How to Plan a Presentation: The Simple Workflow That Will Change Everything (Part 1)

2025-09-25

If you’ve ever found yourself procrastinating until the night before a big presentation, frantically cramming slides together, and then white-knuckling your way through the delivery…you’re not alone. The truth is, most of us were taught (or fell into) a broken workflow for preparing talks. We procrastinate, panic, recycle old decks, and overload our audiences with information. No wonder presenting feels stressful — and no wonder audiences struggle to stay engaged. But here’s the good news: great communication isn’t about innate tale...

The truth is, most of us were taught (or fell into) a broken workflow for preparing talks. We procrastinate, panic, recycle old decks, and overload our audiences with information. No wonder presenting feels stressful — and no wonder audiences struggle to stay engaged.

But here’s the good news: great communication isn’t about innate talent. It’s about having the right workflow.

In this week’s episode of 20 Minutes with Bronwyn, I share the first three steps of a system I’ve honed over 20 years coaching leaders at NVIDIA, Zoom, LinkedIn, Cisco, Stanford, Pixar, and more. I’ve also used this exact approach to help more than 140 people give TED, TEDx, and TEDGlobal talks that change the way audiences see the world.

Here’s what you’ll learn in Part 1:

Why procrastination + panic is its own (terrible) workflow
How today’s shrinking attention spans demand a new way of preparing
Step 1: The Logistics Check — the baseline questions that save you from nasty surprises. And here’s a PDF of that checklist handy and printable.
Step 2: Audience Empathy — the mindset shift that changes everything about how your message lands.
Step 3: The Sandbox — a game-changing way to collect ideas, inspiration, and data so your subconscious can work with you instead of against you.

This is the foundation for upgrading how you show up as a communicator. Whether you’re presenting to your team, pitching an idea, or stepping onto a big stage, these simple shifts will make the process less stressful — and your talks infinitely more powerful.

Need a quick breakdown of the episode? Here ya go …

00:00 Introduction to 20 Minutes with Bronwyn

01:23 Debunking the Myth of Innate Talent in Communication

03:20 The Old Workflow: Why It Fails

04:41 Introducing the my 24k Workflow

05:23 Step One: The Logistics Check

12:05 Step Two: Audience Empathy

17:23 Step Three: Creating a Sandbox

21:05 Conclusion and Next Steps

And stay tuned — in Part 2, I’ll show you how to move from a pile of ideas to a structured, compelling presentation that actually lands.

Shine on. We need your light!
Bronwyn

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