definition motivational presentation

The big SlideLizard presentation glossary > Motivational Presentation

Motivational Presentation

Term explanation  •  category presentations.

Definition and meaning

A motivational presentation is meant to inspire people. In a company, for example, you could tell the company's story in a motivational presentation.

We design live surveys or quizzes in presentations according to your needs. Add your logo and customize colors, fonts and texts in your corporate design.

Other glossary terms

Interpersonal communication.

Interpersonal communication is face-to-face communication. It means that people exchange information and feelings through verbal and non-verbal messages.

Personal Response System (PRS)

A Personal Response System (PRS) provides lecturers, presenters or teachers with the opportunity to ask a group of students or their audience questions. The questions are usually in a multiple choice format. PRS increase student engagement and provide an opportunity to receive instant feeback.

PowerPoint Online

PowerPoint Online is the web version of PowerPoint. You can present and edit your PowerPoint presentation with it, without having PowerPoint installed on your computer. It's only necessary to have a Microsoft - or a Microsoft 365 account.

The big SlideLizard presentation glossary

The SlideLizard presentation glossary is a large collection of explanations and definitions of terms in the area of presentations, communication, speaking, events, PowerPoint and education.

Top blog articles More posts

10 creative Ideas for your Title- and End-Slides in Presentations

20 Poll Ice Breaker Questions to ask in your next Presentation

Get started with Live Polls, Q&A and slides

for your PowerPoint Presentations

Be the first to know!

The latest SlideLizard news, articles, and resources, sent straight to your inbox.

- or follow us on -

We use cookies to personalize content and analyze traffic to our website. You can choose to accept only cookies that are necessary for the website to function or to also allow tracking cookies. For more information, please see our privacy policy .

Cookie Settings

Necessary cookies are required for the proper functioning of the website. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website.

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information about the number of visitors, etc.

Our content is reader-supported. Things you buy through links on our site may earn us a commission

Join our newsletter

Never miss out on well-researched articles in your field of interest with our weekly newsletter.

• Project Management
• Starting a business

Get the latest Business News

How to deliver a motivational presentation.

1. Tap into your passion. It is always good to believe what you are saying, but in a motivational talk it is essential. Why is this important? How has it impacted you personally, or your team or your family? What emotions do you have that you could use to fuel your delivery? If you don’t feel much you may not be able to project enough commitment. 2. Focus on what the audience stands to gain from listening and/or taking action. It is easy to get wrapped up in what this means to you, but it is also essential to remember—and stress—what it means to the listener. Put yourself in their shoes while you are creating and while you are delivering your talk. Isn’t it really about them anyway? 3. Have a powerful opening and closing, including a call to action. You must capture their attention at the beginning if you want them to pay attention and be moved. Tell a story, ask a question, or show a very short video clip. Make listeners feel something at the beginning and end. And don’t be afraid to call them to action; what is it you want them to do? Donate money? Work harder? Run a 10K for charity? Don’t hesitate to spell it out. 4. Take advantage of storytelling and human interest aspects. We love stories, especially when the hero faces a big challenge and eventually wins the day. Make sure your story uses names, places and dialog to paint a compelling picture. Build some drama, then bam! A strong close. 5. Use quotes, video clips, music and photos to create atmosphere and emotional pull. Facts and figures are fine, but add in some color and emotion. What have others said? Show, don’t just tell what happened. Capture real faces and people’s actual words. Add some humor if you can. 6. Don’t read your slides; instead, engage the audience in a conversation. Ask them a few well-chosen questions to foster engagement. Break away from slides to add your reactions. Or consider skipping the slides altogether, and tell the story in your own words. 7. Include rational arguments and pertinent facts to balance emotional appeal. Emotions are going to be powerful in a motivational talk, but you still need logic. Don’t go crazy with facts, but choose the ones that make the most impact. Cite reputable sources for your facts. Put just a few facts on your slides. Or consider using an attractive infographic just this once. 8. Script and rehearse thoroughly. Don’t trust this one to luck! Get a small audience to rehearse with you and go over it enough times, start to finish, that you feel it is fluent (but not memorized.) If it is going to be recorded, then rehearse some more so that you feel it is truly polished and you are confident that you can speak from start to finish without a break. 9. Time it carefully so it doesn’t become a ramble. TED Talks are about 18 minutes long, or shorter, so they are generally highly polished gems. Use a timer in each of your rehearsals so you know you are keeping to your time frame. Longer isn’t better in a motivational talk. 10. Get an unbiased second opinion of your logic and persuasion. Remember that small group that was there to help you rehearse? Choose people that will challenge you. Where is your logic weak? Which stories miss the mark? Where are the big moments you want to stress, maybe slow down? Is your opening as tight and impactful as possible? Does your closing hit the mark? And how are you at answering key questions? All these should be part of your rehearsal. Don’t take this feedback personally; just keep polishing that motivational talk until it shines. Motivational talks may be more demanding, and may take more time, but a great leader learns how to deliver them well.

Consider this your stretch assignment; in the next 30 days do a motivational talk and follow these guidelines to make the most of the opportunity.

Gail Zack Anderson

How Much Does It Cost To Advertise On Google?

Is your business considering advertising on Google, but you need clarification on the costs? How much should you budget for a successful Google Ads campaign? In this comprehensive guide, we delve into the factors that influence the cost of Google Ads, provide industry-specific cost insights, and offer expert tips on budgeting, bidding, and optimizing your …

All About Advertising and Promotions

© Copyright Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC. Before you learn more about advertising and promotions, you should get a basic impression of what advertising is. See What’s “Advertising, Marketing, Promotion, Public Relations and Publicity, and Sales?”. Advertising is specifically part of the “outbound” marketing activities, or activities geared to communicate out to the …

Defining the Categories of Marketing

The Categories of Marketing: Advertising, Marketing, and Sales Defined Entered by Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD Also, consider Related Library Topics It’s easy to become confused about categories of marketing terms: advertising, marketing, promotion, public relations and publicity, and sales. The terms are often used interchangeably. However, they refer to different — but similar activities. Some …

Managing Marketing and Public Relations Committees

Effective Management Strategies for Marketing and Public Relations Committees © Copyright Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC. The vast majority of content on this topic applies to for-profits and nonprofits. This book also covers this topic. Marketing Committees Committees The purpose of the Board Marketing Committee is to ensure ongoing, high-quality marketing. “Marketing” is …

Managing Reputation: Public and Media Relations

Reputation Management 101: Public and Media Relations Strategies © Copyright Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC. Public relations activities aim to cultivate a strong, positive image of the organization among its stakeholders. Similar to effective advertising and promotions, effective public relations often depends on designing and implementing a well-designed public relations plan. The plan …

Becoming A Technical Writer-Communicator Review

I am seeing there is still a great interest in people wanting to become Technical Writers. For that reason, I am going to review some steps to become one. If you are currently employed: • write about your job and what the requirements are for that position. • write about all your daily tasks and …

Creating A Knowledge Community

A Technical Writer needs to create a Knowledge Community. How and why we need a Knowledge Community you ask? Being a Technical Writer can be difficult when trying to obtain knowledge. Whom do you consider for contacting, where do you look. How do you decide if you should gather knowledge verbally face-to-face or in meetings, …

Tips for Handling Technical Writer Stress

Everyone gets stressed out at work no matter what your job function. As a Technical Writer, you too will probably have situations at one time or other where you get stressed out as well. In order to avoid communicating less or ineffectively, take a break or slow down for a while. Here are a few …

Likeminded Communication

Trying to communicate technical information to various cultures is not as simple as others may think. For a technical communicator, it requires more than just training, because being moderately acquainted with cultural differences is just not enough. Likeminded A previous post that I had written on communicating globally, noted that ‘Individuals need to understand the …

A Technical Writer Is Different From Other Writers

‘Why?’ The role of Technical Writers possesses a lot of technical knowledge such as in software and data skills, including investigating, researching, and being a middleman between the target audience, management, technical personnel (I.e., programmers, engineers), and others. Being a Technical Writer means being able to gather, communicate, and translate essential and necessary technical information …

Involve and Engage Your Audience 20 Ways

Not long ago I worked with an energetic, creative group who, while focusing on presentation skills, wondered how to best engage their audiences. I asked them what engagement strategies they appreciated when they were in the audience. They had plenty of ideas about engagement techniques that I think any speaker could benefit from. These are …

Tips On Documenting Processes

Numerous types of processes (i.e., business processes) exist in many organizations. Processes specifically involve defining and outlining a sequence of events or systematic movements that are to be followed. These processes need to be documented and identified by the Technical Writer. Benefits Documenting processes • ensures that everyone understands the overall picture of what the …

Communicating Technical Writing Review

It is always good to do a review as some of us might have forgotten the essentials of how to create a document full of technical information for your audience. Another acronym for technical writing could be informational writing or knowledge writing or even instructional writing. Let us start at the beginning. Basics • Build …

Communicating Via Visual Designs

We don’t always realize it, but sometimes we are being told what to do visually. Take these as examples: • A zebra crosswalk on the road – we know to walk within the zebra crossing. • A sign of a bicycle – we know the lane is a bicycle path. • A light switch- we …

Special Tips for Laptop Presentations

If you are presenting, odds are you are using your laptop either to walk the listeners through content in a small group, or projected on a screen to a larger group, or online when speaking with a virtual group. It’s just how we present these days. But so many people stumble over the technology, which …

Privacy Overview

10 Reasons Motivational Speech Is Important

Hrideep barot.

• Public Speaking , Speech Writing

Have you ever opened a Ted Talk on YouTube with the intention of simply passing time, and ended up with a surge of motivation to do something? Or have you ever attended a speech in person that inspired you to actually do something instead of simply waiting for it to get over with?

Well, if you have, then you have an idea about what a motivational speech is and how it operates.

Motivational speeches are used by many speakers. In fact, they’re one of the most common speeches that are being delivered out there. And yet, for how commonly they’re used, writing & delivering a good motivational speech–you know, one that actually motivates–is no easy task.

After reading all this, you’re probably wondering why there is such a ruckus around being a motivational speaker & what sets motivational speeches apart from other speeches.

Motivational speeches are important because they work to inspire you, enhance your creativity, reduce fear & apprehension, offers a new outlook on things, and helps you meet other people on the same boat as you.

Don’t worry, we’ve elaborated on all this below.

Motivational Speaking: Definition And Purpose

Before we delve into the importance of motivational speeches, let’s first get down to the basics & understand what the motivational speech actually means.

For motivational speeches, the definition actually corresponds with its purpose.

A motivational speech is intended to persuade or motivate the audience to take some course of action.

This definition more or less covers what is the purpose of delivering a motivational speech as well i.e to motivate people to do something.

Motivational speeches are delivered to inspire the audience, to make them think, and finally to get them to accept & follow your call to action. That is, they not only have a cognitive purpose, but also an emotional and actionable one.

How Motivational Speeches Help People

Now that you know what a motivational speech is & the reason why it’s delivered, let’s move onto the next step i.e figuring out what, exactly, is it about motivational speeches that help people.

Motivation is important for everyone. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do: you need motivation if you want to do something in your life, no matter how small the task.

Except for this, the help that Motivational Speeches provide people is also rooted in the actionable part of the definition of motivational speeches.

Motivational speeches are intended to inspire other people, yes. But it’s not solely that is inspiration drawn through powerful words that they depend on.

Although the end message is no doubt powerful, motivational speakers not only ask you to do something but also outline the steps on how to actually go about achieving things.

Motivational speakers provide their audience with important insight–which is sometimes personal–into how to actually go about achieving the things they’re asking them to achieve.

Not only this, but they also provide effective systems and examples or tried and tested methods of achieving the end goal. The most common way through which this is done is through storytelling.

Why Motivational Speeches Are Important

1. Everything Needs Motivation–Even The Smallest Things

So many people think that motivation is only something that people require to achieve the big goals in their life like that dream job or maybe winning some other race.

However, while achieving big goals is certainly one object of motivation, it’s not the only one. You need motivation even for doing small tasks in life like painting your house, reading that book, or even working out.

Think of the last time you heard someone (or yourself) say I lost motivation to go to the gym today or finish my work and you’ll know what I’m talking about.

2. Changes Your Perspective

Another key reason why motivational speeches are important is that motivational speeches change the way you approach or see certain things or topics.

Motivational speeches often offer a new perspective onto something, a different way of seeing something that people have been seeing for a long time.

This can help people transform perceived hurdles into challenges to overcome, or simply offer new insight into something.

3. Improves Task Performance

Motivation is imperative to improving your task performance. While motivation is important for actually getting off your butt and doing something, how much motivation you have will also determine the quality of the work you do.

In this sense, motivational speeches are important as they provide the audience with an outline on how to really improve their performance in life. Through the real-life examples and tips they provide, motivational speeches can greatly improve how well a person operates.

4. Gives New Ideas & Solutions

Another key reason why motivational speeches are important is that they give new ideas to the audience & provide new solutions to problems that they’ve been probably facing for a long time.

Motivational speakers can also keep you informed about all the new developments in their respective fields, and thereby keep you up to date on the easiest way to achieve what you want.

5. Provides A Burst Of Energy & Inspiration

To actually put things into action, not only do you need inspiration but also the energy to carry out that action.

