0:00:11.011,0:00:13.328
Okay, ladies and gentlemen, welcome.

0:00:14.488,0:00:15.636
There is a question[br]

0:00:15.636,0:00:17.811
which has puzzled me for quite a while,

0:00:18.261,0:00:21.538
and that is, Why do our PowerPoints[br]look the way they look?

0:00:22.228,0:00:26.978
Or rather, How on earth, can we accept[br]that they look the way they look?

0:00:26.978,0:00:28.679
How can you do that?

0:00:29.249,0:00:30.265
And do you know

0:00:30.265,0:00:33.372
what's even more intellectually[br]challenging for me to understand?

0:00:33.372,0:00:37.508
It's, How can a person sit over here[br]in this meeting room with 10 others,

0:00:37.508,0:00:39.733
observing this dismally bad PowerPoint

0:00:39.733,0:00:43.976
filled with charts,[br]graphical elements, page numbers,

0:00:44.996,0:00:48.390
fading away five, seven minutes,[br]thinking of other things?

0:00:48.390,0:00:52.389
You know the feeling,[br]the boredom, the waste of time?

0:00:53.725,0:00:55.826
This person, after 40 minutes,

0:00:55.826,0:00:58.432
he or she will stand up, a bit dazed,

0:00:58.432,0:01:01.685
trotting off to his own office,[br]coming to his own computer,

0:01:01.685,0:01:05.107
flipping it up, going like, 'Oh my god,[br]I've got a presentation tomorrow,

0:01:05.107,0:01:07.390
and I do have a PowerPoint to build.'

0:01:07.390,0:01:08.390
(Laughter)

0:01:08.390,0:01:12.418
Now, what is the chance that this person[br]will build an equally bad PowerPoint

0:01:12.418,0:01:15.819
as the one that he or she[br]was herself tortured by

0:01:15.819,0:01:17.758
in the other conference room?

0:01:17.758,0:01:19.442
Is that a big chance?

0:01:20.112,0:01:21.205
Yeah.

0:01:21.832,0:01:23.154
Now, what is that?

0:01:23.154,0:01:25.874
Why do we do that? Is that vengeance?

0:01:25.874,0:01:28.263
Is that where you go like,[br]'You did that to me.

0:01:28.263,0:01:31.060
Phew! I'm going to do it to you.[br]You got it coming, bro'?

0:01:31.720,0:01:34.087
Is that the case? I don't think so.

0:01:34.087,0:01:38.035
I don't think that's got to do[br]with vengeance, intelligence.

0:01:38.318,0:01:40.663
I think it's got to do[br]with something else.

0:01:40.663,0:01:43.208
Now, my passion in life is the brain,

0:01:43.208,0:01:46.693
and an even bigger passion[br]that is presentation skills.

0:01:46.693,0:01:49.051
And I love combining these two.

0:01:49.921,0:01:51.841
And about four years ago,

0:01:51.841,0:01:55.201
I got so, so upset I blew my top

0:01:56.747,0:02:00.040
because the way[br]that we do neural executions

0:02:00.040,0:02:03.093
all over our boardrooms today is just -

0:02:03.093,0:02:06.309
it's not fair to our intelligence[br]as being Homo sapiens.

0:02:07.627,0:02:10.555
So I thought there's got to be something[br]we can do about this,

0:02:10.555,0:02:13.365
so I searched the world,[br]I looked for seminars,

0:02:13.365,0:02:16.017
I looked for training programs,[br]I looked for books

0:02:16.907,0:02:19.216
that could solve this question for me,

0:02:19.216,0:02:21.551
but there was none to be found.

0:02:21.551,0:02:25.282
So I thought, 'Well,[br]I'll just do as Franz Kafka said,

0:02:25.282,0:02:27.930
"If it isn't written, write it yourself."'

0:02:27.930,0:02:29.209
And four years later,

0:02:29.209,0:02:32.058
I have the great honour[br]to stand here in front of you.

0:02:32.908,0:02:34.065
What am I talking about?

0:02:34.065,0:02:36.071
What are the PowerPoints I'm referring to?

0:02:36.071,0:02:37.531
They can look like this.

0:02:37.901,0:02:41.654
Now, this is one of the top three[br]universities in the world,

0:02:41.654,0:02:46.111
advising their students and their teachers[br]on how to build great PowerPoints.

