you could have a TEDx event happening in your backyard, but it's not happening for another year, or you might get rejected. So the farther you're willing to travel, the better your chances are in getting in. Step number 2 is the timing. You wanna only look at the TEDx events that are happening at least 3 months from today. The TEDx organizers wanna make sure that they finalize all their speakers 3 months prior to the event. So if you see something that is a month from now, you can still apply, but chances are they already have their speakers chosen. So to help you narrow down your search, you need to go back to the same website and you could filter it by month and year. Step number 3 is the theme. Every single TEDx event will have their own theme. So the TEDx event that I spoke at, their theme was "Act Local, Think Global." TED is all about sharing ideas and each TEDx event organizer is asked to come up with their own theme. Because they want to generate a global conversation around that specific topic. So to maximize your chances of getting in, you need to make sure that your idea lines up with their theme as closely as possible. Unfortunately, there is no easy way of finding out their theme from the main website. You would have to go on the individual website of each TEDx event. So for example, if you want to apply to TEDx Toronto, You need to Google TEDx Toronto. And once you're on their website, you will see that their theme is legacy. Now, knowing that, you could do one of two things. You could either tweak your idea to match the theme of legacy, or if it's too far outside of what you want to talk about, you cannot apply and just move on to the next TEDx event. Now, this is the most crucial part. This is the reason why most people don't get in, because their idea does not match the theme. Step number 4 is the application. This is your chance to introduce yourself and your idea to the organizers. Now, they're going to ask you to either fill out an online form or to email them directly. They're going to ask you general questions like your name, your phone number, and your email address. But that's the easy stuff. The most important part is your idea. So when submitting your idea, you want to focus on these 3 things. Number 1 is, what is your one idea that you want to share? You may have multiple amazing ideas, but you want to make sure that you bring it down to one easy-to-understand idea. So, for example, my one idea was finding your one word. Number 2 is how does your idea relate to their theme? The TEDx organizers want to see that you genuinely care and you took the time to research their theme and that you are the right fit for their event. So, for example, the TEDx event that I spoke at, their theme was "Act local, think global." So I presented my idea that finding your one word is knowing what you stand for, which is acting locally. And now knowing your one word, you could go out and change the world, which is thinking globally. So you wanna really make sure you customize your idea and present it in such a way that it matches their theme, because this is the reason why most people don't get in. Because their idea does not relate to their theme. And number 3 is, why are you the authority to speak on this topic? TEDx organizers want to bring in experts who can speak from a place of experience and knowledge. What they don't want are people who just have theories and have nothing to back it up with. You want to make sure that you show that you're not that person. So for me, I spoke about Your One Word. I have done interviews on it, I have done coaching on it, I even have a close relationship with the author who developed the idea. I am the authority to speak on this topic. Now, here's the tricky part. You have to explain all of that in 100 to 300 words. So you have to make sure that you make every single word count. Now, I would suggest that you dedicate 100 words to that one idea that you want to share, 100 words to how does it relate to the theme, and 100 words to why are you the authority to speak on this topic. They may also ask you for a bio and links to your previous speaking engagements. So for me, I didn't have any previous experiences, so what I did was I forwarded some links to the YouTube videos that I made. So if you're like me and you don't have any previous experience, you could start making some YouTube videos, upload it onto your channel, and submit that as your example. Step number 5 is the interview. So congratulations, they like what they saw in the application and they want to get to know you and your idea better. They are going to schedule a 30-minute Skype call with you and their top organizers. And I know it's both really exciting and really nerve-wracking at the same time because you have no idea what they are going to ask you, which is why I'm here. I've been through this process and I'm going to help you through this. The reason why they want to talk to you is that they want to be certain that you are the right fit for the event and that you could actually speak and not just write really well. Here are some typical questions that they are going to ask you. Number 1 is, what is that idea that you want to share? The reason why they want to know, because they are intrigued by the small description that you wrote in the application. They want to get to know it further to make sure that it is the right fit for the event. So you need to make sure that you practice articulating your idea before the call. Number 2 is, how does your idea relate to their theme? You need to show that you have done your homework and you know exactly how your idea matches their theme. And again, you need to practice answering that question because it's going to come up for sure. Number 3 is, why do you deserve to be on that stage? They may have 500 to 1,000 applicants. What makes you so special to go on that stage? This is where you need to sell yourself and your idea to win over those organizers. You need to show that you're unique and your idea's unique. You can start by sharing how your idea has helped you, the people around you, and now it's time to share with the world. Number 4 is what is the final takeaway for the audience? TED is about sharing ideas, but they are also about taking action. So you need to think about what do you want the audience to do after they have listened to your talk. And number 5 is, are you available for 2 days? TEDx events will have a dress rehearsal day, which is where you could try your PowerPoint presentation, make sure it works properly. They will try the lighting on you. And most importantly, you