Since 1988, Nancy Duarte's award-winning firm has created over a quarter of a million presentations that have shaped the perception of the world's leading brands and thought leaders. Duarte Design is one of the largest design firms and woman-owned businesses in Silicon Valley, and its clients include: Adobe, Cisco, Citrix, Food Network, Facebook, GE, Google, Al Gore, HP, Kaiser Permanente, McAfee, Microsoft, Nokia, Qualcomm, TED, and Twitter.

• Foreword Dan Post xviIntroduction xviii1 Why Resonate? 1Persuasion Is Powerful 2Resonance Causes Change 4Change Is Healthy 6Presentations Are Boring 8The Bland Leading the Bland 10People Are Interesting 12Facts Alone Fall Short 14Stories Convey Meaning 16You Are Not the Hero 18The Audience Is the Hero 20Resonance Rule #1 232 Lessons From Myths and Movies 25Incorporate Story 26Drama Is Everything 28Story Templates Create Structure 30The Hero’s Journey Structure 32Crossing the Threshold 34The Contour of Communication 36The Beginning and Call to Adventure 38The Middle: Contrast 40Call to Action 42The End 44What Is a Sparkline? 46Case Study: Benjamin Zander 48Zander’s Sparkline 50Resonance Rule #2 533 Get To Know The Hero 55How Do You Resonate with These Folks? 56Segment the Audience 58Case Study: Ronald Reagan 60Meet the Hero 64Meet the Mentor 66Create Common Ground 68Communicate from the Overlap 70Resonance Rule #3 734 Define The Journey 75Preparing for the Audience’s Journey 76The Big Idea 78Plan the Audience’s Journey 80Tools for Mapping a Journey 82Acknowledge the Risk 84Address Resistance 86Make the Reward Worth It 88Case Study: General Electric 90Resonance Rule #4 955 Create Meaningful Content 97Everything and the Kitchen Sink 98More Than Just Facts 100Don’t Be So Cerebral 103Contrast Creates Contour 104Transform Ideas Into Meaning 107Recall Stories 108Turn Information Into Stories 110Case Study: Cisco Systems 112Move from Data to Meaning 117Murder Your Darlings 118From Ideas to Messages 120Resonance Rule #5 1236 Structure Reveals Insights 125Establish Structure 126Make Sense 128Case Study: Richard Feynman 130Feynman’s Sparkline 132Order Messages for Impact 134Create Emotional Contrast 136Contrast the Delivery 138Putting Your Story on the Silver Screen 140Process Recap 142Resonance Rule #6 1457 Deliver Something They’ll Always Remember 147Create a S.T.A.R. Moment 148Case Study: Michael Pollan 151Repeatable Sound Bites 152Evocative Visuals 154Case Study: Pastor John Ortberg 156Ortberg’s Sparkline 158Case Study: Rauch Foundation 160Case Study: Steve Jobs 163Jobs’s Sparkline 164Resonance Rule #7 1678 There’s Always Room To Improve 169Amplify the Signal, Minimize the Noise 170Give a Positive First Impression 172Hop Down from Your Tower 174Value Brevity 176Wean Yourself from the Slides 178Balance Emotion 180Host a Screening with Honest Critics 182Case Study: Markus Covert, PhD 184Case Study: Leonard Bernstein 187Resonance Rule #8 1919 Change Your World 193Changing the World Is Hard 194Use Presentations to Help Change the World 196Don’t Use Presentations for Evil 199Enron’s Presentations During Implosion 200Gain Competitive Advantage 202Case Study: Martin Luther King Jr. 204King’s Sparkline 206Case Study: Martha Graham 210Be Transparent So People See Your Idea 214You Can Transform Your World 216Inspiration Is Everywhere 221Case Study: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart 222Sonata Sparkline 224Case Study: Alfred Hitchcock 226Case Study: E. E. Cummings 228Resonance Rule #9 233References 234Picture Credits 237Index 239Special Thanks 248

"... a lavish, coffee table-style book... packed with useful and adaptable techniques for improving your presentations." (Resonate)