Yesterday, I began a series of posts on Nancy Duarte‘s book, Resonate. The first post was simply about Duarte’s contention that the purpose of communication is ultimately change (which is one thing I love about the book). Before I continue engaging the material, here’s what else I like about the book.
The book is well-designed, visually (i.e., there are lots of pictures!). Of course, that’s what you’d expect from an expert presentation designer.
The book is well-written. It’s full of high-quality content. There’s no fluff, which leads to …
Each section is concise. Most sections take up 1-2 pages of written content. That makes it easy to read, review, and digest.
The book includes great examples (case studies), including Ronald Reagan, Steve Jobs, Benjamin Zander, among others. As a preacher, I especially appreciated the inclusion of John Ortberg, one of my favorite writers and preachers. And the discussion of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech is amazing (the TED Talk discusses the examples of both King and Jobs).
Next, I’ll discuss “the presentation form,” which is what first fascinated me (including how communicators like MLK intuitively followed the form). Future posts will engage Story, the Big Idea, S.T.A.R. moments, and StoryMapping.