Motivational speeches help you achieve both of these things. Through the surge of inspiration that they provide, and the general inspired atmosphere of motivational speeches, a speaker can make the audience feel imbued with energy and want to get on their feet.

6. Reduces Fear & Apprehension

For many people, doing something new or simply seeing things in a new perspective often evokes feelings of apprehension or sometimes even downright fear.

Motivational speeches can help reduce this fear to an extent, as the speaker will actively work to make the unknown familiar to you and to provide real-life examples that you can draw upon.

Reducing the fear or apprehension associated with a particular topic goes a long way in how successful you’re able to carry out the task.

7. Builds Confidence

Another reason why motivational speeches are so effective is that they help the audience members build a sense of confidence. Confidence is imperative if you want to take the first step forward & try out something new.

Motivational speakers provide people with some key tools that they need in order to build their confidence, like knowledge, motivation & relatable stories. 

8. Teaches You To Value Both: Sucess & Failure

Failure is inevitable if you’re truly doing something new. Think of all the biggest innovations in history, and you’ll realize just how many times the person had to fail before they were able to succeed.

And yet, failure is something that many people still view with fearful eyes. Attending motivational speeches–especially if they’re centered around similar topics–will help you greatly overcome your fear of apprehension and teach you to value both: failure & success.

9. Helps Meet People On The Same Boat As You

Attending motivational speeches is a great opportunity for networking & meeting other people who are going through the same things you are.

This allows you to broaden your network and to get to meet new people who probably want to achieve the same things as you. This can also help you achieve goals that you wouldn’t have been able to on your own.

So, for instance, if you’re attending a motivational speech for young entrepreneurs, then you can meet like-minded people who’re also on the same path as you–and maybe even figure out how to build something together.

10. Boosts Creativity

Ever left a particularly inspiring speech with your brain in brain-storm mode? Well, you’re not alone. The motivation & inspiration that strikes you during a particularly good motivational speech will work to get your brain juices flowing & enter you into a creative mindset.

This can further help you out because your creative idea might actually work to inspire you more, leading to more brainstorming…and so on. A cycle–but not a vicious one.

Tips To Write A Great Motivational Speech

1. Don’t Have Too Many Different Points

While it’s perfectly alright to divide up one main point into multiple different ones for ease of understanding, you don’t want to have multiple main points. This will end up confusing your audience, and they will most likely not have a clear idea of which direction to head in.

You want the audience to leave your speech with a clear-cut mindset about what they’re supposed to do next. Not have them scratching their heads about what to do.

2. Structure It Well

The way you structure your speech is going to have a major impact on how well you manage to connect with the audience and how much of the message they actually understand. Don’t just dive into writing your speech without structuring it first. Your speech should have a well-defined beginning, middle, and end.

That’s why it’s important to write down your speech beforehand. It will allow you to better the way your speech flows.

For more information on why it’s important to write down your speech, check out our article on 9 Reasons Why Writing A Speech Is Important.

3. Use Simple Language

Now is not the time to be hit by a bout of verbosity. Seriously. You don’t want to use big or complicated words–this might make you sound smart, but will also make your audience more confused about what you actually want them to do.

So, use simple language to explain your main idea. This doesn’t have to impact the quality of your speech in any way. Remember that you’re there to talk to ordinary people, so speak as they do.

4. Incorporate Storytelling & Real-Life Examples

This is a must for any motivational speech. Stories are an integral element of any speech, yes. But they become even more important when you’re delivering a motivational speech. This is because if you truly wish to inspire people, you must give them examples of real instances where other people have been benefitted from taking inspiration from your topic.

So, make sure to incorporate real-life stories in your speech. Want more information about how to fully explore storytelling in your speech? Head over to our article on 9 Storytelling Approaches For Your Next Speech Or Presentation.

5. Have A Really Powerful Opening & Ending

Your opening & ending are the most important components of your speech. However, they become even more important when you’re delivering a motivational speech. This is because the opening will determine how you inspire your audience right off the bat, and the kind of emotional mood they’re in for the rest of your speech.

Your ending, on the other hand, is what will remain with your audience after you’re done with your speaking–and that’s where most of the actual work is going to be done.

Importance Of A Motivational Speaker

1. helps personal development.

This is perhaps the first thing that comes to mind when one thinks of motivational speakers, and for good reason. Motivational speakers can–if they are actually experienced in their field of speaking–help the people listening to their speech develop themselves. 

They can help the listeners set goals–both long term as well as short term, and also aid in figuring out a strategy to achieve those goals. 

2. Helps Businesses And Companies 

Many companies and workplaces these days invite motivational speakers to talk with their members, and for good reason. 

Motivational speakers can help employees boost their productivity and infuse within them a sense of enthusiasm. They can also inspire people to improve their work and figure out how to cultivate good company culture. 

3. Educating The Public

Motivational speakers also work to educate the general public on a variety of topics that are relevant to them. Motivational speakers can rally the public to take action about a particular good cause. 

They can help people see certain important aspects that they might be overlooking, and figure out a plan of action to coordinate. 

4. Inspires Youth

Many motivational talks these days are directed towards the youth. That’s because the youth is the heart of any country, and what plays the most integral role in driving it forward. 

Motivational speakers can help inspire the youth, and to organize their collective energy in a positive way. They can also act as a source of guidance for the youth, and make them see all the different directions they can take their life in. 

5. Help People Get Together

Another reason why motivational speakers are important–and one that is often overlooked–is that motivational speakers help people get together and find a common purpose. 

Strife is common in any country, community, or even workplace. However, motivational speakers, by employing all of the factors mentioned above, can actually help people from all walks of life come together and find a common purpose.

Especially if teamwork is an area that the speaker specializes in, they can make a key difference in drawing people together. 

How To Keep Up The Motivation Rolling AFTER The Speech Ends?

So, you’ve either delivered a motivational speech or just finished hearing one. Your endorphins are rolling, you feel like you’re at the top of the world, like you can do anything and everything…

And then some time passes. And you realize well, do you really need to do it all right now …

And there goes the motivation.

How do you get around this? How do you keep up your motivation after the actual event has ended? Or how do you avoid your audience from losing out on all the motivation you’ve spent so long attempting to infuse them with?

Well, there are a few things that you can do…

1. Don’t Ask For TOO Much

A lot of motivational speakers make this mistake. They ask their audience to achieve some giant goal, say like, becoming their fittest possible self by the end of the year. However, for someone who’s never really stepped on a treadmill their entire life, this can be quite overwhelming.

While they might find the idea enchanting, that’s all it will be: an enchanting dream, out of their reach. And if they think it’s just a dream they can never achieve…well, they won’t try, will they?

So, start by asking something small. Say, like, getting them to work out for twenty minutes every three days. Or simply avoiding eating out on the weekends. Don’t overwhelm them.

2. Clearly Outline The Next Steps

If you really want your audience to do something, then CLEARLY tell them what you want them to do. Give them a list of things that they should do as soon as your talk gets over, and also outline a broad plan for what they should do after those steps have ended.

Sticking with the example mentioned above, you can tell them that if they’re going to go out for drinks this week, they should stick with just water as mix-ins. You can also provide them with information about fitness classes trials that you–or someone else nearby–are taking.

3. Stay In Touch With Them

One of the best ways to monitor your audience’s progress over time is by staying in touch with them. This way, you will directly know where they are in terms of progress. It will also allow you to gently motivate them and send them reminders about their goals–however, remember to not force or coerce them into doing something.

You can do this by sharing your contact details with the audience. You can also make them sign up for your newsletter or make them a part of your email list.

How To Be An Authentic Motivational Speaker

While delivering a motivational speech or becoming a motivational speaker sounds easy enough, it’s not so. A lot of people believe that becoming a motivational speaker is the same as delivering a speech on any other topic. However, this cannot be further from the truth.

If you truly wish to become a motivational speaker that helps people, then you need to be authentic. Your speech must draw from your own personal thoughts, emotions and ideas, yes. But more importantly, your speech must be from your own experiences . First-hand experiences are vital for any motivational speaker.

Think of it this way: if you had to pick the more authentic and trustable source from a person who’s watched a lot of youtube videos on fitness & is passionate about them vs. someone who is a personal trainer with hands-on experience with multiple clients and a passion for fitness, who would you pick?

The second one, most likely.

So, if you truly wish to become an authentic speaker, then you must let yourself first experience your area of expertise, and derive enough experience from it to make other people want to experience it too.

Examples Of Great Motivational Speeches

1. richard st. john: secrets of success in 8 words, 3 minutes.

Takeaway: This is one of the best ted talks in the realm of motivational speaking. One of the reasons why this talk is so great is because of how brilliantly the speech is structured. The speaker manages to condense such a big amount of information into a talk that lasts less than four minutes, and yet nowhere does it feel rushed or cramped together. You can use his structure as an inspiration to your own speech.

2. Simon T. Bailey: To Break Through, Find Your True Calli ng

Takeaway: The reason why this ted-talk is so great is because of the speaker’s outstanding delivery. He uses various strategies to emotionally connect with his audience. His body language, the way he intonates, gestures, and facial expressions all come together to create a truly amazing speech experience that is likely to motivate his audience into taking action.

3. J.K Rowling: Harvard Commencement Speech

Takeaway: Whatever your opinions about Rowling, one cannot deny that this is truly an amazing speech to study. This is because of the beautiful way in which Rowling has organized the main content of her speech, and the way she explains it all in such a simplistic way.

The theme of the topic is imagination and failure, and how these two elements are crucial to success. While at first glance there seems to be no relationship between these three words, the way she speaks makes you realize how intricately they’re connected.

Use this speech as a guideline to organize your material and how to structure your content in order for it to be simple and yet at the same time unique. For more information on what makes speakers great, check out our article on 11 Qualities Of A Great Speaker.

To sum up, motivational speeches are important for a variety of reasons. Motivational speeches are an important type of speech because they work to inspire you, enhance your creativity, reduce fear & apprehension, offers a new outlook on things, and helps you meet other people on the same boat as you. By using the tips mentioned above & taking inspiration from real-life motivational speeches, you too can become an excellent motivational speaker.

Enroll in our transformative 1:1 Coaching Program

Schedule a call with our expert communication coach to know if this program would be the right fit for you

Call or Text? Deciphering the Best Communication Method for Every Situation

Spontaneous Speaking Skills for Any Situation

Keep Your Cool: 8 Strategies to Control Emotions While Speaking

• [email protected]
• +91 98203 57888

Get our latest tips and tricks in your inbox always

Copyright © 2023 Frantically Speaking All rights reserved

Kindly drop your contact details so that we can arrange call back

Select Country Afghanistan Albania Algeria AmericanSamoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil British Indian Ocean Territory Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Colombia Comoros Congo Cook Islands Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Honduras Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Romania Rwanda Samoa San Marino Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands South Africa South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Tajikistan Thailand Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Wallis and Futuna Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe land Islands Antarctica Bolivia, Plurinational State of Brunei Darussalam Cocos (Keeling) Islands Congo, The Democratic Republic of the Cote d'Ivoire Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Guernsey Holy See (Vatican City State) Hong Kong Iran, Islamic Republic of Isle of Man Jersey Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Lao People's Democratic Republic Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Macao Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Mozambique Palestinian Territory, Occupied Pitcairn Réunion Russia Saint Barthélemy Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan Da Cunha Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Sao Tome and Principe Somalia Svalbard and Jan Mayen Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tanzania, United Republic of Timor-Leste Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, U.S.

• SUGGESTED TOPICS
• The Magazine
• Newsletters
• Managing Yourself
• Managing Teams
• Work-life Balance
• The Big Idea
• Data & Visuals
• Reading Lists
• Case Selections
• HBR Learning
• Topic Feeds
• Account Settings
• Email Preferences

What It Takes to Give a Great Presentation

• Carmine Gallo

Five tips to set yourself apart.

Never underestimate the power of great communication. It can help you land the job of your dreams, attract investors to back your idea, or elevate your stature within your organization. But while there are plenty of good speakers in the world, you can set yourself apart out by being the person who can deliver something great over and over. Here are a few tips for business professionals who want to move from being good speakers to great ones: be concise (the fewer words, the better); never use bullet points (photos and images paired together are more memorable); don’t underestimate the power of your voice (raise and lower it for emphasis); give your audience something extra (unexpected moments will grab their attention); rehearse (the best speakers are the best because they practice — a lot).

I was sitting across the table from a Silicon Valley CEO who had pioneered a technology that touches many of our lives — the flash memory that stores data on smartphones, digital cameras, and computers. He was a frequent guest on CNBC and had been delivering business presentations for at least 20 years before we met. And yet, the CEO wanted to sharpen his public speaking skills.

• Carmine Gallo is a Harvard University instructor, keynote speaker, and author of 10 books translated into 40 languages. Gallo is the author of The Bezos Blueprint: Communication Secrets of the World’s Greatest Salesman  (St. Martin’s Press).

Partner Center

What is Motivation? A Psychologist Explains

The simplest definition of motivation boils down to wanting (Baumeister, 2016). We want a change in behavior, thoughts, feelings, self-concept, environment, and relationships.

People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.

This article shows what motivation is, both in real life and in how psychology observes and studies motivation. It includes an explanation of the process by analyzing real-world motivational problems like procrastination and avoidance.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free . These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients create actionable goals and master techniques to create lasting behavior change.

