In this solo coaching episode, Sally Z (Sally Koering Zimney) outlines three core beliefs essential for anyone aspiring to deliver a TED‑style or signature talk. The first belief is the conviction that you belong on the TED stage, emphasizing internal worthiness and the mindset shift required to step onto a globally recognized platform. The second belief stresses that you don’t need to know everything—only what you truly know—encouraging speakers to own their niche expertise and present it with credibility. The third belief asserts that the idea you share must matter, requiring a sense of purpose, evidence, and passion to make an impact. Sally interweaves personal anecdotes about her own doubts while preparing a TED Talk, differentiates TED‑style speaking from business‑focused presentations, and promotes her upcoming Signature Talk course, a TED Talk Jumpstart Kit (including a mini‑training, PDF workbook, and pop‑up group), a webinar, and regular Crowdcast sessions. Throughout, she invites listeners to join her community, emphasizing that their signature talk can move the world.
Chapters
Hey movers, it's Sally Z with Be Moved. Let's go create some talks that will move this world. We're going to talk with amazing speakers, share tips, tricks, resources, and we are going to be moved so that our audience can be moved. This moved me. What is moving You. Well, hello, my movers, and welcome back to another episode here on This Moved Me. I am so jazzed to be in this realm of Signature Talk world. We are getting ready for the launch of the Signature Talk course here on Be Moved in a few weeks, but for right now, we are focusing on what we need before we can even do that. So whether or not you dive in with me in the course in a few weeks. This is all really, really valuable, really important stuff so that you can step out in front and offer to the world the ideas that only you can offer to them, which is really what this signature talk, TED Talk type speaking is all about. Now you'll notice that I really interject and include both of those things, signature talk, TED Talk. In my mind, they're the same. There's different kinds of speaking out there, right? Speaking from the stage or really business-focused speaking. I personally don't feel like it's super effective. It might ultimately be good for your business, but I'm not sure that that is gonna get you the most play, and here's why. TED Talks have established a new norm. Because it's such a wildly popular platform and thought leaders like us want to stand on that platform, the expectation has changed around speaking. Speaking cannot be about our business and who we are. It's got to really truly be about an idea, how you show up. It ultimately cannot be about driving your business. Not only doesn't it work, but the TED platform doesn't support it very well, and you won't even get a TED Talk if it smells at all like it's selling. So what I want to talk about today are 3 beliefs that you need before you can stand up in front and really own the title of thought leader, of TED speaker, of of signature talk, that idea that you want to be known for. Okay, and the first belief is that I belong on this stage. Now sometimes when I talk about beliefs, I say I belong on stage, but this is different. This belief is I belong on this stage. I belong on the platform that so many people all over the world have on their bucket list. Like, I just, I want to do a TEDx talk because there's all this belief that is surrounding that idea, what a TED speaker is, and it has to do with really being worthy of it. And so we have to know deep in our soul that you are worthy of standing on that little red dot or standing on that stage or standing out in front and leading. You've got to believe it in your soul. Now, we don't always start there, but the process of developing your talk can work us into that place and that space. But it comes with a little bit of work. We've got to like push and pull that a little bit, and we're going to question ourselves in the process. We're gonna— there's gonna be lots of moments where it's like, Oh my gosh, what am I even doing? And I can tell you that from personal experience, even as a really experienced speaker and a presentation coach, the process of me getting my TED Talk ready, I just remember at one point being like, I suddenly question everything that I've ever known, and I don't know if I can do this. I don't know if I belong up there. So because it's such a platform, it's gonna call into question your belief in yourself. And so we've got to start with this belief that I belong up there, even if you don't fully believe it yet. We're gonna get you there. Okay, so if you have this little idea in your head that I really want to do a TED Talk, That means that somewhere else in your brain is a little voice saying that you belong up there. That's the little voice we're gonna listen to and we're gonna lean into to help you step out on that stage. All right, so that is belief number 1. The second belief that I want to share with you that you need to become a TED Talk speaker is this: I don't know everything, but I do know this. Your TED Talk is really built on significant aha moments that you have learned, that you know, you in particular. And what's beautiful about the TED Talk is that it can be about a slice in a niche that's like this. You are not expected to know everything, and in fact, I think it's powerful to actually own the things that that you don't know, because then when you say, "I do know this," it holds more credibility, because nobody knows everything about everything. But owning your credibility, your specific expertise, your specific voice, your specific approach, that is the power of your voice in this context, in a TED Talk. I don't know everything, but I do know this. Do you know what you know? Because this TED Talk will help pull it out of you, I promise. Now, the third belief that you've got to know in your core is that this idea matters. This idea is going to make the world better. People need to hear this. If you don't believe that, if you aren't driven by a sense of purpose around your idea and your TED Talk, it's not going to have much feet. That purpose and that drive is going to drive passion around your idea. And if we don't hear passion, if we don't understand why, if you can't articulate why this matters, it's just not going to have the impact that you want because it's not ready yet. Now, part of what I'm offering, uh, over the next few weeks in this TED Talk Jumpstart Kit is helping pull that out. We gotta peel away the onion on those things to help you really articulate why this matters, what impact this idea can have on the world, okay? And I think it's important to know that you can't just believe it, but there has to be some— there has to be some evidence of it, some case studies, some stories, some experiences that, that your belief is based on. That's going to matter a lot too. So let's talk about this TED Talk jumpstart kit. You've heard me talk about it a little bit, I'm sure. We've got, um, It's still there for you. We've got just a few weeks left in the pop-up group. It's been super fun and I'd love to see you there. The kit, you get a few things. You get a mini training from me. You get this really cool PDF workbook that's gonna be super helpful in your content creation pre-process. And then of course, joining this TED Talk jump-up, jump-start pop-up group or whatever it's called. That's gonna be over in MoversU and I'd love to see you there. Okay, all that stuff is happening, but I'm also gonna be doing a webinar in the next few weeks, so you'll be hearing about, more about that next week, but be on the lookout because I've been going live every week in Crowdcast over the last few weeks. Maybe you've joined me for that, I hope so, it's been super fun. And I'm saving a really special webinar for right before I launch the Signature Talk course. And if you have not yet started following me over on Crowdcast, please hop in with me over there. It's crowdcast.io/sallykoeringzimney. And if you want to join in with the TED Talk Jumpstart Kit, that is bemoved.com/tedtalk. Oh my gosh, so much good stuff. It's kind of— I've got— it's overwhelming. There's so much good stuff coming your way. If you're listening to this right now, maybe you're out walking your dog, maybe you are— I was gonna say commuting, but you're probably not. Sad. Wherever you are right now, or maybe you're sitting at your computer right now and watching the video, wherever you're at, put into your memory: bmoove.com/tedtalk. And if anything, reach out to me, I'll help you out. I'm so excited to dive in with you on this. Your signature talk matters because it is the way in which we're going to help you create a talk that will move the world. And it's my honor to walk with you on that journey. This moved me, my friends. What is moving you? I'd love to know. Back with you.
