Presentation Thinking™

Originally built as the GhostRanch company retreat, Story Camp has been brewing for a few years. It’s a concentrated three day series where the company gets to focus, relax and level up on presentation skills. This summer was different - we set our sights to invite clients and the public to join in on what we feel is a secret formula for blending professional presentation development and inner child camp joy. With the help of some stellar keynote speakers—Social Psychologist Amy Cuddy, Data Expert Steven Franconeri and former speechwriter for President Obama, Terry Szuplat—Story Camp achieved that rare event magic where everyone felt like friends by closing time. The architects behind this, of course, were Founder and CEO Mikey Mioduski and Executive Creative Director Allie Wilson. They both join this episode to talk about what went into the planning process, building the “Story, Screen and Stage” conference structure and how it felt hiking with our keynoters in beautiful Park City. This is an episode for: the team planning a big event, professionals looking for their next conference and anyone with summer camp nostalgia. What’s in the Spice Cabinet?? Follow Story Camp to stay in the loop for next year’s retreat! StoryCamp.comLinkedInGet inspired by the Story Camp 2025 KeynotersAmy CuddyTerry SzuplatDr. Steven FranconeriMontana von FlissNeed an amazing AV crew for your next event? AVAD3

Dr. Christopher Cummings may have started his career in the classroom but he would eventually find himself in the “COVID-19 war room” during the global pandemic in 2020.A high stakes job you may never have considered, Chris is a behavioral theorist and Research Social Scientist. He’s in the business of understanding—scientifically and psychologically—how we perceive risk. How do you convey complex concepts in sometimes scary times? How do you act swiftly while information is rapidly changing? Many of Chris’ answers share core concepts with the B2B world.After watching Chris’s 2017 TED Talk, The Dark Magic of Communication (and talking about it in our subsequent episode #167), Mikey and Molly knew they had to get Chris on the ‘cast to confirm what they already suspected—Chris is the most interesting man in communications.Together, we dig into Chris’s unique journey, navigating international comms on emergency vaccine research, presentation skills, his TED Talk experience, mold spores and more.This is an episode for: speakers with high stakes presentations, anyone interested in social science and everyone still processing their pandemic lockdown.What's in the Spice Cabinet? Tune into Chris’s 2017 TED Talk:The Dark Magic of Communication: How we manipulate othersMikey and Molly talk about this pre COVID prophetic TED Talk in Episode #167 of Presentation ThinkingFavorite speakers you’ve admired that led you to your communications journey? “ When I was a young child like 7, 8, 9, 10 years old, my parents had gotten me a set of audio cassettes. And I would fall asleep every night listening on my little boombox, you know, in the late 80s to the classic golden age of radio.And so these were pre television comedy shows. Jack Betty, George Burns, Gracie Allen, Amos ‘n’ Andy, Abbott and Costello.  So they had incredible uses of voice because they had to, right? It’s radio. And so, you know, they, brought in props and made sounds that emulated like they were on a street corner in New York, yet they're in, you know, a phone booth sized, you know, recording studio. And I fell in love with language and communication at that age.” Other comedy shoutoutsRodney DangerfieldRichard PryorIn the science worldDavid Attenborough In the political worldFormer President ObamaBook reccos? Persuasion, Social influence and Compliance gaining - John Seiter, Robert GassInfluence: Science and Practice - Robert CialdiniNudge - Richard Thaler & Cass SunsteinRumors: Uses, Interpretations and Images - Jean-Noel KapfererDream presentation venue?Maybe a major American monument like the Lincoln Memorial Walkout song? MGMT - Electric FeelJack Johnson - Inaudible MelodiesWhere to find and follow Dr. Christopher?LinkedIn!PowerPoint? Google Slides? Canva?“To me, they’re all poison.”

