1. “The Happy Secret to Better Work”
with Shawn Anchor
by: Roland Athouris III

2. Shawn Anchor
! Author of the international
best seller “The Happiness
Advantage”
! Founder of Good Think Inc.
! Harvard University
Psychology Graduate
! Professor of “Positive
Psychology” and “Intro
Economics” at Harvard
University.

3. In this Ted Talk:
Shawn discussed the secret to more efficient work. He believes
that happiness is the key to better work. Instead of working hard for
success and then trying to obtain happiness.

4. ! To capture the attention of the
audience Shawn started off by
telling a story about his
childhood. He explained how
one day he was playing war with
his sister, and she fell off the
bunk bed on all fours. He
mentioned how he managed to
sway her decision to cry and tell
mom by telling her what she
wanted to hear. Which was she
looked like a unicorn.
! He managed to keep his
audience intrigued by adding
jokes and keep them laughing.
Therefore it wouldn’t be boring
and the audience wont fall
asleep.

5. Dynamism Rating 5/5
I feel Shawn did a very good job by being dynamic and Positive in attitude.
Throughout his whole lecture he was smiling, cracking jokes, interacting with the crowd.
He maintained a professional speech and used a well put together slideshow to help
prove his point. Other than that I really couldn't find a way to increase his dynamism.

6. Shawn used a couple tips from Garr Reynolds. For example,
he knew what type of audience he was up against so he customized his
material to fit their entertainment. Also he added humor to his slides
which is another tip from Garr.

7. On the other hand Shawn followed just about every tip from
Nancy Duarte. He opened up his presentation with a story about his
child hood. He made sure his thesis and his whole presentation was
structured and contrasting. And last but not least, he finished
powerfully.

8. Since watching Shawn
Anchor present, I feel I’ve
learned a lot about presenting
and public speaking. For
instance, keep the audience
entertained and never try to bore
them. Keep a positive attitude by
smiling, joking, and even ask a
question or 2 the audience.

9. Comparisons
Shawn Anchor and Ken
Robinson have many presenting
qualities that are similar. For example,
they both keep the audience
entertained. Ken starts out by making
jokes and telling stories and so does
Anchor. They both also followed Nancy
and Garr’s Tips and delivered very
successful presentations. Also Both Ken
and Shawn use personal experiences
and the experiences of others to get
their points across. They both used
close family members and an
occasional friend.

10. Contrasts
Although Ken and Shawn
had many similarities, they had
differences as well. For instance,
Shawn used a slide show but Ken
didn’t. Also Ken had his ted talk
converted into the whiteboard
darwings, and also used way more
jokes and seemed more serious in
his approach. Shawn seemed like
the jokester by keeping a smile on,
and having a fast pace to his
presentation.

11. In Conclusion, my tips to students for public speaking is to stay
positive and try to speak clearly. Have a well thought out and planned
presentation to deliver and try to make the audience for get they’re learning
something important by making them laugh and entertaining them. Use funny
stories, pictures, or just anything you can think of just to make your
presentation one ok a kind.