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Ignite Talk Invitation for 2016 ICF-RAC Conference


 Breaking News:  

We have selected our IGNITE speakers.  Many thanks to all the applicants.

For the speakers, here's what you need to take the next steps:

  • The ICF Ignite template.  Replace the text on the twenty slides with your pictures and [sparse] words.  

    To rehearse, put it in slideshow mode.  Once your title page is fully displayed, click enter to start the 5 minutes.

    Rename the deck with your last name at the beginning of the file name before you submit it.

  • A model with only 4 slides made by conference chair Alberto Polloni.  You'll see that he used NO words on his slides.  Don't feel you can't use any words at all, but do keep them to a minimum.  

Watch these two Ignite talks to get a clearer idea about what to do ... and what not to do in an Ignite presentation.
Scott Berkun: Why and How to Give an Ignite Talk

 Joshua Maes: How to give the worst Ignite talk ever

We are no longer accepting applications for Ignite talks for the October 7 ICF-RAC conference.

What is an Ignite talk?

An Ignite talk is 5 minutes long. Each speaker creates a Powerpoint deck of 20 slides that is automated to move forward to the next slide every 15 seconds. As Scott Berkun, author of How to Give a Great Ignite Talk says,
"Having slides that automate seems mad, and in a way it is, but the surprise is that for most speakers it forces them to be far more concise and thoughtful than they would in any other format. "
Why Ignite Talks?

A very few of you have shared your expertise with the rest of us in workshops, webinars, and panels. But during the last ICF-RAC annual meeting, it became clear that we are curious about the latent talent and wisdom in all of our members, not just the few we have heard from in monthly meetings. So we are looking for ways to give the mike to more members so we can hear coaching insights from a wider range of fellow coaches.

How will we use the Ignite Format?

We invite all members of our chapter and neighboring chapters to think about what you'd share if you had the full attention of other coaches for 5 minutes.

During the October 7 ICF-RAC conference, we will have two sessions of Ignite talks, each with openings for 6 to 8 speakers to share their thoughts.

Our plan is to select talks that support the conference theme: Creating Cultures of Conscious Conversations, Be the Change you want to C.

How can you get a slot?

Submit a short application helping us understand the topic you plan to address. To prime your thinking, here are some questions you might consider addressing:

  • How do you bring out best in your clients? 
  • What approaches, questions, mindsets, or skills could the rest of us learn from you? 
  • How have you found the clients you are most meant to serve? 
  • What experiments have you tried with your coaching practice, and how have they worked? 
  • What have you tried that was scary to begin with but then really bore fruit? 

We have extended the deadline to get a few more applications.  The short application needs to be available to the committee first thing Monday morning August 29, 2016.

We want an abstract (50 to 150 words), assurance that you are an ICF member, and a brief statement about how your talk supports the conference theme: Creating Cultures of Conscious Conversations, Be the Change you want to C. For example, you might show how your idea connects to a C word such as curiosity, courage, cooperation, collaboration.

Who can apply?

We are accepting applications from anyone who is a member of ICF-Global and able to attend the conference in person. You don't have to be a member of ICF-RAC. That means we may learn from the wisdom inherent in other chapters in the Southeast.

How do you prepare to speak?

We will let speakers know who has been selected with plenty of time for you to prepare and practice. 

  1. Prepare your slides: We will provide the automated powerpoint template, and we ask speakers to send us the prepared slides before the conference so that we can have them all on one computer ready to roll. With 5 minute talks, we can't spend 5 minutes switching speakers. 

  2. Check out some examples. Here is a link to 15 recordings of Ignite talks given at another conference. I'm the first speaker, and I talked about mistakes I'd made. The last speaker, Shannon Polly, even followed bullet 8 in Scott Berkun's list: she hacked the format. She also gives and models some good advice about giving talks. 

  3. Practice! From Scott Berkun again: 
    "300 seconds is easy to practice. You can practice 10 times in an hour. Do it (The average Ignite speaker practices 5 times). 300 seconds equals 10 television commercials – you can make great points in a short time if you refine your thoughts. The entire Sermon on the Mount can be read in about 5 minutes and The Gettysburg Address takes about 2 and a half minutes." 

Important links: 

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