This Article Contains:

What is motivation, motivation definition in psychology, motivation model, motivation process, motivation cycle, recommended books on motivation, a take-home message.

Motivation is an internal process. Whether we define it as a drive or a need, motivation is a condition inside us that desires a change, either in the self or the environment. When we tap into this well of energy, motivation endows the person with the drive and direction needed to engage with the environment in an adaptive, open-ended, and problem-solving sort of way (Reeve, 2015).

The essence of motivation is energized and persistent goal-directed behavior. When we are motivated, we move and take action.

Motivation is influenced by the satisfaction of needs that are either necessary for sustaining life or essential for wellbeing and growth. Physiological needs for food, water, and sex (yes sex) serve the organism to maintain life and also provide satisfaction from doing so.

Psychological needs for autonomy, mastery, and belonging direct our behavior in much the same way. As do the needs for achievement, power, closure, meaning, and self-esteem. Some of these needs will become motives as will all the intrinsic activities we engage in.

Our environment and social context will play a significant role in terms of extrinsic motivation. We will also be motivated by goals, values, and desires to experience specific emotions associated with certain end-states (Reeve, 2015).

The best way to explain motivation is to show what it looks like in everyday life. Here is an example of possible motivational reasons a person could have to engage in exercise.

For a more in-depth discussion of the many mechanisms of motivation, see our article on Motivation and What Really Drives Human Behavior .

Download 3 Free Goals Exercises (PDF)

These detailed, science-based exercises will help you or your clients create actionable goals and master techniques for lasting behavior change.

Download 3 Free Goals Pack (PDF)

By filling out your name and email address below.

• Email Address *
• Your Expertise * Your expertise Therapy Coaching Education Counseling Business Healthcare Other
• Email This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

The study of motivation in psychology revolves around providing the best possible answers to two fundamental questions: what causes behavior, and why does behavior vary in its intensity?

Motivational science is a behavioral science that seeks to construct theories about what constitutes human motivation and how motivational processes work.

Motivation, when seen in the real world, and when measured by science , becomes visible and detectable through behavior, level of engagement, neural activation, and psychophysiology. Some would also include self-report in this list, but studies show that self-reports have proven to be highly unreliable sources of information (Reeve, 2015).

So how does motivation behave? With presence, intensity, and quality. Motivation is visible through gestures and facial expressions, intense effort, immediacy (or as psychologists like to call it short latency).

The presence of motivation can also be inferred from the levels of persistence and decisiveness in choosing one goal over another, which taken together make for a high probability of occurrence (Atkinson & Birch, 1970; 1978; Bolles, 1975; Ekman & Friesen, 1975).

Motivation can also be inferred from the level of engagement.

For example, in a coaching scenario or a motivational interview, a competent practitioner will enthusiastically and generously contribute to the flow of conversation (agentic engagement), express interest and enjoyment (emotional engagement), process deeply and pay attention (cognitive engagement), and persist in these efforts as if time and the outside world didn’t exist (behavioral engagement). And yes, for many of us, we don’t have those kinds of conversations often.

Psychophysiology

There are five psychophysiological expressions of motivation:

Brain Activations

Just like changes in behavior, engagement, and psychophysiology, brain activations mark the rise and fall and maintenance of motivational states. A different pattern of neural activity is present with each motivation and emotion. For example, the hypothalamus is active when we are thirsty, and when we feel disgusted, there is a rise in insular activity.

Researchers use sophisticated equipment like electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to observe, detect, monitor, and measure brain-based neural activity.

See our blog post on Motivation Science for more information on the neuroscience of motivation.

Putting all this together to answer the perennial question of what motivation is, but most importantly what it does, we define motivation as rising and falling of needs, cognition, and emotions expressed through patterns of behavior, levels of engagement and neural and psychophysiological activity directed toward realizing essential life outcomes. Video

How to motivate yourself to change your behavior – Tali Sharot

In a nutshell, motives are internal experiences in the form of needs, cognitions, and emotions and are the direct and proximal causes of motivated action. Social contexts and external events act as antecedents to motives that cause or trigger motivational states. Our motives express themselves through behavior, engagement, psychophysiology, brain activations, and self-report.

The model below illustrates the framework for how motivational psychologists study the process of motivation and its elements and try to find the answer to the questions about what causes motivation. It also shows why the study of motivation is so relevant to people’s lives and how motivation contributes positively to significant life outcomes like achievement, performance, and wellbeing, to name a few (Reeve, 2015).

Our motivation, when it originates from internal motives, as categorized into needs, cognitions, and emotions, is often experienced as more immediate and potent than extrinsic motivation.

Since we don’t exist in a vacuum, however, these inner experiences cannot take place without some degree of the external influence, be it in the form of consequences, incentives, or other forms of pressure arising out of the social context of our environment.

Our physiological and psychological needs drive us, our cognitions direct us, and emotions land intensity and energy to our pursuits. When the combination of antecedent conditions and the internal motives align, they create a ripe environment for engagement, which propels the action behavior.

When these behaviors, in turn, create more positive motivational and emotional states, they reinforce the behavior through a positive feedback loop and increase the likelihood of repetition (Reeve, 2015).

The greatest thief this world has ever produced is procrastination, and he is still at large.

Josh Billings

The self-concordance model of goal setting differentiates between four types of motivation (Sheldon & Elliot, 1999).

• External motivation Goals are heavily guided by external circumstances and would not occur without some kind of reward or to prevent a negative outcome.
• Introjected motivation Goals are characterized by self-image or ego-based motivation, reflecting the need to keep a certain self-image alive.
• Identified motivation The actions needed to accomplish the goal are perceived as personally important and meaningful, and personal values are the main drivers of goal pursuit.
• Intrinsic motivation When a behavior is guided by intrinsic motivation, the individual strives for this goal because of the enjoyment or stimulation that this goal provides. While there may be many good reasons for pursuing the goal, the primary reason is simply the interest in the experience of goal pursuit itself.

Goals guided by either identified or intrinsic motivation can be considered self-concordant. Self-concordant goals are associated with higher levels of wellbeing, enhanced positive mood, and higher life satisfaction levels than non-self-concordant goals.

Consider a motivational problem like procrastination or avoidance

Our needs, cognitions, emotions, environments, and relationships can play a crucial role in procrastination or avoidance.

All needs are born either out of deficiency or need for growth. Physiological needs are a particularly strong force in determining behavior. Our bodies will signal our brain if our wellbeing is threatened, and this can lead to avoidance and procrastination when we are suffering from hunger, thirst, or lack of sleep, for example.

Psychological needs are also significant drivers of motives as they represent inborn needs for the development of a sense of autonomy, competence, and relatedness. When we try to force ourselves to do something that contradicts those needs, these innate forces can be tough to overcome.

The conflict between chosen behavior and the need for satisfaction of psychological needs like autonomy can create dissonance, which can lead to avoidance or procrastination. While the fulfillment of physiological needs is about preserving wellbeing, satisfying psychological needs is about thriving and growing as a person (Reeve, 2015).

When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.

Viktor E. Frankl

There are also implicit needs which are acquired from our environment through socioemotional development. They vary from person to person as our experiences vary, and unlike inborn psychological needs, implicit motives are acquired.

Implicit here means unconscious. These needs occur without conscious awareness and are trait-like and enduring. Implicit needs motivate us toward the pursuit and attainment of specific social incentives (Schultheiss & Brunstein, 2010).

An implicit motive is a psychological need that arises from situational cues that cause emotional reactions, which then predict, guide, and explain people’s behavior and lifestyle. They can be inferred from the person’s characteristic thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. What a person “needs” within an implicit motive is to experience a particular pattern of affect or emotion.

For example, if we have little or no need for achievement, we may experience negative affect, such as anxiety, shame, and embarrassment while engaging in that challenging task and will avoid or procrastinate as a result. Implicit motives predict our behavior far more accurately than do explicit motives, which are basically what we tell others about what motives us (McClelland, Koestner, & Weinberger, 1989).

Our cognitions can also influence our tendency to avoid or procrastinate. Cognitions are mental constructs like goals, mindset, expectations, beliefs, and self-concept, to name a few that influence our motivation. If we have conflicting goals, for example, we may be more likely to avoid or procrastinate.

Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change.

Wayne W. Dyer

Emotions, although closely linked to cognitions and psychological needs, in and of themselves can motivate or demotivate. They can signal the importance of particular behavior. We may feel joy or pride at the possibility of goal attainment through engagement in particular behavior, or we can be afraid of failure and choose to avoid or procrastinate.

Our environment can also be either ideal and supportive or an obstacle to staying motivated and achieving our goals (Reeve, 2015). It can be full of distractions or lack optimal conditions that allow for sustained motivation.

Finally, our relationships can be supportive and empowering when it comes to change. This can be explained through a concept like the Michelangelo phenomenon, where our relationships support our potential. They can also be demotivating as in the Blueberry phenomenon, where the relationship brings out the worst in us and can contribute to procrastination and avoidance.

Motivation is a dynamic process, and our motives vary over time. Raising and falling as circumstances change, and as time passes, motives contribute to the ongoing stream of behavior. To further complicate matters, we are driven by a multitude of different motives at any one point in time.

One motive, usually the one most situationally appropriate, will be strongest and dominate our attention while other motives will be subordinate and lie relatively dormant. Although typically the strongest motive will have the most considerable influence on our behavior, as circumstances change, each subordinate motive can become dominant.

The below example shows how a student’s motivation to read varies over time in strength, starting relatively strong then weakening when compared to the need to hang out with friends or to eat a snack (Reeve, 2015).

The awareness of how motivation varies over time is particularly important when it comes to goal setting.

When we differentiate the motivational and the performance-based advantages versus disadvantages for those who adopt a short-term goal, as in eating less than 2000 calories today, versus performers who adopt a long-term goal, as in losing 20 pounds this year, we must consider the type of activity they are engaging in before making recommendations.

Short term goals work better for uninteresting activities as they boost commitment by providing feedback on progress more often, which further reinforces the effort to persist (Reeve, 2015).

Motivation to perform routine or boring activities can be improved; however, by providing clarity of goals and choice in how to perform a task. Clarity and choice can fuel a sense of mastery and autonomy, and both, in combination, can increase overall motivation as they satisfy basic psychological needs.

When it comes to interesting tasks, or as Mihaly Csíkszentmihályi (1990) calls them autotelic activities, long-term goals work better as they often provide for greater flexibility and more autonomy in how to pursue them. Short terms milestones can feel intrusive for interesting activities. Autotelic activities are already engaging, and we are often intrinsically motivated to perform them because they produce enjoyment. But most importantly, we are motivated to pursue them in the absence of external rewards or incentives.

′Autotelic′ is a word composed of two Greek roots: auto (self), and telos (goal). An autotelic activity is one we do for its own sake because to experience it is the main goal.

Mihaly Csíkszentmihályi

We also need to keep in mind that motivation to act on the goals is often higher when the goal is based in the near future, while far off goals do not create the tension of immediacy that would motivate us to act right away (Reeve, 2015).

To learn more about the types of motivation that exist, see our article on Motivation and What Really Drives Human Behavior .

You can also find many different approaches to increase motivation in the below list of self-help books published on the subject. Some are more philosophical, others biographical, and a few present recent research in motivation psychology.

17 Tools To Increase Motivation and Goal Achievement

These 17 Motivation & Goal Achievement Exercises [PDF] contain all you need to help others set meaningful goals, increase self-drive, and experience greater accomplishment and life satisfaction.

Created by Experts. 100% Science-based.

There is a wide array of books on motivation, covering different aspects and genres. Making a selection of the top ten was just not possible, so here is a list of 16 excellent books on motivation.

1. Finite and Infinite Games

The goal is to keep playing with boundaries.

Available on Amazon .

2. Talent is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everyone Else

Masters practice, practice, practice. One must deliberately engage in mentally demanding and repetitive activity to become an expert.

3. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience

Flow as motivation.

4. Why We Do What We Do: Understanding Self-Motivation

Motivation is something people do, not something that is done to them.

5. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success

Keep finding opportunities to improve.

6. Then We Came to the End

Joshua Ferris shares a humoristic yet emotionally true reflection about survival in life’s strangest environment – the office.

7. Good Work

Focusing on genetics and journalism, this eagerly awaited book investigate the exhibition of humane creativity, where performance is coupled with social responsibility.

Available on  Amazon .

8. Outliers: The Story of Success

Creative work is more satisfying, but success is influenced by many factors.

9. Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln

Winner of the prestigious Lincoln Prize and the inspiration for the Oscar Award winning–film Lincoln, starring Daniel Day-Lewis, directed by Steven Spielberg, and written by Tony Kushner. Need we say more?

10. The Amateurs

Pulitzer Prize-winning writing skills combined with sport journalism results in a highly acclaimed book.

11. Punished by Rewards

Rewards motivate us only to get more rewards.

12. Once a Runner

Always better than himself.

13. The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks & Win Your Inner Creative Battles

We are not ready for freedom. The paradox is that we are free only to the extent of our self-mastery.

14. Maverick: The Success Story Behind the World’s Most Unusual Workplace

How to be self-sufficient.

15. The Fifth Discipline: The Art & Practice of The Learning Organizations

In learning organizations, life is a work of art.

16. Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don’t

A study by Jim Collins and his research team over five years, revealed much-needed insight into management strategies and more.

It seems it isn’t that simple to find the motivation to do this thing that is so important to us. We must consider if it competes with other motives, and perhaps take stock of our values to make sure that this not the case. Often we may have to intervene in how our motivation is influenced by external incentives present in our environment or social context to make sure that we match those to high internal motives.

Motivation science tells us that if we want to be successful in motivating our own or other people’s behavior, high internal motives should be matched with high external motivations. Finally, we will often want to sustain the motivation over some time and may have to create a regiment of reminders, repetitions, and rituals — more on that in our article on motivation tools .

How do you hack motivation? What helps you stay committed?

Share your experience in the comments section.

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Goal Achievement Exercises for free .

• Atkinson, J. W., & Birch, D. (1970). On the dynamics of action. Nederlands Tijdschrift voor de Psychologie en haar Grensgebieden, 25 (2), 83-94.
• Atkinson, J. W., & Birch, D. (1978). An introduction to motivation (2nd ed.). Van Nostrand.
• Baumeister, R. F. (2016). Toward a general theory of motivation: Problems, challenges, opportunities, and the big picture. Motivation and Emotion, 40 (1), 1-10.
• Bolles, R. C. (1975). Learning theory . Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
• Csíkszentmihályi, M. (1990). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. HaperCollins.
• Ekman, P., & Friesen, W. V. (1975). Unmasking the face: A guide to recognizing emotions from facial expressions. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
• McClelland, D. C., Koestner, R., & Weinberger, J. (1989). How do self-attributed and implicit motives differ? Psychological Review, 96 (4), 690-702.
• Reeve, J. (2015). Understanding motivation and emotion (6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
• Schultheiss, O., Brunstein, J., & Brunstein, J. C. (2010). Implicit motives . Oxford University Press.
• Sheldon, K. M., & Elliot, A. J. (1999). Goal striving, need satisfaction, and longitudinal well-being: the self-concordance model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76(3) , 482.

Share this article:

Article feedback

What our readers think.

Beautiful article….Thank you very much it make me to understand perfectly

Thank you for an interesting read! A great view on a topic I am greatly interested in 🙂

I am looking for the Wayne W. Dyer reference – is there any pointers for this?

Many thanks.

Glad you enjoyed the post! I believe this was a spoken quote, not from a written source (see here ).

– Nicole | Community Manager

First, I appreciate your blog; I have read your article carefully, Your content is very valuable to me. I hope people like this blog too. I hope you will gain more experience with your knowledge; That’s why people get more information.

It’s THAN not THEN.

Motivation Process Our motivation, when it originates from internal motives, as categorized into needs, cognitions, and emotions, is often experienced as more immediate and potent —then —-extrinsic motivation

Oops! Thank you for bringing this to our attention — I’ve just corrected it 🙂

Amazing article, I came across this article for a paper I am writing in college and found it extremely useful. Additionally I own a part time dog training business and find that motivation is a hugely underappreciated concept within dog training. I base much of my training on motivation and find this article to be extremely beneficial in understanding motivation as it applies to both humans and animals as well as the behavior that come from it. Lastly I really appreciated the recommended books at the end, I just downloaded a few of them off of audible and will continue my studies on motivation.

Let us know your thoughts Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Related articles

Victor Vroom’s Expectancy Theory of Motivation

Motivation is vital to beginning and maintaining healthy behavior in the workplace, education, and beyond, and it drives us toward our desired outcomes (Zajda, 2023). [...]

SMART Goals, HARD Goals, PACT, or OKRs: What Works?

Goal setting is vital in business, education, and performance environments such as sports, yet it is also a key component of many coaching and counseling [...]

How to Assess and Improve Readiness for Change

Clients seeking professional help from a counselor or therapist are often aware they need to change yet may not be ready to begin their journey. [...]

Read other articles by their category

• Body & Brain (47)
• Coaching & Application (57)
• Compassion (26)
• Counseling (51)
• Emotional Intelligence (24)
• Gratitude (18)
• Grief & Bereavement (21)
• Happiness & SWB (40)
• Meaning & Values (26)
• Meditation (20)
• Mindfulness (45)
• Motivation & Goals (45)
• Optimism & Mindset (34)
• Positive CBT (27)
• Positive Communication (20)
• Positive Education (47)
• Positive Emotions (32)
• Positive Leadership (16)
• Positive Psychology (33)
• Positive Workplace (36)
• Productivity (16)
• Relationships (48)
• Resilience & Coping (34)
• Self Awareness (20)
• Self Esteem (37)
• Strengths & Virtues (30)
• Stress & Burnout Prevention (34)
• Theory & Books (46)
• Therapy Exercises (37)
• Types of Therapy (64)

• Name This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

3 Goal Achievement Exercises Pack

• Bipolar Disorder
• Therapy Center
• When To See a Therapist
• Types of Therapy
• Best Online Therapy
• Best Couples Therapy
• Best Family Therapy
• Managing Stress
• Sleep and Dreaming
• Understanding Emotions
• Self-Improvement
• Healthy Relationships
• Student Resources
• Personality Types
• Verywell Mind Insights
• 2023 Verywell Mind 25
• Mental Health in the Classroom
• Editorial Process
• Meet Our Review Board
• Crisis Support

Motivation: The Driving Force Behind Our Actions

Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

Amy Morin, LCSW, is a psychotherapist and international bestselling author. Her books, including "13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do," have been translated into more than 40 languages. Her TEDx talk,  "The Secret of Becoming Mentally Strong," is one of the most viewed talks of all time.

Verywell / Emily Roberts 

• Improvement

The term motivation describes why a person does something. It is the driving force behind human actions. Motivation is the process that initiates, guides, and maintains goal-oriented behaviors.

For instance, motivation is what helps you lose extra weight, or pushes you to get that promotion at work. In short, motivation causes you to act in a way that gets you closer to your goals. Motivation includes the biological , emotional , social , and cognitive forces that activate human behavior.

Motivation also involves factors that direct and maintain goal-directed actions. Although, such motives are rarely directly observable. As a result, we must often infer the reasons why people do the things that they do based on observable behaviors.

Learn the types of motivation that exist and how we use them in our everyday lives. And if it feels like you've lost your motivation, do not worry. There are many ways to develop or improve your self-motivation levels.

Press Play for Advice on Motivation

Hosted by therapist Amy Morin, LCSW, this episode of The Verywell Mind Podcast shares an exercise you can use to help you perform your best. Click below to listen now.

Follow Now : Apple Podcasts / Spotify / Google Podcasts

What Are the Types of Motivation?

The two main types of motivation are frequently described as being either extrinsic or intrinsic.

• Extrinsic motivation arises from outside of the individual and often involves external rewards such as trophies, money, social recognition, or praise.
• Intrinsic motivation is internal and arises from within the individual, such as doing a complicated crossword puzzle purely for the gratification of solving a problem.

A Third Type of Motivation?

Some research suggests that there is a third type of motivation: family motivation. An example of this type is going to work when you are not motivated to do so internally (no intrinsic motivation), but because it is a means to support your family financially.

Why Motivation Is Important

Motivation serves as a guiding force for all human behavior. So, understanding how motivation works and the factors that may impact it can be important for several reasons.

Understanding motivation can:

• Increase your efficiency as you work toward your goals
• Drive you to take action
• Encourage you to engage in health-oriented behaviors
• Help you avoid unhealthy or maladaptive behaviors, such as risk-taking and addiction
• Help you feel more in control of your life
• Improve your overall well-being and happiness

Click Play to Learn More About Motivation

This video has been medically reviewed by John C. Umhau, MD, MPH, CPE .

What Are the 3 Components of Motivation?

If you've ever had a goal (like wanting to lose 20 pounds or run a marathon), you probably already know that simply having the desire to accomplish these things is not enough. You must also be able to persist through obstacles and have the endurance to keep going in spite of difficulties faced.

These different elements or components are needed to get and stay motivated. Researchers have identified three major components of motivation: activation, persistence, and intensity.

• Activation is the decision to initiate a behavior. An example of activation would be enrolling in psychology courses in order to earn your degree.
• Persistence is the continued effort toward a goal even though obstacles may exist. An example of persistence would be showing up for your psychology class even though you are tired from staying up late the night before.
• Intensity is the concentration and vigor that goes into pursuing a goal. For example, one student might coast by without much effort (minimal intensity) while another student studies regularly, participates in classroom discussions, and takes advantage of research opportunities outside of class (greater intensity).

The degree of each of these components of motivation can impact whether you achieve your goal. Strong activation, for example, means that you are more likely to start pursuing a goal. Persistence and intensity will determine if you keep working toward that goal and how much effort you devote to reaching it.

Tips for Improving Your Motivation

All people experience fluctuations in their motivation and willpower . Sometimes you feel fired up and highly driven to reach your goals. Other times, you might feel listless or unsure of what you want or how to achieve it.

If you're feeling low on motivation, there are steps you can take to help increase your drive. Some things you can do to develop or improve your motivation include:

• Adjust your goals to focus on things that really matter to you. Focusing on things that are highly important to you will help push you through your challenges more than goals based on things that are low in importance.
• If you're tackling something that feels too big or too overwhelming, break it up into smaller, more manageable steps. Then, set your sights on achieving only the first step. Instead of trying to lose 50 pounds, for example, break this goal down into five-pound increments.
• Improve your confidence . Research suggests that there is a connection between confidence and motivation. So, gaining more confidence in yourself and your skills can impact your ability to achieve your goals.
• Remind yourself about what you've achieved in the past and where your strengths lie. This helps keep self-doubts from limiting your motivation.
• If there are things you feel insecure about, try working on making improvements in those areas so you feel more skilled and capable.

Causes of Low Motivation

There are a few things you should watch for that might hurt or inhibit your motivation levels. These include:

• All-or-nothing thinking : If you think that you must be absolutely perfect when trying to reach your goal or there is no point in trying, one small slip-up or relapse can zap your motivation to keep pushing forward.
• Believing in quick fixes : It's easy to feel unmotivated if you can't reach your goal immediately but reaching goals often takes time.
• Thinking that one size fits all : Just because an approach or method worked for someone else does not mean that it will work for you. If you don't feel motivated to pursue your goals, look for other things that will work better for you.

Motivation and Mental Health

Sometimes a persistent lack of motivation is tied to a mental health condition such as depression . Talk to your doctor if you are feeling symptoms of apathy and low mood that last longer than two weeks.

Theories of Motivation

Throughout history, psychologists have proposed different theories to explain what motivates human behavior. The following are some of the major theories of motivation.

The instinct theory of motivation suggests that behaviors are motivated by instincts, which are fixed and inborn patterns of behavior. Psychologists such as William James, Sigmund Freud , and William McDougal have proposed several basic human drives that motivate behavior. They include biological instincts that are important for an organism's survival—such as fear, cleanliness, and love.

Drives and Needs

Many behaviors such as eating, drinking, and sleeping are motivated by biology. We have a biological need for food, water, and sleep. Therefore, we are motivated to eat, drink, and sleep. The drive reduction theory of motivation suggests that people have these basic biological drives, and our behaviors are motivated by the need to fulfill these drives.

Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs is another motivation theory based on a desire to fulfill basic physiological needs. Once those needs are met, it expands to our other needs, such as those related to safety and security, social needs, self-esteem, and self-actualization.

Arousal Levels

The arousal theory of motivation suggests that people are motivated to engage in behaviors that help them maintain their optimal level of arousal. A person with low arousal needs might pursue relaxing activities such as reading a book, while those with high arousal needs might be motivated to engage in exciting, thrill-seeking behaviors such as motorcycle racing.

The Bottom Line

Psychologists have proposed many different theories of motivation . The reality is that there are numerous different forces that guide and direct our motivations.

Understanding motivation is important in many areas of life beyond psychology, from parenting to the workplace. You may want to set the best goals and establish the right reward systems to motivate others as well as to  increase your own motivation .

Knowledge of motivating factors (and how to manipulate them) is used in marketing and other aspects of industrial psychology. It's an area where there are many myths, and everyone can benefit from knowing what works with motivation and what doesn't.

Nevid JS.  Psychology: Concepts and Applications .

Tranquillo J, Stecker M.  Using intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in continuing professional education .  Surg Neurol Int.  2016;7(Suppl 7):S197-9. doi:10.4103/2152-7806.179231

Menges JI, Tussing DV, Wihler A, Grant AM. When job performance is all relative: How family motivation energizes effort and compensates for intrinsic motivation . Acad Managem J . 2016;60(2):695-719. doi:10.5465/amj.2014.0898

Hockenbury DH, Hockenbury SE. Discovering Psychology .

Zhou Y, Siu AF. Motivational intensity modulates the effects of positive emotions on set shifting after controlling physiological arousal . Scand J Psychol . 2015;56(6):613-21. doi:10.1111/sjop.12247

Mystkowska-Wiertelak A, Pawlak M. Designing a tool for measuring the interrelationships between L2 WTC, confidence, beliefs, motivation, and context . Classroom-Oriented Research . 2016. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-30373-4_2

Myers DG.  Exploring Social Psychology .

