Making my bed correctly was not going to be an opportunity for praise.

Swinging around to face me, the instructor looked me in the eye and nodded. It jumped several inches off the bed, high enough for the instructor to catch it in his hand. As a general rule of thumb, the shorter your presentation can be while still making your point, the better.“With one final flip the quarter flew high into the air and came down on the mattress with a light bounce. Admiral McRaven’s speech is perfectly timed at 19 minutes. Keep it ConciseĪccording to Alf Rehn, professor of management at Abo Akademi University, the average length of time a speaker can realistically hold an audience’s attention is 20 minutes. His willingness to be himself and share a bit of vulnerability instantly transformed him from an almost-mythical Navy SEAL to someone we can all relate to and understand. Instead, he immediately opens with a quip about the intense hangover he had when he was forced to sit through his own commencement as a student. You would anticipate that a stiff and formal commencement speech will follow. Be Authentically YouĪdmiral McRaven’s crisp, decorated military uniform is misleading.

With the structure of his address made clear up front, he’s making it as easy as possible for his audience to remain engaged. This eliminating the restlessness that arises when an audience doesn’t know when the speech will be over.

He let the audience know what they’re in for. Tell Your Audience What They’re in Forĭuring the beginning of his address, Admiral McRaven let the audience know that he’ll be sharing ten different stories, each with their own leadership lesson. Apply the following principles from Admiral McRaven’s talk to your next presentation and you can bet that it’ll be your best one yet. If you’re hoping to similarly inspire and empower audiences with your own presentations, then there’s no better place to start than by learning what, exactly, made this former Navy SEAL’s commencement speech so powerful. His speech was so impactful that it immediately went viral, filling millions of people with a sense of drive, empowerment, and inspiration. McRaven delivered a commencement speech to the University of Texas that won’t soon be forgotten.

Admiral william mcraven make your bed