0:02:48.626,0:02:50.846
I received this from a customer,

0:02:51.246,0:02:53.824
and you've got to be semi-blind

0:02:54.134,0:02:57.175
in order to even have something[br]like this in the company.

0:02:58.005,0:02:59.348
I love this one.

0:03:00.096,0:03:03.372
This one was awarded the prize[br]of being the worst PowerPoint

0:03:03.372,0:03:06.623
delivered by a public CEO in 2010.

0:03:06.623,0:03:08.515
It's a nice prize to pick up, isn't it?

0:03:08.515,0:03:09.525
'Oh yes, thank you.'

0:03:09.525,0:03:10.595
(Laughs)

0:03:10.985,0:03:12.169
Well done, mate.

0:03:12.849,0:03:15.763
And then you're like,[br]'This is bad. Can it get worse?'

0:03:16.553,0:03:17.556
Yes, it can.

0:03:17.556,0:03:20.065
(Laughter)

0:03:20.065,0:03:22.978
Now, this is the UN in Afghanistan,

0:03:23.388,0:03:27.304
the US military describing[br]the situation in the area.

0:03:28.094,0:03:30.927
And, well, there are no comments on that.

0:03:32.168,0:03:33.356
But then we get this one.

0:03:33.356,0:03:37.515
'My god, David Phillips,[br]this has got to be the thing.

0:03:37.515,0:03:39.573
This has got limited amounts of text.

0:03:39.573,0:03:41.227
It's got a supporting image.

0:03:41.227,0:03:42.983
It's got a clear headline.

0:03:42.983,0:03:44.793
This is the truth.'

0:03:45.984,0:03:47.675
Well, the thing is,[br]

0:03:47.675,0:03:49.805
if you recognise yourself in any of these,

0:03:49.805,0:03:52.405
which I think you do, nodding away,

0:03:53.255,0:03:55.696
I want to make you aware of the following:

0:03:55.696,0:03:59.451
that if you've delivered a presentation[br]with something like that behind you,

0:04:02.112,0:04:04.839
90% of what you said

0:04:06.148,0:04:08.668
was gone within 30 seconds.

0:04:09.948,0:04:13.343
And then you go, 'No, no, no way, Jose,

0:04:13.343,0:04:16.334
that is way - I know it's bad,[br]but it can't be that bad,

0:04:16.334,0:04:17.879
can it now, really?'

0:04:18.229,0:04:21.951
Well, just let me give you an example[br]of really how bad your working memory is,

0:04:21.951,0:04:23.891
and mine, for that case.

0:04:23.891,0:04:25.962
I want you to imagine this situation.

0:04:25.962,0:04:28.342
You're at the train station,[br]waiting for the train.

0:04:28.342,0:04:30.459
You can see it coming on the horizon.

0:04:30.459,0:04:33.510
You're fiddling away, you finally[br]find where you put your ticket.

0:04:33.510,0:04:36.940
And you take it out, and you go,[br]'Car five, seat 42. Got it.'

0:04:37.570,0:04:38.580
Have you?

0:04:38.580,0:04:39.972
(Laughter)

0:04:39.972,0:04:42.949
You have absolutely no idea[br]where you're going to sit, do you?

0:04:42.949,0:04:46.235
So, you're like, 'Is this only me, or ...[br]Well, I'll check. Five, 42.'

0:04:46.235,0:04:47.303
You put it down again.

0:04:47.303,0:04:48.296
Have you got it?

0:04:48.296,0:04:49.907
No, you haven't got it.

0:04:49.907,0:04:53.688
You'll do this on an average of six times[br]before you sit down.

0:04:53.688,0:04:56.163
I've seen people in the train go,

0:04:56.163,0:05:00.226
'Five, 42, five, 42.[br]Yes, this is my seat, check.'

0:05:00.969,0:05:03.629
Now, the bad news[br]in the situation is this:

0:05:03.629,0:05:07.156
you do not have a separate[br]working memory for PowerPoint

0:05:07.156,0:05:10.009
and a separate working[br]memory for train tickets.

0:05:10.319,0:05:15.402
It's the same dismally bad[br]working memory for both activities.