Siegling AB, Petrides KV. Drive: Theory and construct validation .  PLoS One . 2016;11(7):e0157295. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0157295

By Kendra Cherry, MSEd Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

6 Different Types of Presentations

Presentations should be as unique as your business and the information you’re trying to present. However, there are certain types of presentations that are common across industries and teams. Before you worry about which slides to include or how to organize your information, you’ll need to determine which type of presentation is best for your audience. 

To figure this out, ask yourself: Are you entertaining or informing? Are you speaking to colleagues, investors, or potential customers? Asking these questions will help you choose the type of presentation that supports you best. Beautiful.ai is here to make this even easier with a description of different types of presentations to help you choose.

Informative Presentations

An informative presentation is educational, concise, and to the point. While other presentations may entertain or inspire, the main goal of an informative presentation is to share information.

A good example of an informative presentation is a human resources benefits presentation. Human resources needs to explain what benefits employees receive, how benefits work, which important dates employees need to remember, where employees can find more information, and so on. 

An HR benefits presentation for new hires (or any informational presentation) should be short, straightforward, and easy to understand so that new employees will remember the information they’re given. 

Instructive Presentations

A presentation that teaches something is similar to an informative presentation, but it goes beyond sharing facts. It also instructs the audience on a specific topic. People attend or view an instructive presentation with the intention to learn, and they leave with a better understanding of the topic of the presentation.

There are many examples of instructive presentations. Workshops, training sessions, or webinars teach audiences a new skill or procedure by offering specific information or instructions. Explaining new policies to a company is another type of instructive presentation. For example, an HR benefits presentation for new employees may be informative, but a presentation for existing employees about policy changes might lean more towards instructive, especially if employees have to take action or need to ask questions.     

Persuasive Presentations

Many presentations hope to sell something or persuade the audience to take certain actions. Persuasive presentations often present a problem and explain their solution using data. Examples of persuasive presentations include business pitches or sales proposals.

For example, a startup company looking for initial funding may need a startup pitch deck or a Series A presentation to convince investors to back their idea. A startup pitch deck would explain a problem in the market, how their startup will solve that problem, and how they’ll monetize their business. A Series A presentation can help a startup secure more rounds of funding to grow their company and pursue further goals.

Motivational Presentations

One of the most prominent examples of inspiring presentations? TEDTalks. Many motivational speakers use TEDTalks to inspire people to think or change their behavior. 

Motivational presentations in the business world may not be as dramatic or life-changing as a TEDTalk, but they still aim to generate interest or gain an audience’s approval. A company overview presentation is a good example of a motivational presentation. It may present the information of a company — how it was founded, who is leading it, what the company does — but more importantly, it tells the company’s story. 

A company overview presentation connects with the audience. A manager may use it to boost morale at a team meeting. Or an executive may present a company overview to convince potential customers or investors to work with them. Or, an HR rep may use it to make new hires feel welcome and excited to join the company.

Decision-making Presentations

Need to make a decision within the company? A presentation that shares a problem, solution options, and their outcomes can help speed along the process. Decision making presentations might be found in business meetings, government meetings, or all-hands meetings.

For example, let’s say a company wants to improve engagement on their social media channels. There are many ways they might achieve their goal, including hosting giveaways, dedicating more resources to creating Facebook posts or Instagram stories, and researching their audience or competitors to see how they can improve. A marketing campaign plan template for a presentation would keep details of the problem, different options, and possible outcomes organized in one place. It would inform and guide everyone involved in the meeting, helping them make informed decisions on how to move forward.

Progress Presentations

Imagine our hypothetical company decided on a marketing strategy to meet their goals. Now that they have a campaign in place, they need to report on the progress of said campaign. This sixth presentation type shares status updates, progress towards deadlines, collected data so far, any obstacles popping up, and tasks that need to be added or adjusted.

A team stand up presentation is a great example of this type of presentation. Team stand up presentations usually include an agenda, talking points, deliverable updates, discussion topics, and time for questions at the end. This presentation keeps everyone organized and focused, ensuring that everyone is still on the same page and working towards the same end goal.

Whichever Presentation Type You Choose, Create it With Beautiful.ai

Now that you know which presentation type is right for your project, it’s time to create a beautiful and effective presentation. With Beautiful.ai , you don’t need to set aside hours of time to build your presentation, nor do you need design expertise to do it. Use one of our many presentation templates that can be customized for your needs in minutes. No matter what type of presentation you create, Beautiful.ai can help you do it.

Beautiful.AI Team

Beautiful is an AI-powered presentation tool that makes it fast and easy for anyone to build clean, modern and professionally designed slides that they can be proud of.

Recommended Articles

How to do presentations that will keep your board meetings on track and on time, the ultimate guide to sales and creating winning sales presentations, the top 7 slide templates that will transform any presentation, need funding learn from some of the most popular investor pitch decks.

We use essential cookies to make Venngage work. By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.

Manage Cookies

Cookies and similar technologies collect certain information about how you’re using our website. Some of them are essential, and without them you wouldn’t be able to use Venngage. But others are optional, and you get to choose whether we use them or not.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are always on, as they’re essential for making Venngage work, and making it safe. Without these cookies, services you’ve asked for can’t be provided.

Show cookie providers

• Google Login

Functionality Cookies

These cookies help us provide enhanced functionality and personalisation, and remember your settings. They may be set by us or by third party providers.

Performance Cookies

These cookies help us analyze how many people are using Venngage, where they come from and how they're using it. If you opt out of these cookies, we can’t get feedback to make Venngage better for you and all our users.

• Google Analytics

Targeting Cookies

These cookies are set by our advertising partners to track your activity and show you relevant Venngage ads on other sites as you browse the internet.

• Google Tag Manager
• Infographics
• Daily Infographics
• Graphic Design
• Graphs and Charts
• Data Visualization
• Human Resources
• Training and Development
• Beginner Guides

Blog Beginner Guides

8 Types of Presentations You Should Know [+Examples & Tips]

By Krystle Wong , Aug 11, 2023

From persuasive pitches that influence opinions to instructional demonstrations that teach skills, the different types of presentations serve a unique purpose, tailored to specific objectives and audiences.

Presentations that are tailored to its objectives and audiences are more engaging and memorable. They capture attention, maintain interest and leave a lasting impression. 

Don’t worry if you’re no designer —  Whether you need data-driven visuals, persuasive graphics or engaging design elements, Venngage can empower you to craft presentations that stand out and effectively convey your message.

Venngage’s intuitive drag-and-drop interface, extensive presentation template library and customizable design options make it a valuable tool for creating slides that align with your specific goals and target audience. 

Click to jump ahead:

8 Different types of presentations every presenter must know

How do i choose the right type of presentation for my topic or audience, types of presentation faq, 5 steps to create a presentation with venngage .

When it comes to presentations, versatility is the name of the game. Having a variety of presentation styles up your sleeve can make a world of difference in keeping your audience engaged. Here are 8 essential presentation types that every presenter should be well-acquainted with:

1. Informative presentation

Ever sat through a presentation that left you feeling enlightened? That’s the power of an informative presentation. 

This presentation style is all about sharing knowledge and shedding light on a particular topic. Whether you’re diving into the depths of quantum physics or explaining the intricacies of the latest social media trends, informative presentations aim to increase the audience’s understanding.

When delivering an informative presentation, simplify complex topics with clear visuals and relatable examples. Organize your content logically, starting with the basics and gradually delving deeper and always remember to keep jargon to a minimum and encourage questions for clarity.

Academic presentations and research presentations are great examples of informative presentations. An effective academic presentation involves having clear structure, credible evidence, engaging delivery and supporting visuals. Provide context to emphasize the topic’s significance, practice to perfect timing, and be ready to address anticipated questions. 

2. Persuasive presentation

If you’ve ever been swayed by a passionate speaker armed with compelling arguments, you’ve experienced a persuasive presentation . 

This type of presentation is like a verbal tug-of-war, aiming to convince the audience to see things from a specific perspective. Expect to encounter solid evidence, logical reasoning and a dash of emotional appeal.

With persuasive presentations, it’s important to know your audience inside out and tailor your message to their interests and concerns. Craft a compelling narrative with a strong opening, a solid argument and a memorable closing. Additionally, use visuals strategically to enhance your points.

Examples of persuasive presentations include presentations for environmental conservations, policy change, social issues and more. Here are some engaging presentation templates you can use to get started with: 

3. Demonstration or how-to presentation

A Demonstration or How-To Presentation is a type of presentation where the speaker showcases a process, technique, or procedure step by step, providing the audience with clear instructions on how to replicate the demonstrated action. 

A demonstrative presentation is particularly useful when teaching practical skills or showing how something is done in a hands-on manner.

These presentations are commonly used in various settings, including educational workshops, training sessions, cooking classes, DIY tutorials, technology demonstrations and more. Designing creative slides for your how-to presentations can heighten engagement and foster better information retention. 

Speakers can also consider breaking down the process into manageable steps, using visual aids, props and sometimes even live demonstrations to illustrate each step. The key is to provide clear and concise instructions, engage the audience with interactive elements and address any questions that may arise during the presentation.

4. Training or instructional presentation

Training presentations are geared towards imparting practical skills, procedures or concepts — think of this as the more focused cousin of the demonstration presentation. 

Whether you’re teaching a group of new employees the ins and outs of a software or enlightening budding chefs on the art of soufflé-making, training presentations are all about turning novices into experts.

To maximize the impact of your training or instructional presentation, break down complex concepts into digestible segments. Consider using real-life examples to illustrate each point and create a connection. 

You can also create an interactive presentation by incorporating elements like quizzes or group activities to reinforce understanding.

5. Sales presentation

Sales presentations are one of the many types of business presentations and the bread and butter of businesses looking to woo potential clients or customers. With a sprinkle of charm and a dash of persuasion, these presentations showcase products, services or ideas with one end goal in mind: sealing the deal.

A successful sales presentation often has key characteristics such as a clear value proposition, strong storytelling, confidence and a compelling call to action. Hence, when presenting to your clients or stakeholders, focus on benefits rather than just features. 

Anticipate and address potential objections before they arise and use storytelling to showcase how your offering solves a specific problem for your audience. Utilizing visual aids is also a great way to make your points stand out and stay memorable.

A sales presentation can be used to promote service offerings, product launches or even consultancy proposals that outline the expertise and industry experience of a business. Here are some template examples you can use for your next sales presentation:

6. Pitch presentation

Pitch presentations are your ticket to garnering the interest and support of potential investors, partners or stakeholders. Think of your pitch deck as your chance to paint a vivid picture of your business idea or proposal and secure the resources you need to bring it to life. 

Business presentations aside, individuals can also create a portfolio presentation to showcase their skills, experience and achievements to potential clients, employers or investors. 

Craft a concise and compelling narrative. Clearly define the problem your idea solves and how it stands out in the market. Anticipate questions and practice your answers. Project confidence and passion for your idea.

7. Motivational or inspirational presentation

Feeling the need for a morale boost? That’s where motivational presentations step in. These talks are designed to uplift and inspire, often featuring personal anecdotes, heartwarming stories and a generous serving of encouragement.

Form a connection with your audience by sharing personal stories that resonate with your message. Use a storytelling style with relatable anecdotes and powerful metaphors to create an emotional connection. Keep the energy high and wrap up your inspirational presentations with a clear call to action.

Inspirational talks and leadership presentations aside, a motivational or inspirational presentation can also be a simple presentation aimed at boosting confidence, a motivational speech focused on embracing change and more.

8. Status or progress report presentation

Projects and businesses are like living organisms, constantly evolving and changing. Status or progress report presentations keep everyone in the loop by providing updates on achievements, challenges and future plans. It’s like a GPS for your team, ensuring everyone stays on track.

Be transparent about achievements, challenges and future plans. Utilize infographics, charts and diagrams to present your data visually and simplify information. By visually representing data, it becomes easier to identify trends, make predictions and strategize based on evidence.

Now that you’ve learned about the different types of presentation methods and how to use them, you’re on the right track to creating a good presentation that can boost your confidence and enhance your presentation skills . 

Selecting the most suitable presentation style is akin to choosing the right outfit for an occasion – it greatly influences how your message is perceived. Here’s a more detailed guide to help you make that crucial decision:

1. Define your objectives

Begin by clarifying your presentation’s goals. Are you aiming to educate, persuade, motivate, train or perhaps sell a concept? Your objectives will guide you to the most suitable presentation type. 

For instance, if you’re aiming to inform, an informative presentation would be a natural fit. On the other hand, a persuasive presentation suits the goal of swaying opinions.

2. Know your audience

Regardless if you’re giving an in-person or a virtual presentation — delve into the characteristics of your audience. Consider factors like their expertise level, familiarity with the topic, interests and expectations. 

If your audience consists of professionals in your field, a more technical presentation might be suitable. However, if your audience is diverse and includes newcomers, an approachable and engaging style might work better.

3. Analyze your content

Reflect on the content you intend to present. Is it data-heavy, rich in personal stories or focused on practical skills? Different presentation styles serve different content types. 

For data-driven content, an informative or instructional presentation might work best. For emotional stories, a motivational presentation could be a compelling choice.

4. Consider time constraints

Evaluate the time you have at your disposal. If your presentation needs to be concise due to time limitations, opt for a presentation style that allows you to convey your key points effectively within the available timeframe. A pitch presentation, for example, often requires delivering impactful information within a short span.

