Randy Pausch Last Lecture 5 Key Points

Randy Pausch in his last lecture taught 5 techniques. Introduce the elephant in the room, define the scope, conclude strong, show enthusiasm, immerse yourself, and get personal.

First, randy introduces the elephant in the room by spending a minute discussing his pancreatic cancer. If he had not opened this way, the audience would have been distracted for the entire lecture. This way by introducing the elephant everyone can focus on what is ahead.

Second, he proceeds to define the scope of his lecture. He outlines what he will talk about and, more importantly, what he will not talk about. This allows the audience to be at the same starting point and in the right frame of mind as you.

Third, randy concludes strong by recapping everything he has talked about. He reaches back to one of the concepts introduced earlier — the head fake — and reveals that his entire speech has been a pair of head fake. It forces the audience to think back into the lecture and replay it in their minds. Concluding strong leaves them thinking.

Through his lecture Randy has shown much enthusiasm and immersed himself through wearing goofy hats doing pushups, and many other things. These things allow the audience to relax and become interested. You want your audience to have fun.

Finally, get personal by showing your personal life and side it allows the reader to see that you are real. It gives them a chance to connect with you.