0:05:17.668,0:05:20.663
So, I might be harsh when I say this,

0:05:20.663,0:05:22.730
but there is one man on this earth

0:05:22.730,0:05:25.055
who knows more about the brain[br]than anybody else,

0:05:25.055,0:05:27.925
one of the most leading neurologists[br]called John Medina,

0:05:27.925,0:05:29.845
and he puts it like this.

0:05:29.845,0:05:32.455
[If companies would have[br]as little respect for business

0:05:32.455,0:05:33.936
as they have for presentations,

0:05:33.944,0:05:35.542
the majority would go bankrupt.]

0:05:35.542,0:05:41.393
And it's with his words that I welcome you[br]to 'How to Avoid Death by PowerPoint'.

0:05:42.386,0:05:45.621
Now, my objective for this evening,[br]for these 18 minutes,

0:05:45.621,0:05:48.520
is to give you five design principles

0:05:49.039,0:05:53.941
that will cognitively and psychologically[br]optimise your PowerPoint slides.

0:05:54.573,0:05:56.652
And if you haven't used them before,

0:05:57.152,0:05:59.683
they will make a tremendous difference

0:05:59.683,0:06:03.493
to every PowerPoint you'll be delivering[br]from this day and on.

0:06:05.051,0:06:06.358
So, let's start.

0:06:06.358,0:06:08.782
The first one of these five[br]is one message.

0:06:08.782,0:06:10.346
I received this from a customer,

0:06:10.346,0:06:13.567
and I said, 'Hey, we've got[br]a lot of issues in here,

0:06:13.567,0:06:15.285
but let's start with the first one.

0:06:15.285,0:06:16.836
You've got two messages.

0:06:16.836,0:06:21.063
Let's move one of them out of the way,[br]and just bring one message per slide.'

0:06:21.683,0:06:24.367
So, why should we only[br]have one message per slide?

0:06:24.367,0:06:26.393
Well, I'll give you[br]this beautiful example.

0:06:26.393,0:06:29.572
You're at this nice party,[br]you've got the music going boom-boom,

0:06:29.572,0:06:31.766
you've got this person[br]you're chatting away to,

0:06:31.766,0:06:33.033
you're having a good time.

0:06:33.033,0:06:34.353
(Imitates chatter)

0:06:34.353,0:06:37.534
And then you hear your name;[br]you hear your name spoken somewhere.

0:06:37.534,0:06:40.786
Your entire attention[br]is now diverted in that direction,

0:06:41.686,0:06:43.849
and with this person,[br]you're just nodding away

0:06:43.849,0:06:46.479
hoping that you're nodding[br]in the right instances, yeah?

0:06:46.479,0:06:47.483
Yes, yes, yes.

0:06:47.483,0:06:49.772
After a minute, this one[br]stops talking about you,

0:06:49.772,0:06:51.822
so you divert your attention[br]straight again.

0:06:51.822,0:06:54.996
Now, that person will then say,[br]'Well, don't you agree?'

0:06:54.996,0:06:57.011
And don't we just love that situation?

0:06:57.011,0:06:59.603
We have got no clue[br]what they've been talking about.

0:07:00.023,0:07:01.822
The same thing goes for PowerPoint.

0:07:01.822,0:07:03.808
If you've got more than one message,

0:07:03.808,0:07:07.075
the chance is big they will be focusing[br]on this one and not that one,

0:07:07.075,0:07:09.060
or that one and not this one.

0:07:09.060,0:07:11.164
Just make it simple for human beings.

0:07:11.164,0:07:12.818
Have one message per slide.

0:07:12.818,0:07:15.465
We are extremely limited[br]to understanding more.

0:07:17.746,0:07:19.791
Let's move on. Go to working memory.

0:07:19.791,0:07:23.875
I've already given you this bad vibe[br]that your working memory is bad,

0:07:23.875,0:07:27.220
and I'm afraid I'm not coming[br]with better news.

0:07:27.220,0:07:30.593
I'm coming with worse news,[br]and it goes like this.

0:07:30.593,0:07:35.048
This equation has the basis[br]of John Sweller and Mayer,

0:07:35.048,0:07:36.523
and they come to the conclusion

0:07:36.523,0:07:39.747
that there is something in our brain[br]called 'the redundancy effect',

0:07:39.747,0:07:40.922
and it works like this.