5. Leverage visuals

Visual aids are powerful tools in presentations. Consider whether your content would benefit from visual representation. If your PowerPoint presentations involve step-by-step instructions or demonstrations, a how-to presentation with clear visuals would be advantageous. Conversely, if your content is more conceptual, a motivational presentation could rely more on spoken words.

6. Align with the setting

Take the presentation environment into account. Are you presenting in a formal business setting, a casual workshop or a conference? Your setting can influence the level of formality and interactivity in your presentation. For instance, a demonstration presentation might be ideal for a hands-on workshop, while a persuasive presentation is great for conferences.

7. Gauge audience interaction

Determine the level of audience engagement you want. Interactive presentations work well for training sessions, workshops and small group settings, while informative or persuasive presentations might be more one-sided.

8. Flexibility

Stay open to adjusting your presentation style on the fly. Sometimes, unexpected factors might require a change of presentation style. Be prepared to adjust on the spot if audience engagement or reactions indicate that a different approach would be more effective.

Remember that there is no one-size-fits-all approach, and the best type of presentation may vary depending on the specific situation and your unique communication goals. By carefully considering these factors, you can choose the most effective presentation type to successfully engage and communicate with your audience.

To save time, use a presentation software or check out these presentation design and presentation background guides to create a presentation that stands out.    

What are some effective ways to begin and end a presentation?

Capture your audience’s attention from the start of your presentation by using a surprising statistic, a compelling story or a thought-provoking question related to your topic. 

To conclude your presentation , summarize your main points, reinforce your key message and leave a lasting impression with a powerful call to action or a memorable quote that resonates with your presentation’s theme.

How can I make my presentation more engaging and interactive?

To create an engaging and interactive presentation for your audience, incorporate visual elements such as images, graphs and videos to illustrate your points visually. Share relatable anecdotes or real-life examples to create a connection with your audience. 

You can also integrate interactive elements like live polls, open-ended questions or small group discussions to encourage participation and keep your audience actively engaged throughout your presentation.

Which types of presentations require special markings

Some presentation types require special markings such as how sales presentations require persuasive techniques like emphasizing benefits, addressing objections and using compelling visuals to showcase products or services. 

Demonstrations and how-to presentations on the other hand require clear markings for each step, ensuring the audience can follow along seamlessly. 

That aside, pitch presentations require highlighting unique selling points, market potential and the competitive edge of your idea, making it stand out to potential investors or partners.

Need some inspiration on how to make a presentation that will captivate an audience? Here are 120+ presentation ideas to help you get started. 

Creating a stunning and impactful presentation with Venngage is a breeze. Whether you’re crafting a business pitch, a training presentation or any other type of presentation, follow these five steps to create a professional presentation that stands out:

• Sign up and log in to Venngage to access the editor.
• Choose a presentation template that matches your topic or style.
• Customize content, colors, fonts, and background to personalize your presentation.
• Add images, icons, and charts to enhancevisual style and clarity.
• Save, export, and share your presentation as PDF or PNG files, or use Venngage’s Presentation Mode for online showcasing.

In the realm of presentations, understanding the different types of presentation formats is like having a versatile set of tools that empower you to craft compelling narratives for every occasion.

Remember, the key to a successful presentation lies not only in the content you deliver but also in the way you connect with your audience. Whether you’re informing, persuading or entertaining, tailoring your approach to the specific type of presentation you’re delivering can make all the difference.

Presentations are a powerful tool, and with practice and dedication (and a little help from Venngage), you’ll find yourself becoming a presentation pro in no time. Now, let’s get started and customize your next presentation!

Want to create or adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open publishing practices.

18.3 Keynote Speaking

Learning objectives.

• Understand the purpose of keynote speeches in society.
• Explain the basic objective of an after-dinner speech.
• Describe the purpose and types of motivational speeches.

Acumen_ – Keynote Speech – CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

The last type of entertaining speech we will examine is the keynote speech. A keynote speech is delivered to set the underlying tone and summarize the core message of an event. Keynotes are often given at the end of an event; there can also be a number of keynote speeches delivered throughout a longer event that lasts for several days. People who deliver keynote speeches are typically experts in a given area who are invited to speak at a conference, convention, banquet, meeting, or other kind of event for the purpose of setting a specific tone for the occasion. Some keynote speakers will actually work for a speakers bureau , an agency that represents celebrity and professional speakers. One very important organization for all aspiring keynote speakers is the National Speaker’s Association (NSA, http://www.nsaspeaker.org ). NSA also publishes a widely respected magazine for professional speakers called Speaker magazine, which can be accessed for free from their website ( http://www.nsaspeaker-magazine.org ).

In the world of professional public speaking, there are two common types of keynotes: after-dinner speeches and motivational speeches. Let’s look at each of these unique speeches.

After-Dinner Speaking

After-dinner speaking gets its name from the idea that these speeches historically followed a meal of some kind. After-dinner speakers are generally asked to speak (or hired to speak) because they have the ability both to speak effectively and to make people laugh. First and foremost, after-dinner speeches are speeches and not stand-up comedy routines. All the basic conventions of public speaking previously discussed in this text apply to after-dinner speeches, but the overarching goal of these speeches is to be entertaining and to create an atmosphere of amusement.

After-dinner speaking is probably the hardest type of speaking to do well because it is an entertaining speech that depends on the successful delivery of humor. People train for years to develop comic timing , or the verbal and nonverbal delivery used to enhance the comedic value of a message. But after-dinner speaking is difficult, not impossible. Here is the method we recommend for developing a successful after-dinner speech.

First, use all that you have learned about informative or persuasive speeches to prepare a real informative or persuasive speech roughly two-thirds the length of what the final speech will become. That is, if you’re going to be giving a ten-minute speech, then your “real” informative or persuasive speech should be six or seven minutes in length.

Next, go back through the speech and look for opportunities to insert humorous remarks. Table 18.1 “Forms of Verbal Humor” lists various forms of verbal humor that are often used in the textual portion of a speech.

Table 18.1 Forms of Verbal Humor

Each of these is a possible humor device that could be implemented in a speech. Read the following speech delivered by Mark Twain on his seventieth birthday for a good example of an after-dinner speech ( http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/railton/onstage/70bday.html ).

Once you’ve looked through your speech, examining places for verbal humor, think about any physical humor or props that would enhance your speech. Physical humor is great if you can pull it off without being self-conscious. One of the biggest mistakes any humorist makes is to become too aware of what his or her body is doing because it’s then harder to be free and funny. As for props, after-dinner speakers have been known to use everything from oversize inflatable baseball bats to rubber clown noses. The goal for a funny prop is that it adds to the humor of the speech without distracting from its message.

Last, and probably most important, try the humor out on real, live people. This is important for three reasons.

First, the success of humor depends heavily on delivery, and especially timing in delivery. You will need practice to polish your delivery so that your humor comes across. If you can’t make it through one of your jokes without cracking up, you will need to either incorporate the self-crackup into your delivery or forgo using that joke.

Second, just because you find something unbelievably funny in your head doesn’t mean that it will make anyone else laugh. Often, humor that we have written down on paper just doesn’t translate when orally presented. You may have a humorous story that you love reading on paper, but find that it just seems to drone on once you start telling it out loud. Furthermore, remember there is a difference between written and verbal language, and this also translates to how humor is interpreted.

Third, you need to make sure the humor you choose will be appropriate for a specific audience. What one audience finds funny another may find offensive. Humor is the double-edged sword of public speaking. On one side, it is an amazing and powerful speaking tool, but on the other side, few things will alienate an audience more than offensive humor. If you’re ever uncertain about whether a piece of humor will offend your audience, don’t use it.

The following are some other tips for using humor from people who have professionally given after-dinner speeches and learned the hard way what to do and what to avoid:

• Personalize or localize humor when possible.
• Be clear about which words need emphasis with verbal humor.
• Be sure the punch line is at the end. Don’t let on where the joke is going.
• Don’t announce, “This is funny.” or “I’m not very good at telling jokes, but…”
• Don’t try to use humor that you don’t know well.
• Don’t use humor that you personally don’t find funny.
• Don’t apologize if others don’t laugh.
• Don’t try to explain the humor if it fails—just move on.
• Don’t drag it out! Remember, brevity is the soul of wit.
• Know when to stop joking and be serious.
• Be natural and have fun!

Motivational Speaking

The second common form of keynote speaking is motivational speaking. A motivational speech is designed not only to make an audience experience emotional arousal (fear, sadness, joy, excitement) but also to motivate the audience to do something with that emotional arousal. Whereas a traditional persuasive speech may want listeners to purchase product X or agree with ideology Y, a motivational speech helps to inspire people in a broader fashion, often without a clearly articulated end result in mind. As such, motivational speaking is a highly specialized form of persuasive speaking commonly delivered in schools, businesses, religious, and club or group contexts. The Toastmasters International Guide to Successful Speaking lists four types of motivational speeches: hero, survivor, religious, and success (Slutsky & Aun, 1997).

The hero speech is a motivational speech given by someone who is considered a hero in society (e.g., military speakers, political figures, and professional athletes). Just type “motivational speech” into YouTube and you’ll find many motivational speeches given by individuals who can be considered heroes or role models. The following clip presents a speech by Steve Sax, a former major league baseball player.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4ITFlbcu8g

In this speech, Sax talks about his life as a baseball player, along with issues related to leadership, overcoming obstacles, and motivation.

The survivor speech is a speech given by someone who has survived a personal tragedy or who has faced and overcome serious adversity. In the following clip, cancer survivor Becky M. Olsen discusses her life as a cancer survivor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuo1u_C9_3g

Becky Olsen goes all over the country talking with and motivating cancer survivors to beat the odds.

The religious speech is fairly self-explanatory; it is designed to incorporate religious ideals into a motivational package to inspire an audience into thinking about or changing aspects of their religious lives. One highly sought-after religious speaker in the United States is Joel Osteen, head minister at Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. In this clip, Joel is talking about finding and retaining joy in life.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp8KixxAk60

The crux of Osteen’s speech is learning how to take responsibility of one’s own life and let others take responsibility for their lives.

The final type of motivational speech is the success speech , which is given by someone who has succeeded in some aspect of life and is giving back by telling others how they too can be successful. In the following clip the then CEO of Xerox, Anne Mulcahy, speaks before a group of students at Dartmouth College discussing the spirit of entrepreneurship.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlnLfKWAPnw

In this speech, Mulcahy shares the leadership lessons she had learned as the CEO of Xerox.

Key Takeaways

• Keynote speeches are delivered to set the underlying tone and summarize the core message of an event.
• After-dinner speeches are real informative or persuasive speeches with a secondary objective of making the audience laugh. Effective after-dinner speakers must first know how to effectively write a speech and then find appropriate humor to add to the presentation.
• Motivational speeches are designed not only to make an audience experience emotional arousal (fear, sadness, joy, excitement) but also to ask the audience to do something with that emotional arousal. There are four types of motivational speeches: the hero, the survivor, the religious, and the success.
• Take one of the speeches you’ve delivered in class and think of ways to add humor to it. Ultimately, you’ll turn your original speech in to an after-dinner speech.
• Think about your own life. If you were asked to give a motivational speech, which type of motivational speaker would you be: hero, survivor, religious, or success? What would the specific purpose of your speech be?

Slutsky, J., & Aun, M. (1997). The Toastmasters International® guide to successful speaking: Overcoming your fears, winning over your audience, building your business & career . Chicago, IL: Dearborn Financial Publishing.

Stand up, Speak out Copyright © 2016 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book

How to Give a Persuasive Presentation [+ Examples]

Published: December 29, 2020

A presentation aimed at persuading an audience to take a specific action can be the most difficult type to deliver, even if you’re not shy of public speaking.

Creating a presentation that effectively achieves your objective requires time, lots of practice, and most importantly, a focused message.

With the right approach, you can create a presentation that leaves a skeptical audience enthusiastic to get on board with your project.

In this post, we'll cover the basics of building a persuasive presentation. Let's dive in.

What is a persuasive presentation?

In its most basic form, a persuasive presentation features a speaker who tries to influence an audience to accept certain positions and engage in actions in support of them. A good persuasive presentation uses a mixture of facts, logic, and empathy to help an audience see an issue from a perspective they previously discounted or hadn’t considered.

How to Plan a Persuasive Presentation

Want to make a persuasive presentation that connects with your audience? Follow these steps to win friends and influence people within your audience.

1. Decide on a single ask.

The key to convincing your audience is to first identify the singular point you want to make. A good persuasive presentation will focus on one specific and easy-to-understand proposition. Even if that point is part of a broader initiative, it ideally needs to be presented as something your audience can say "yes" or "no" to easily.

A message that isn’t well-defined or which covers too much can cause the audience to lose interest or reject it outright. A more focused topic can also help your delivery sound more confident, which (for better or worse) is an important factor in convincing people.

2. Focus on fewer (but more relevant ) facts.

Remember: You are (in the vast majority of cases) not the target audience for your presentation. To make your presentation a success, you’ll need to know who your audience is so you can shape your message to resonate with them.

When crafting your messaging, put yourself in your audience's headspace and attempt to deeply understand their position, needs, and concerns. Focus on arguments and facts that speak specifically to your audience's unique position.