can practice your speech on that big stage. And the next day is the big day. It's where you could step on that stage and share your idea with the whole world. So you need to make sure that you are available for 2 full days for the event. Step number 6 is the one-pager. So, awesome job during the interview, you have impressed the organizers that you spoke with. However, every TEDx event will have multiple organizers. So the next step is, the organizers that you spoke with are going to take your one-pager and present it to the rest of the committee. So now, what's on your one-pager? Your one-pager is basically an expansion of your application. So number one is, what is the idea that you want to share? And as a bonus, you could add in the audience takeaway. Number two is, how does your idea relate to the theme? Number three is, why are you the authority to speak on this topic? Once again, I I would recommend you dedicate a third of the page to the idea you want to share along with the audience takeaway, a third of the page to how does it relate to the theme, and a third of the page to why are you the authority to speak on this topic. Now, this is the final step before the approval. This is your make-it-or-break-it chance, and you are not going to be there in person to defend your idea. So you need to make sure that your one-pager is compelling enough to win over the rest of the committee. And you also need to make sure that your one-pager is easy to understand. So I would suggest you show your one-pager to a couple of friends that have no idea what you're talking about and see how they react after reading your one-pager. If they still don't know what you're talking about, you need to go back and tweak your one-pager. But if they do understand what you're talking about, then your one-pager is ready and you could go ahead and send it out. Submit it. And finally, step number 7 is the approval and preparation. First of all, congratulations, you are in, and you need to do the happy dance with me right here. Yes, you are going to be a TEDx speaker, and you want to take in a moment to really feel the honor to be on the TEDx stage, and it's a wonderful community to be a part of. Part of. And now you gotta do some work. Okay, so within the first couple of days of approval, you are going to receive a detailed timeline of all the things that you need to do from the organizers. Okay, the first thing first, you need to submit a headshot and a bio, and that's due within the first week of approval. Number 2, if you are planning on using PowerPoint, You need to make sure that your slides are ready to be submitted at least 2 weeks before the event date. And number 3, you need to prepare a talk of your life. This is your opportunity to spread your idea with the rest of the world. So what I did was, the first month I wrote out my talk and I tweaked it and I practiced it until I was satisfied with something on paper. On paper. And the second month, I practiced everywhere. I practiced in the park in front of all these people. I practiced in front of a busy restaurant. I practiced by myself at home. I practiced 3 to 4 hours a day until I was comfortable. And once you're comfortable, you want to get the feedback of someone you trust, someone who would give you honest, constructive criticism. And then you want to take that feedback and apply it and continue to practice, practice, practice, and practice until the final day. And there it is. I just gave you the 7 steps in getting your first TEDx Talk. Now, I made the steps really simple, but it's not going to be easy getting in. Expect to get rejected many times. The point is to learn from the process. Every time you get rejected, Reach out to that TEDx organizer and sincerely tell them that this is your dream and what can you do better for next time. Now, be prepared though, they're all very busy and they're probably not gonna get back to you ever. But you just never know, okay? But it's worth the try because there might be a TEDx organizer out there that will help you. It may also help for you to reach out to someone who has spoken at TEDx TEDx. TEDx speakers know how hard it is to get in, and if you show that you sincerely care, they will be more than happy to help you out. Now, all the steps and all the feedback, it's all great, but it's not going to work unless you believe in yourself. If you want to be on that TEDx stage, you need to believe that you are worthy, your idea is important, and your talk will change the world. Because if you don't believe, nobody else will. So for my next challenge, I'm traveling back to Michigan where I'll be speaking at a congregation. So after my TEDx talk, one of the audience members came up to me and requested to see if I would speak at her congregation. And of course I said yes. And that's the thing, guys. If you want to be a speaker, the more talks that you do and the better you do at those talks, the more talks it's going to lead to. So I'm going to be giving the exact same talk, which I'm pretty comfortable with, and I want to stretch my comfort zone a little bit, actually a lot. One of the things that I'm really scared of is actually singing in public. So I'm going to do something daring. I'm going to sing the intro to my talk. You guys need to wish me luck, and I will see you guys in Michigan. And I have a special shout-out for Aleksandra Teofilovic. Aleksandra, thank you so much for writing that really sweet comment on my last episode. And I know that you want to be a TEDx speaker too. So there it is, I gave you the 7 steps, and all you have to do is apply. And finally, the question of the day is: What is that one idea that you want to share with the rest of the world? Write in the comments below and I'll be sure to join in on the discussion. Thank you so much for watching and more importantly, being on this journey with me. I'm seeing a lot of you guys write in saying that my journey is inspiring you to go out there and do the things that you wanna do and you have no idea how happy that makes me. So thank you so much again. It means the world to me and I will see you guys very, very soon. So let me give you the one word secret to happiness. One word. This is all you need to be happy. The most important word ever. If you had to think of one word that's most important to you or that sums you up or that would be kind of like a little beacon. Hey, Believe Nation. If you want to know what the most important one word is for Tony Robbins, Gary Vaynerchuk, Oprah Winfrey, Will.i.am and Howard Schultz, I have a very special secret video for you. Check the description for details.