0:07:41.062,0:07:45.381
If you have text, sentences[br]on your PowerPoint,

0:07:45.381,0:07:50.095
and you persist with the annoying idea[br]of speaking at the same time,

0:07:51.931,0:07:54.779
what will be remembered by the audience

0:07:54.779,0:07:55.869
is zero.

0:07:55.869,0:07:57.159
(Laughter)

0:07:57.159,0:07:59.110
Or very close to zero.

0:07:59.530,0:08:03.875
Now, why is that?[br]How does that come about?

0:08:03.875,0:08:07.226
Well, it can't look like this.[br]It's just not practical.

0:08:07.226,0:08:09.868
You can't stand and have this[br]and talk at the same time.

0:08:09.868,0:08:11.419
So, what are you supposed to do?

0:08:11.419,0:08:14.604
Well, use PowerPoint[br]for what it's supposed to be used for.

0:08:15.494,0:08:18.682
Pick it like this, pull down your text[br]into the documentation field,

0:08:18.682,0:08:21.548
and use the area up there[br]for the presentation material:

0:08:21.548,0:08:24.132
short, sweet bits of text and an image.

0:08:24.132,0:08:26.062
That is what enhances your image.

0:08:26.192,0:08:28.497
That is what enhances your message.

0:08:28.847,0:08:31.690
So use PowerPoint[br]as it's supposed to be used.

0:08:33.560,0:08:35.794
Come to the third[br]of these five principles,

0:08:35.794,0:08:37.308
and that's size.

0:08:37.788,0:08:38.862
Before I go into that,

0:08:38.862,0:08:41.612
I want to make you aware the following.

0:08:42.332,0:08:45.350
Every time you open your eyes[br]for the rest of your life,

0:08:45.684,0:08:47.690
you will focus on four things:

0:08:47.690,0:08:52.728
moving objects, signalling colours,[br]like red, orange and yellow,

0:08:53.345,0:08:57.813
contrast-rich objects and big objects[br]for the rest of your life.

0:08:58.693,0:09:00.495
Give you a practical example of that.

0:09:00.495,0:09:03.601
Imagine yourself being home[br]with a friend, a really good friend.

0:09:03.601,0:09:06.862
Now, the television is on,[br]but the sound is off.

0:09:07.932,0:09:09.626
You're having a great conversation,

0:09:09.626,0:09:12.331
but do you find it easy[br]to not look at the television?

0:09:12.511,0:09:14.037
No. Why not?

0:09:14.037,0:09:15.854
Because it's got moving objects,

0:09:15.854,0:09:18.260
it's got signalling colours,[br]it's high in contrast,

0:09:18.260,0:09:20.572
and they're usually very big these times.

0:09:22.810,0:09:25.055
So, why not use this to our benefit?

0:09:25.055,0:09:27.812
If you look at this,[br]where is your attention drawn to

0:09:27.812,0:09:30.986
without you even having a chance[br]of controlling it?

0:09:30.986,0:09:33.592
It's going to the big three all the time.

0:09:33.592,0:09:36.411
Have a look at the practical situation;[br]have a look at this.

0:09:36.411,0:09:37.798
Where are your eyes drawn to?

0:09:37.798,0:09:40.426
I can see that they're drawn[br]constantly to the headline.

0:09:41.251,0:09:45.282
Now, how often is the headline[br]the most important part in a PowerPoint?

0:09:45.282,0:09:46.972
It's very rare.

0:09:48.144,0:09:52.115
Even so, every PowerPoint template[br]is built like this,

0:09:52.115,0:09:56.405
where the headline is the biggest object,[br]and the content is the smallest -

0:09:56.405,0:09:59.773
going absolute opposite[br]to our biological reactions.

0:10:00.163,0:10:03.993
So, what does this look like[br]if we just show you an example?

0:10:03.993,0:10:06.823
Well, now I've reduced the title,[br]and it looks like this.

0:10:06.823,0:10:09.686
Do you see how your eyes[br]now fall down into the content?

0:10:09.686,0:10:11.856
Now they're sucked into the headline,

0:10:11.856,0:10:13.080
(Laughter)

0:10:13.080,0:10:15.505
and now they're falling down[br]into the content.