As we wrote in our post on How to Present a Compelling Argument When You're Not Naturally Persuasive , "just because a fact technically lends support to your claim doesn't mean it will sway your audience. The best evidence needs to not only support your claim but also have a connection to your audience."

What are the target audience's pain points that you can use to make a connection between their needs and your goals? Focus on those aspects, and cut any excess information. Fewer relevant facts are always more impactful than an abundance of unfocused pieces of evidence.

3. Build a narrative around your evidence.

If you want to persuade someone of something, it’s not enough to win their brain -- you need their heart in it, too. Try to make an emotional connection with your audience throughout your presentation to better sell them on the facts you’re presenting. Your audience is human, after all, so some emotional tug will go a long way to shaking up how they view the issue you’re talking about. A little bit of emotion could be just what your audience needs to make your facts “click.”

The easiest way to incorporate an emotional pull into your presentation is through the use of narrative elements. As we wrote in our guide to crafting pitch decks , "When our brains are given a story instead of a list of information, things change -- big time. Stories engage more parts of our brains, including our sensory cortex, which is responsible for processing visual, auditory, and tactile stimuli. If you want to keep people engaged during a presentation, tell them a story."

4. Confidence matters.

Practice makes perfect (it's a cliche because it's true, sorry!), and this is especially true for presentation delivery. Rehearse your presentation several times before you give it to your audience so you can develop a natural flow and move from each section without stopping.

Remember, you're not giving a speech here, so you don't want your delivery to come across like you're reading fully off of cue cards. Use tools like notes and cue cards as ways to keep you on track, not as scripts.

Finally, if you can, try to practice your presentation in front of another human. Getting a trusted co-worker to give you feedback in advance can help strengthen your delivery and identify areas you might need to change or bulk up.

5. Prepare for common objections.

The last thing you want to say when someone in your audience expresses a concern or an outright objection during your presentation's question section is “umm, let me get back to you on that.”

Carefully research the subject of your presentation to make the best case possible for it -- but also prepare in advance for common objections or questions you know your stakeholders are going to ask. The stronger your command of the facts -- and the more prepared you are to proactively address concerns -- the more convincing your presentation will be. When you appear confident fielding any rebuttals during a question and answer session after your presentation, it can go a long way towards making your case seem more convincing.

Persuasive Presentation Outline

Like any writing project, you’ll want to create an outline for your presentation, which can act as both a prompt and a framework. With an outline, you’ll have an easier time organizing your thoughts and creating the actual content you will present. While you can adjust the outline to your needs, your presentation will most likely follow this basic framework.

I. Introduction

Every persuasive presentation needs an introduction that gets the listener’s attention, identifies a problem, and relates it to them.

• The Hook: Just like a catchy song, your presentation needs a good hook to draw the listener in. Think of an unusual fact, anecdote, or framing that can grab the listener’s attention. Choose something that also establishes your credibility on the issue.
• The Tie: Tie your hook back to your audience to garner buy-in from your audience, as this issue impacts them personally.
• The Thesis: This is where you state the position to which you are trying to persuade your audience and forms the focal point for your presentation.

II. The Body

The body forms the bulk of your presentation and can be roughly divided into two parts. In the first half, you will build your case, and in the second you will address potential rebuttals.

• Your Case: This is where you will present supporting points for your argument and the evidence you’ve gathered through research. This will likely have several different subsections in which you present the relevant evidence for each supporting point.
• Rebuttals: Consider potential rebuttals to your case and address them individually with supporting evidence for your counterarguments.
• Benefits: Outline the benefits of the audience adopting your position. Use smooth, conversational transitions to get to these.
• Drawbacks: Outline what drawbacks of the audience rejecting your position. Be sure to remain conversational and avoid alarmism.

III. Conclusion

In your conclusion, you will wrap up your argument, summarize your key points, and relate them back to the decisions your audience makes.

• Transition: Write a transition that emphasizes the key point you are trying to make.
• Summary: Summarize your arguments, their benefits, and the key pieces of evidence supporting your position.
• Tie-back: Tie back your summary to the actions of your audience and how their decisions will impact the subject of your presentation.
• Final word: Try to end on a last emotional thought that can inspire your audience to adopt your position and act in support of it.

IV. Citations

Include a section at the end of your presentation with citations for your sources. This will make independent fact-checking easier for your audience and will make your overall presentation more persuasive.

Persuasive Presentation Examples

Check out some of these examples of persuasive presentations to get inspiration for your own. Seeing how someone else made their presentation could help you create one that strikes home with your audience. While the structure of your presentation is entirely up to you, here are some outlines that are typically used for different subjects.

Introducing a Concept

One common type of persuasive presentation is one that introduces a new concept to an audience and tries to get them to accept it. This presentation introduces audience members to the dangers of secondhand smoke and encourages them to take steps to avoid it. Persuasive presentations can also be a good format to introduce marco issues, such as this presentation on the benefits of renewable energy .

Changing Personal Habits

Want to change the personal habits of your audience? Check out this presentation on how to adopt healthy eating habits . Or this presentation which encourages the audience to get more exercise in their daily lives.

Making a Commitment to an Action

Is your goal to get your audience to commit to a specific action? This presentation encouraging audience memes to become organ donors could provide inspiration. Trying to make a big sale? Check out this presentation outline that can encourage someone to buy a home .

Remember: You Can Do This

Anyone can craft a persuasive presentation once they know the basic framework for creating one. Once you get the process down, you’ll be in a better position to bring in sales, attract donors or funding, and even advance your career. The skills you learn can also benefit you in other areas of your personal and professional life as you know how to make a case and influence people toward it.

Don't forget to share this post!

Related articles.

How to Create an Infographic in Under an Hour — the 2024 Guide [+ Free Templates]

20 Great Examples of PowerPoint Presentation Design [+ Templates]

How to Write an Ecommerce Business Plan [Examples & Template]

Get Buyers to Do What You Want: The Power of Temptation Bundling in Sales

How to Create an Engaging 5-Minute Presentation

How to Start a Presentation [+ Examples]

17 PowerPoint Presentation Tips to Make More Creative Slideshows [+ Templates]

120 Presentation Topic Ideas Help You Hook Your Audience

How to Create the Best PowerPoint Presentations [Examples & Templates]

The Presenter's Guide to Nailing Your Next PowerPoint

Download ten free PowerPoint templates for a better presentation.

Marketing software that helps you drive revenue, save time and resources, and measure and optimize your investments — all on one easy-to-use platform

Ace the Presentation

The 15 Different Types of Motivational Speakers

If you wonder how many types of motivational speakers are there, you have come to the right place.

In this article, you will be learning about what is a motivational speaker, what they do, and in how many different ways they do it. With bonus tips on how you can become a motivational speaker as well!

Here’s the list of 15 Different Types of Motivational Speakers

• The Corporate Speaker
• The Educational Speaker
• The Entrepreneur Speaker
• The Humorous Speaker
• The Inspirational Speaker
• The Personal Speaker
• The Personal Trainer Speaker
• The Persuasive Speaker 
• The Philanthropist Speaker 
• The Religious / Believer Speaker
• The Self-Helper Speaker
• The Seminar Leader
• The Social Speaker
• The Spiritual Speaker
• The Youth Motivational Speaker

Before we address each motivational speaker type and their particular approaches to inspire and motivate people and topics of expertise, let us define what a Motivational speaker is and what they do.

WHAT IS A MOTIVATIONAL SPEAKER ?

A motivational speaker is someone who passionately inspires people to take action to improve themselves and overcome challenges that they may be facing. So, this can be done by sharing tips and guidelines based on the speaker’s own experience.

This type of public speaker is known as someone who helps people establish goals or realize them by exercising mentally the best way to reach them and sometimes design strategies to make it happen.

HOW can You Become a Motivational Speaker?

If you want to build a career as a motivational speaker, you should first find out what kind of topics you are passionate about, learn all you can about them, become an expert, and then start teaching others.

If the topics you are passionate about are also areas where many people are struggling, then you have found yourself a great theme to become an expert and help people overcome their challenges.

A motivational speaker does not have to be a big influencer, a Youtube sensation, or someone who delivers keynote speeches professionally. It can also be that friend that lifts you when you need it and inspires you with helpful hints on how you could try harder and overcome your challenges.

Related Article: 5 Great Tips on How to Become a Motivational Speaker

8 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO ACE ANY JOB INTERVIEW

The happiness when receiving a call marking the job interview gives rise to endless anxiety. After all, it’s only a few minutes to prove your worth, impress the recruiter and seize the opportunity. However, to do well at the job interview, you need to think about what you will say, how you will present yourself,…

TOP 7 Core Interpersonal Skills in Leadership

At any time, a leader is seen as one who guides one or more people to fulfill something stipulated; today, however, we understand that this journey comprises the achievement of results and the evolution, in some way, of all who participate in the process. Leaders are people with high power to inspire those around them,…

An Easy Guide to All 15 Types of Speech

15 Different Types of Motivational Speakers

A corporate speaker often dwells on ways people can build their own company by adapting a certain kind of posture that requires learning or readapting a sort of behavior.

The public speakers here are often executives or owners of business enterprises.

It is common to hear insights from their personal experiences, from the initial days to rising to the top. The primary purpose is to help people accomplish success in a professional part.

An example of where a corporate speaker briefs is at workshops offering private coaching programs where he gives boosts using practical techniques.

The educational type of speaker commonly pitches about the importance of getting knowledge as a means to succeeding in life.

In this speech, it matters to show the audience that by stimulating their brains with new pieces of information, it can help them in day-to-day life.

One example of an educational speaker is teachers; they usually instruct people to do better in life by bringing new things daily or weekly and appealing to moral behavior.

The entrepreneur speaker shares the struggles he or she might have gone through during his/her life experience before and during the process of accomplishing a goal.

To inspire people not to give up dreams, the speaker shares his hardships, which gives the audience strength and guidelines to establish goals.

The speaker here is generally someone running a business, or a series of startups having a specific power of decision inside the companies he works in.

The humorous speaker is often somebody that tells you realistic or challenging life stories with laughter. If you can help people get better with your involuntary jokes, then this may be the right type for you.

The public speaker here usually does stand-up comedies, podcasts, or even makes the toasts at ceremonial events to emphasize the reality and make people take the best of it.

If you want to follow a humorous public speaking career, you have to be a spontaneous person and know how to make the most even in debasing circumstances.

Some of the World’s best humorist for you know:

• Chris Blackmore
• Andy Buckley
• Christine Cashen

Here the list of the top 10 humor speakers if you are still curious.

The inspirational speaker urges you to believe in yourself, your dreams and come up with meaningful goals to achieve them.

Here the speech is more of an emotional conversation because you are introspecting and analyzing yourself or a problem that you never really paid attention to or tried hard to solve. It triggers an Emotion of wanting to do better, to be better in you.

Inspirational Speakers are generally individuals who have attained success in their areas of expertise or are seen as thought leaders and authorities in their domains.

Generally, you will find Entrepreneurs, Authors, Basketballers, Singers, Actresses, etc., that are real-life examples of having gone through problems but finding ways to not give up on their path in life and succeed.

Some of the world’s best inspirational movies stories:

• Of Mice and Men

Here is a link to movies where you can find inspirational movie stories .

The personal speaker is like an emotional coach who listens and makes thoughtful questions that make you reach the bottom of any issue you may have.

This speaker gives you tips to manage your individual life, whether it is day-to-day life or even some kind of interpersonal relationship that helps you overcome recurrent problems.

This kind of speaker is often somebody with a lot of charisma and empathy towards others.

Personal trainer speakers often live a healthy and active life, so they engage their audience by doing exercises with them and sharing how anyone could do the same.

Personal trainers nowadays spread their messages through social media or in bodybuilding seminars. For them, by working hard and patiently, you can get the body that you want and therefore be a healthier person.

This type of speaker usually helps people dealing with eating disorder issues and self-esteem by making people understand how having the body you want can make you happier and confident in your choices in life. 

• The Persuasive Speaker

The persuasive speaker has his perspective of what can be done better in a particular system. Their goal is to make people agree with his idea/proposition.

If you are looking forward to building a career as a persuasive speaker, you need to be a confident person that has a strong message to change specific realities.

You should consider researching rhetoric if you don’t know how to make convincing arguments or need refreshment training.

Related Article: 8 Awesome Persuasive Speech Techniques & Topics  

• The Philanthropist Speaker

A philanthropist speaker commonly preaches about humanism, the importance of practicing a selfless life, and how you could reach happiness by transcending purchases or being in a relationship.

The public speaker here invites people to see a new perspective of a problem that affects everybody.

Some of the world’s best Philanthropist Speakers and Advocates are:

• Bill and Melinda Gates
• Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan
• George Soros

Here is a link where you can find the top 50 philanthropists if you are curious about it.

The religious speaker usually talks about subjects, such as not losing faith and hope, while briefs about a higher power that puts you through some challenges to learn an important lesson.

It is common to see this type of motivational speech happen in churches or masjids; they tend to deliver the message with the expectation of teaching morals.

Here is a link to a visual example of a religious/ believer speaker if you need.

