Professional Speech vs TED Talk

We often confuse the difference between a professional speech and a TED Talk. Below I outline the nuances that make a TED Talk unique.

Download PDF
  • Time
    Professional Speech: 45 minutes or more
    TED Talk: 18 minutes or less

  • Content
    Professional Speech: 3 or more points
    TED Talk: 1 idea

  • Style
    Professional Speech: Performance
    TED Talk: Conversational

  • Delivery
    Professional Speech: Highly gestural
    TED Talk: Natural movement

  • Outcome
    Professional Speech: The outcome is multi-purpose: informative, inspirational; persuasive, entertaining, or motivational
    TED Talk: idea implementation

  • Ownership
    Professional Speech: The speaker owns the content
    TED Talk: The content is free to download, share or republish under the creative commons license

  • Method
    Professional Speech: Give a speech
    TED Talk: Deliver a talk

Do you have an upcoming presentation?

Let's chat and see how I can help you ROCK YOUR TALK!
Learn More