0:10:15.505,0:10:18.065
So I can control exactly where you are,

0:10:18.065,0:10:21.609
but why do people build PowerPoints

0:10:21.609,0:10:24.494
where people will be spending[br]70% of the time on the headline

0:10:24.494,0:10:26.592
when it's not the most important part?

0:10:27.302,0:10:29.447
So, what I want you[br]to take with you from this

0:10:29.447,0:10:31.566
is the most important part[br]of your PowerPoint

0:10:31.566,0:10:34.333
should also be the biggest, nothing else.

0:10:35.359,0:10:38.036
Moving on to number four, contrast.

0:10:41.026,0:10:44.179
Contrast controls your focus.

0:10:44.413,0:10:45.791
So, what does that look like?

0:10:45.791,0:10:47.889
For instance, if I show you[br]a list like this,

0:10:47.889,0:10:49.222
your eyes are over the place

0:10:49.222,0:10:51.694
because you don't really know[br]what to focus on.

0:10:51.694,0:10:55.307
So, I'll use a built-in functionality[br]into PowerPoint, which goes like this.

0:10:55.308,0:10:58.387
I'll show you the first subject,[br]I'll take it away with contrast,

0:10:58.387,0:10:59.959
and I'll show you the second one,

0:10:59.959,0:11:03.242
and I'll do it again and again[br]and again and again.

0:11:03.242,0:11:05.386
You're now following[br]exactly the white spot.

0:11:05.386,0:11:07.608
If I do this - dun-dun-dun-dun -

0:11:07.608,0:11:09.791
I can see your eyes just wobbling around,

0:11:09.791,0:11:13.626
and you're a bit like a kitten going after[br]a little laser pointer on the wall,

0:11:13.626,0:11:16.081
going like, 'Where is it?[br]I've got it. I've got it.'

0:11:16.081,0:11:19.624
Because you're following[br]where the white spot is, and not the rest.

0:11:20.208,0:11:21.793
Now, this is a beautiful example.

0:11:21.793,0:11:23.633
Please do use this.

0:11:23.633,0:11:27.079
Use it because you can show[br]amazing big tables like this

0:11:27.079,0:11:29.936
if you use the effect of contrast,[br]the principle of contrast.

0:11:29.936,0:11:31.193
Look what this looks like.

0:11:31.193,0:11:34.306
Your eyes are all over the place;[br]you don't know what to focus on,

0:11:34.306,0:11:36.310
but I just apply[br]the principle of contrast,

0:11:36.310,0:11:40.074
and it looks like that, and suddenly,[br]you know exactly what to focus on.

0:11:40.074,0:11:41.817
Here, they're all over the place,

0:11:41.817,0:11:44.211
and here, they're exactly[br]where I want them.

0:11:45.801,0:11:49.117
Now, there's a big,[br]major drawback with PowerPoints,

0:11:49.117,0:11:53.249
and that is that the majority[br]of companies on this earth today,

0:11:53.543,0:11:57.157
they persist in having[br]white backgrounds in PowerPoint.

0:11:57.157,0:11:58.957
Look at that.

0:11:58.957,0:12:00.876
Oh, it's bright, it's shiny.

0:12:00.876,0:12:04.955
Could you tell me who has[br]the highest contrast, me or the screen?

0:12:04.955,0:12:06.189
Well, the screen.

0:12:06.189,0:12:08.244
Who's usually the biggest,[br]me or the screen?

0:12:08.244,0:12:09.449
Well, the screen.

0:12:09.449,0:12:13.277
So the only option I have[br]is dress myself up in signalling colours

0:12:13.277,0:12:14.287
(Laughter)

0:12:14.287,0:12:18.006
and jump around on stage[br]in order to balance that problem out,

0:12:18.746,0:12:21.295
and that is obviously not[br]a good corporate strategy

0:12:21.295,0:12:23.169
in the long term, would it be?

0:12:23.169,0:12:26.765
I think the long-term strategy[br]is to just switch it around.

0:12:26.765,0:12:29.450
PowerPoint is not supposed[br]to have white backgrounds.

0:12:29.450,0:12:31.568
If I do this, your eyes relax.

0:12:31.568,0:12:32.758
You focus on me.

0:12:32.758,0:12:33.977
I'm the biggest object.

0:12:33.977,0:12:36.249
I'm the most contrast-rich object.

0:12:37.199,0:12:38.215
I got your focus.