As the header says, the self-helper is the type of speaker that spreads messages about how to overcome the odds to be successful (whether professionally or in a love life). It can include group sessions where people learn from one another by re-educating harmful customs.

Usually, this type of speaker belongs to the research community, such as neurologists, sociologists, or even physiologists.

A self-help speaker can also be that person who writes about the importance and how you could improve yourself and and better contribute to society daily, and spend time helping people understand and go through depression or bipolar.

Some of the 25 best self-improvement books no matter how old you are:

• Think and Grow Rich
• Mindsight : The New Science of Personal Transformation
• Feeling Good : The New Mood Therapy

Here is the link to the site if you are still curious about them.

The seminar leader speakers are often experts in a social, cultural, or financial field. They are successful in the creation of a brand, or developing interesting research, or simply real experts in a contemporary issue affecting society, and that’s what they’re generally known for.

If you want to be a seminar leader, you have to be sure of yourself to have the confidence to do the marketing and properly present what you are selling.

People who engage with seminar leaders sometimes see what they can do differently in their lives. People who believe in a cause are usually seminar leaders.

Their goal is to make a difference in their community, the entire World, or just in somebody’s life. You can find them in conferences or even annual congresses about a challenging theme.

We have a great example in the TEDx Talks, which is an event that happens in different countries and periods, bringing a multitude of subjects for discussion such as education, science, business and environment. 

These events have been greatly successful because of how the Seminar Leaders or TED talkers share or sell an idea that makes people think or view an issue from a different angle, with the intention of getting those people to go out and change the world.

• The Social Activist Speaker

Social activist speakers usually claim a specific social layer has a growing gap that widens daily.

The social activist speaker tends to be a person, a member, or not of an organization who cares a lot about others’ well-being.

They tend to defend and create social causes to bring consciousness about a group’s problem. This speaker usually engages in lectures to call out the audience to help who is in need.

If you want to be a social speaker, you have to be passionate about others’ concerns and willing to give some practical solutions to their problems.

You can often find this type of public speaker on social activities or volunteer organizations.

Some of the top 10 social activists for your best known:

• Titus Kaphar
• Angela Davis
• Marcus Bullock

Here is a link to the top 10 social activists speakers if you want to take by example.

The spiritual speaker usually spreads the word and shows people the value of healing, giving them some enlightenment to find a life mission.

Suffering here is just a moment; it results from the ego, and happiness comes with the awareness of the present moment, which is your pure essence.

The spiritual speaker teaches people to look at life from different perspectives, more than anything, because of their belief that everybody has a role to accomplish in each other’s life.

Most of them are just ordinary people who grew up among parents who believed in that too, and if you want to be a spiritual speaker, you don’t need to be a physicist or to have learned all about it since childhood.

To build a spiritual speaker career, first of all, you need to be an optimist so you can give people strength, do in-depth research about the spiritual World so you can become an expert, and then teach other people. 

Like that, you will draw some strategies to help people build themselves while understanding the obstacles they have to deal with.

You also need to be an open-minded person since the solutions are quite unconventional in a way that breaks paradigms.

Spiritual Speakers usually attend Satsang, they are the people who can come looking for guidance, so here the struggle is occurring in a way a doctor or a psychologist wouldn’t understand.

Some of the best spiritual leaders in The Western World 2020:

• Joe Dispenza
• Eckhart Tolle

Here is a link to a visual example of some spiritual speakers if you like to see it closely.

As the name says, this type of speech is addressed to young people; otherwise not always delivered by one. 

Youth motivational speakers usually talk about subjects that make teenagers feel insecure and guide them so they can grow to find their way in life.

If you want to build a career as a youth motivational speaker, you should first know which kind of problems young boys and girls are facing nowadays and how they could overcome it.

Reading books about young people who are going against the odds by being successful too early may help you become an expert on this.

Some of the top 10 young speakers trying to change the World:

• Shamma bint Suhail Faris Mazrui
• Malala Yousafzai
• Yara Shahidi

Here is the link if you still want to know who they are.

There are many ways to inspire people, share ideas and motivate others to overcome their challenges, learn and pursue their passions, goals, and ambitions in life.

You don’t have to be an expert in most cases to make a difference, as long as you have the willingness to learn, are passionate about helping others and sharing your learnings or help people self-discover.

So, if you are truly interested in becoming a motivational speaker and helping others, there are 15 ways you can do just that.

As they say:

If there’s a Will, there’s a Way

References and Further Reading

Mckay, B. Consulted in “10 Types of Speeches Every Speechwriter Should Know” , October 14th 2020.

Meier, K (2020). Consulted in Chron Website “Types of Motivational Speakers ” , October 14th 2020.

Similar Posts

The I Have A Dream Speech By Martin Luther King Jr

The “I Have A Dream” speech, which was delivered by Martin Luther King Jr on August 28, 1963, was part of the speeches delivered during the March on Washington to secure the enactment of the Civil Rights Acts in 1964. The Speech, which was a call for freedom and equality, turned out to become one of the defining moments that…

15 Demonstration Speech Ideas and Key Techniques for Your Next​ Speech

If you have ever been called upon to teach an audience with the help of some visual aids, then you have done a demonstrative speech or a demonstration speech. Hopefully, you did a great job. This article aims to show you how to best carry out a demonstrative speech that does what it is meant…

Designing a Killer Presentation in 8 Steps

Planning and performing a presentation that meets expectations and involves the public requires a lot of care. The details involved in holding a talk will be super important to ensure her success and approval from those who participated. Therefore, we have prepared a post with a few crucial steps that you should follow to organize…

Your Mind goes Blank during a presentation – What to do?

Conducting lectures is an excellent achievement for any professional, but certain basic precautions must be taken to avoid turning this opportunity of accomplishment into a nightmare.  One of the most common mistakes is having the famous blank, where the words suddenly run away, and you cannot complete the presentation.   When you make it clear to…

Consultative Speech Style Examples

Are you looking for examples of consultative speech style? Learn how this style can be used to effectively communicate, enhance public speaking and social skills, and assist with career development. In our article we will give contextual illustrations and tips on using this style in conversational situations! Examples of consultative speech include active listening, asking…

Active Listening Skills: Definition, How to Improve Active Listening

Do you remember ever being in a lecture, hearing your teacher explain something about a topic, and yet, feeling like you didn’t take anything from it at the end of the lesson? Or do you remember ever being in conversation with someone and, shortly after, not being able to recall the details of what the…

Blog – Creative Presentations Ideas

infoDiagram visual slide examples, PowerPoint diagrams & icons , PPT tricks & guides

How to Show Motivation in a Presentation [concept visualization]

Last Updated on September 7, 2020 by infodiagram

Do you need to explain the motivation concept? Do you know some interesting ways to capture certain facets of motivation through concept pictures? If you are uncertain, we can help! We gathered visualization ideas on how you can illustrate motivation in your presentation. 

If you want your audience to remember your message, add some motivational eye-catching graphics to make your slides look more persuasive. Let’s begin our digital journey and think about what is usually associated with the motivation concept.

Expressing the motivation concept ideas with outline style symbols

Above we suggest several icon examples from our elegant outline icons collection. In particular, our Outline PowerPoint Icons collection contains reward symbols and personal recognition graphics. Use them to make your presentation more engaged:

• trophy, win cup and medal as a motivating item by rewarding 
• carrot and stick as a metaphor for the use of a combination of reward and punishment
• ladder icon showing personal development e.g. getting to a higher position 
• hand with reward star highlighting personal recognition
• hands icon holding the diamond and win cup as helpful motivation tools by rewarding 

Design-neutral motivation concept graphics

Below there are icon examples from our style neutral flat icons collection. It features a variety of different approaches to representing motivation. Win cups, award stars, and diamond symbols often associated with motivation concepts.

• recognition symbols as stars and win cup
• male/female figure presenting a motivational speech
• a person with arrow icon illustrated a motivated person with rising morale

Unique hand-drawn motivation icons collection

If you want to be more creative and personal, use hand-drawn symbols for showing the executive summary ideas. The scribbled diamond or star icon, as well as the finish line, is perfect for showing the concept of motivation in your PPT. See the specific visuals below:

• star and diamond images as increasing motivation for the rewards and successes 
• money and dollar icons encouraging material motivation to win
• finish line as completion of the task or project 
• male/female figure holding an award star and present as a good motivation to succeed 

We hope you find some inspiration from those icon ideas to express the concept of motivation!

If you like the suggested icons, you can get them from infoDiagram library. The best way to get them is by  joining subscription access to PPT graphics here . It will allow you to download these symbols, and graphics from any presentation deck you find on the website.

More concept icons ideas

Need to show another concept in a presentation? Change, Engagement, Equality, Status you name it. Check our blog  Ultimate List of Business Concepts Visualization  to get inspired.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• We're Hiring!
• Help Center

Introduction to Motivation Presentation

In 1903 Pavlov Conducted experiment of training dogs to respond to stimuli. He would ring a bell each time he gave the dogs food. After repeating this several times he discovered that the dogs began to associate food with the bell and would begin salivating even when the bell was rang without any food. In essence Pavlov was training the dogs using the Motivation of food. This is the basis of all human and animal learning and is the foundation of all motivational theories Motivation is a leaned behavior that is reinforced by physiological and physiological reward based systems that are both natural and artificial. This introduction to Motivation Presentation will focus on the popular theories of Motivation and their roles in controlling modern human behavior.

Related Papers

Journal of Physical Fitness, Medicine & Treatment in Sports

International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences

Peter Gollwitzer

International conference KNOWLEDGE-BASED ORGANIZATION

Grigor Grigorov

This report examines the evolution and nature of the concept of motivation. It performs a theoretical analysis of the definitions of motivation and attempts to give a scientific definition of the phenomenon of motivation for practising the military profession. The results of the analysis will enable commanders to understand more clearly military motivation in order to effectively manage their subordinates.

Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior

Germán Gutiérrez

Motivation is a construct that refers to the underlying causes of behavior. These causes have been analyzed as mechanisms that explain how behavior is controlled and changes, and the survival and reproductive advantages of behavior. Motivation is often understood as a state that controls behavior. It is temporary and may be variable and reversible. This is one of the central aspects of the construct, as it accounts for the immense variation there is in the direction and scale level in all the different dimensions of behavior among individuals. Niko Tinbergen (1963) proposed four questions to address the causes of behavior at these two levels: proximate and ultimate. These questions refer to mechanistic, developmental, functional , and phylogenetic causes and continue to be a useful guide in understanding the different types of factors that explain behavior. Much of psychology literature has centered on proximate causes of behavior, describing in great detail physiological, developmental, cognitive, and social phenomena, associated with motivation. Psychology and other social sciences have placed a great emphasis on how changes in the environment affect our behavior, and how behavior changes over the lifespan of individuals, leaving the study of ultimate causes of behavior mostly unexplored. Similarly, evolutionary theo-rists emphasize ultimate causes and often ignore proximate causes of behavior that explain mechanisms common to different species. An approach integrating proximate and ultimate causes is very important for a clear and complete understanding of behavior (Wong 2000). An integrative, as opposed to a reductionist approach is more likely to cross-fertilize any discipline in this time of high specialization. Motivation is inferred from behavior as it cannot be directly observed. This means that different measures may be used as indicators of motivation. For example, choice, magnitude, latency, frequency , and duration of response are all measures that have been used to determine the level of motivation of an individual. No single unit of behavior can be used as a general measure of motivation, as the response quality and structure (i.e., sequence and topography) may vary across different behavioral systems. Motivational systems can be regulatory or non-regulatory. Regulatory systems are based on homeostatic mechanisms and usually control life processes such as feeding, thirst, and temperature regulation. Most of the literature on motivational factors of behavior has mainly considered the feeding system. As feeding is a regulatory system,

Motivation and Self Fulfillment

Verl Anderson

Frontiers in Psychology

Sung-il Kim

A Paper Presented to Rev. Dr. Peter D. Korosi Jos ECWA Theological Seminary

Ibrahim Sulai Abba

The Cambridge Handbook of Motivation and Learning

Patrick Anselme

Gregory Boyle

Naume Maveneke

RELATED PAPERS

Max Bandeira

Texas Heart Institute …

Ramazan Akdemir

Rev. Soc. Ven. …

hector cantele

Journal of Personalized Medicine

Raksha Jain

Meta Pratama

LOYALITAS, Jurnal Pengabdian Kepada Masyarakat

Nur Jauhariyah

Nature Cardiovascular Research

Dario Sirabella

Food Frontiers

William Amakye

Turkish Journal of Agriculture - Food Science and Technology

Abudu Ballu Duwiejuah

Annals of Surgery

Yogesh Vashist

Revista Investigações

Bruna Maria Santos

International Journal of Mycobacteriology

Ahmet Sunter

Geosciences Journal

Sagar Singh

Contaduría y Administración

JUAN NICOLAS VARGAS FIERRO

Asian Review of Accounting

Robert Armstrong

Wesley Piante Chotolli

Rita Magdalena

Alvaro Marino Camargo

Markus Costabiei

Mitteilungen der Deutschen Mathematiker-Vereinigung

Günter Aumann

Cadernos de Tradução

Kathelen Dutra Goes

American Journal of Roentgenology

Jenny Bencardino

Cancer Nursing Practice

See More Documents Like This

RELATED TOPICS

•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024