0:12:38.215,0:12:39.938
Why is that important?

0:12:40.900,0:12:45.054
It's important because I am,[br]I always have been,

0:12:45.054,0:12:48.011
and I always will be the presentation.

0:12:48.652,0:12:51.065
That is my visual aid.

0:12:56.895,0:13:01.752
Moving into the last principle,[br]and that is objects.

0:13:03.336,0:13:06.786
Now, this is one[br]of the most severe principles,

0:13:06.786,0:13:07.916
and it goes like this.

0:13:07.916,0:13:10.010
How many objects do I have here?

0:13:10.010,0:13:12.741
If you count them quickly,[br]you'll see that I've got 16.

0:13:12.741,0:13:14.987
Do you see this little beauty[br]at the end as well

0:13:14.987,0:13:17.400
which goes 'page 12 of 95'?

0:13:17.762,0:13:19.039
What is that?

0:13:19.039,0:13:20.802
Why do we do that?

0:13:20.802,0:13:22.302
That only creates anxiety.

0:13:22.302,0:13:26.487
If anything, you are, 'Oh my god,[br]I can't take 83 more of those.'

0:13:26.487,0:13:27.890
(Laughter)

0:13:28.390,0:13:30.907
But, it can also create hope

0:13:31.347,0:13:32.789
because imagine ...

0:13:33.339,0:13:36.159
imagine when it's 90 out of 95.

0:13:36.159,0:13:40.008
'Oh, I can see the lights;[br]I can see the end of the tunnel.'

0:13:42.517,0:13:44.741
Kidding aside, don't do that.

0:13:45.521,0:13:47.866
Now, there are so many ideas out there

0:13:47.866,0:13:51.258
on how many objects[br]you're supposed to have in PowerPoint,

0:13:51.698,0:13:54.437
and once and for all,[br]I just want to put my foot down

0:13:54.437,0:13:57.456
and state to you[br]that this is the perfect amount.

0:13:57.456,0:14:00.130
In order to do that,[br]I want you to just feel it yourself.

0:14:00.130,0:14:02.640
How many objects are you supposed to have?

0:14:02.640,0:14:06.018
And we're going to do that[br]by showing you a couple of balls.

0:14:06.018,0:14:07.516
I'll throw up the balls.

0:14:07.516,0:14:09.825
I want you to nod to me[br]when you've counted them.

0:14:09.825,0:14:12.057
Simple instruction. You with me?

0:14:12.447,0:14:13.655
Cool, here we go.

0:14:13.655,0:14:14.708
Boom.

0:14:16.789,0:14:19.793
Alright, takes you about two seconds.

0:14:19.793,0:14:21.433
Good. Well done.

0:14:21.433,0:14:22.719
Your next set of balls.

0:14:22.719,0:14:25.121
Count them, and nod to me[br]when you've counted them.

0:14:25.121,0:14:26.251
Here we go.

0:14:27.206,0:14:28.461
Excellent. Yeah.

0:14:28.461,0:14:30.781
That took you about 1.2 seconds[br]if you're normal,

0:14:30.781,0:14:33.309
which about 90% of you seem to be.

0:14:33.309,0:14:34.469
(Laughter)

0:14:34.469,0:14:37.139
We'll have the third[br]set of balls, the last one.

0:14:37.139,0:14:39.511
Look at this, nod to me[br]when you've counted them.

0:14:40.285,0:14:42.785
Oh, what was that?

0:14:43.187,0:14:47.240
I just pressed the button,[br]and you nodded simultaneously.

0:14:47.469,0:14:51.358
That will, if you are normal,[br]take you 0.2 seconds,

0:14:51.358,0:14:53.201
two-tenths of a second.

0:14:53.201,0:14:57.682
This will take you 1.2,[br]this will take you two-tenths of a second.

0:14:57.682,0:15:00.007
And for anyone of you who -[br]you're good at math,

0:15:00.007,0:15:05.005
you'll find out that that number[br]is approximately 500% difference.

0:15:05.639,0:15:07.873
How is that even remotely possible?

0:15:07.873,0:15:10.481
There are only two objects in difference.

0:15:11.121,0:15:13.548
Well, might I suggest the following:

0:15:13.548,0:15:15.623
this one you have to count,

0:15:15.623,0:15:17.480
and this one you see.

0:15:17.480,0:15:19.207
Could that be correct?

0:15:20.037,0:15:22.577
So what you've just experienced[br]is the following:

0:15:22.577,0:15:24.801
that the cognitive process of counting

0:15:24.801,0:15:30.258
takes 500% longer time,[br]requires 500% more energy resources

0:15:30.803,0:15:34.406
to execute than just seeing.

0:15:36.674,0:15:41.482
So, what I want you[br]to keep in mind at all times,

0:15:41.962,0:15:44.915
what I want you to keep[br]in your head is this:

0:15:44.915,0:15:45.915
[Sex]

0:15:45.915,0:15:48.519
which is the Swedish number for this:

0:15:48.519,0:15:49.539
[Six]

0:15:49.539,0:15:51.185
(Laughter)

0:15:51.185,0:15:53.718
The magical number is six.

0:15:53.718,0:15:56.348
It's not five, it's not seven, it's six.

0:15:57.188,0:15:59.151
And I want to make you aware of this.

0:15:59.151,0:16:01.486
When you go into[br]a presentation in the future,

0:16:01.486,0:16:04.204
and you've built this amazing PowerPoint,

0:16:04.544,0:16:08.080
if you've got more than seven objects,[br]or seven or more objects,

0:16:08.080,0:16:10.438
you have to be aware[br]that all the people in there,

0:16:10.438,0:16:13.800
they have to use 500% more energy[br]and cognitive resources

0:16:13.800,0:16:16.212
to understand what's in your PowerPoint.

0:16:16.212,0:16:17.349
Now, how do you think

0:16:17.349,0:16:19.826
their energy-saving brain[br]by nature behaves?

0:16:19.826,0:16:24.437
Will it go like, 'Ooh, I'll easily[br]invest 500% more cognitive resources

0:16:24.437,0:16:26.073
to understand this weird slide'

0:16:26.073,0:16:27.233
or, 'I won't'?

0:16:28.303,0:16:29.615
'I won't.'

0:16:29.615,0:16:32.396
And you've just incurred[br]death by PowerPoint.

0:16:33.906,0:16:36.010
Now what does this look like in real life?

0:16:36.010,0:16:37.929
Well, have a look at this.

0:16:37.929,0:16:40.546
Sixteen objects - can we agree[br]that that's too many?

0:16:40.546,0:16:42.174
Yes, we can.

0:16:42.174,0:16:44.946
So, what does it look like[br]if we reduce it?

0:16:44.946,0:16:47.269
Look at this. We go from this to this.

0:16:48.240,0:16:51.246
And this is where your brain goes, 'Ahh'.

0:16:52.026,0:16:54.885
And this is where your brain goes, 'Ugh'.

0:16:55.835,0:16:57.075
Ahh.

0:16:57.075,0:16:58.160
(Laughter)

0:16:58.860,0:17:00.170
Ugh.

0:17:01.697,0:17:04.506
And I assume that in the future

0:17:04.506,0:17:10.329
when you deliver PowerPoints[br]to your colleagues, to your fellow people,

0:17:10.329,0:17:14.956
you want them to go, 'Ahh'

0:17:14.956,0:17:16.742
when you show them your slides.

0:17:16.742,0:17:20.512
You don't want them to go, 'Ugh'.

0:17:23.638,0:17:27.199
Now, there is - have you seen this movie,

0:17:27.199,0:17:30.225
'The Rain Man' by Dustin Hoffman?

0:17:30.225,0:17:31.238
Seen that?

0:17:31.238,0:17:32.595
It's a beauty, isn't it?

0:17:33.135,0:17:35.947
He comes into this cafeteria,[br]and somebody drops toothpicks,

0:17:35.947,0:17:38.590
and he goes like, 'Boom, 247.'

0:17:38.918,0:17:40.529
It's amazing, isn't it?

0:17:40.529,0:17:42.899
His perceptive limit is here.

0:17:43.639,0:17:45.189
Your perceptive limit

0:17:45.189,0:17:47.441
(Laughter)

0:17:47.441,0:17:48.731
is here.

0:17:50.161,0:17:51.831
Now, what amazes me

0:17:51.831,0:17:56.616
is that whichever country I go to,[br]whichever company I see,

0:17:56.616,0:17:58.995
it seems like they build PowerPoints

0:17:58.995,0:18:04.981
in the hope that all their fellow[br]colleagues are autistic or savants,

0:18:04.981,0:18:06.266
(Laughter)

0:18:06.266,0:18:08.923
which obviously is not the case.

0:18:11.411,0:18:16.916
So, but then you go like this,[br]'But, David, my god.

0:18:16.920,0:18:19.886
This means that I have[br]to have more slides.'

0:18:20.226,0:18:22.166
(Laughter)

0:18:23.952,0:18:26.278
'Yes, that is entirely correct.

0:18:26.278,0:18:28.608
You have understood me clearly.'

0:18:28.968,0:18:30.683
I want to make one thing clear here,

0:18:30.683,0:18:33.774
and that is that the amount of slides[br]in your PowerPoint

0:18:33.774,0:18:37.227
has never been the problem.

0:18:38.562,0:18:44.453
It is the amount of objects per slide[br]which has been the problem.

0:18:45.041,0:18:46.136
The stupid idea

0:18:46.136,0:18:48.865
that corporate organisations[br]all over the world -

0:18:48.865,0:18:51.187
they've come up[br]with limitations going like,

0:18:51.187,0:18:53.517
'Ooh, we've got this clever idea:

0:18:53.517,0:18:55.989
You can't use 40 slides.[br]You can only use four.'

0:18:55.989,0:18:57.639
So what do people do?

0:18:57.645,0:18:58.845
(Laughter)

0:18:58.852,0:19:01.057
Well, they take the content[br]of the rest 36,

0:19:01.057,0:19:03.759
and they jam it in the first four.

0:19:03.759,0:19:07.122
My god, is that counterproductive or what?

0:19:07.122,0:19:09.675
And we call ourselves intelligent.

0:19:11.726,0:19:12.754
No, no.

0:19:12.754,0:19:14.708
Alright, so compared -

0:19:14.708,0:19:19.071
I started off with 95 of those.

0:19:19.481,0:19:22.958
We ended up with 135 of these.

0:19:23.503,0:19:26.071
And yes, it gave an immediate result

0:19:26.071,0:19:28.578
to the application[br]that we were working for.

0:19:30.556,0:19:32.683
So, to summarise this.

0:19:33.023,0:19:35.858
Let's have some fun[br]and do a cross-examination

0:19:35.858,0:19:37.864
because obviously[br]I have to prove my point.

0:19:37.864,0:19:40.521
Do you remember[br]more than 90% of what I said?

0:19:41.051,0:19:42.645
I'm not going to be that harsh.

0:19:42.645,0:19:44.588
Let's do a crossword instead.

0:19:45.268,0:19:46.708
It's going to go like this.

0:19:46.708,0:19:48.023
Words are going to come up.

0:19:48.023,0:19:51.706
I'm going to ask you to scream them out[br]as loud as you can as we go along.

0:19:51.817,0:19:54.719
How many messages[br]are you supposed to have per slide?

0:19:54.719,0:19:55.764
(Audience) One.

0:19:55.764,0:19:56.767
One. Very good.

0:19:56.767,0:19:58.341
(Laughter)

0:19:58.341,0:20:00.892
I think you were looking[br]for a different word there.

0:20:00.892,0:20:02.492
(Laughter)

0:20:03.012,0:20:05.362
What can we use to steer our focus?

0:20:05.362,0:20:06.366
(Audience) Contrast.

0:20:06.366,0:20:07.378
Yes, and another one?

0:20:07.378,0:20:08.401
(Audience) Size.

0:20:08.401,0:20:09.424
Well done.

0:20:09.424,0:20:12.063
What should we avoid using[br]if speaking at the same time?

0:20:12.063,0:20:13.066
(Audience) Sentences.

0:20:13.066,0:20:14.079
Beautiful.

0:20:14.079,0:20:16.420
And what kind of background[br]should we have?

0:20:16.420,0:20:18.408
We should have dark.

0:20:18.408,0:20:19.936
And finally, now you can say it.

0:20:19.936,0:20:21.886
How many objects per slide?

0:20:21.886,0:20:24.526
Six. That is magnificent.

0:20:24.526,0:20:25.606
Thank you very much.

0:20:25.606,0:20:27.996
(Applause) (Cheers)