Dr. Steven Franconeri is a leading speaker and teacher on data storytelling, a professor at Northwestern University and the Founder of Becise - a platform helping people transform their data into compelling narratives. (Steven ALSO just so happens to be one of our guest speakers of our first-ever Story Camp—an annual presentation thinking skills summit that you should definitely check out next year.) Steven joins the pod to discuss why we should take PowerPoint more seriously, his consulting experience, how decks differ dependent on audiences and how to avoid the curse of expertise in data storytelling. With his professorial experience and research, Steven has seen validation after validation wherein data and debate presented with stories always resonate better than those without. This is an episode for: data viz nerds, the family “debater” and storytellers of all kinds.What’s in the Spice Cabinet? Where to find Steven and his work: LinkedInFollow BeciseCheck out his newest creation, Point Taken Game—A writing-based conversation game that turns heated topics into moments of reflection, connection, and claritySteven’s walkout song? “Something electronic and melodic like house or funk”Parting shots for Presentation Nation?“Beware the ‘curse of expertise.’ …We're all overconfident, we're all seeing the world through a certain perspective, and if you haven't gotten that perspective sharpened by having other people argue with you. And if you haven't had your presentation vetted by others to make sure that it makes sense to them—be uncomfortable.”

Jimi Gibson is the VP of brand communication at Thrive Internet Marketing Agency, TEDx speaker and also, a magician (amazing combo, right?).After starting a career in magic as a young kid receiving Merlin’s Mail-Order Magic, Jimi was introduced to marketing through an advertising agency. He realized the structure of a magic trick is not unlike a successful marketing message and Voila—his Magic Script framework was born. Molly and Jimi sit down to discuss his journey through magic, marketing, brand storytelling, preparing and presenting a TEDx talk and how to be a more confident speaker. And of course, there is a magic trick!! (Tune in at minute 13:45). This is an episode for: marketers of all kinds, anyone in brand comms and magic enthusiasts (or skeptics).Fave speakers, marketers or magicians that Jimi is inspired by?Kevin Brown “Apple Pancakes” (talk)Unleashing Your Hero (book)David CopperfieldBooks and resources for presenting and storytelling?Matthew Dicks - won many Moth Grand SlamsStoryworthyTED Talks by Chris Anderson Watch Jimi’s TEDx TalkYou Have Magic Power - Use it for goodFavorite childhood books?Dr. DolittlePeter PanIdeal venue and walkout song?Venue: A classic Vaudeville theaterSong: Yello - Oh YeahWhere to find and follow JimiThrive Internet Marketing AgencyLinkedIn

If you’ve ever had to stare at a data set and wonder how to make meaning of it, this is for you. Ben Wellington is a teacher, researcher and the creator of a little blog called “I Quant NY”. With the release of NYC Open Data, there were hundreds of data sets newly available to the public for anyone to view and use. To learn data mapping tools and combine his interest in urban planning, Ben started mapping quintessential Big Apple experiences like parking tickets, bike accidents and where New Yorkers hail cabs. In his TED Talk, Making data mean more through storytelling, Ben interrogated what it was about his data “stories” that caught the attention of publications as well as the Metro Transit Authority. His conclusion? Not unlike his passion for improv—good storytelling. Though this TED talk is a decade old, building a good data story takes the same elements today. The tools may look different but relating to people, keeping it simple and making an impact are still part of the data viz picture.This is an episode for: Data viz nerds, people that hate data but have to work with it and New Yorkers. What’s in the Spice Cabinet? Watch the TED Talk for yourselfMaking data mean more through storytellingCreate your own NYC data story! NYC open data - there’s even a Central Park squirrel censusWhere to find more of Ben’s workLinkedInI Quant NY (blog)Dream Venue? Molly says Times Square (probably not though lol)Walkout song?Empire State of Mind - JAY-Z ft. Alicia Keys(Theme from) New York, New York - Frank Sinatra

You’re Invited…to Presentation Party Time! Presentation Party Time is a deep-dive type episode dedicated to a specific project so that we can understand the inception, development and execution of the presentation process. For this episode, it’s a sales deck GhostRanch worked on with Scott Hull + Associates—an artist agency helping get creatives hired. And in an age of GenAI, this is a super interesting and complex space to tell a story.Scott joins Mikey, along with copywriter Colin Dullaghan who worked on the story, to discuss the skeleton, the story mining and the creation of the deck’s look and feel (with the help of talented illustrator, Penelope Dullaghan).AI is here to stay but does generic art kill brand credibility? What’s unique about human storytelling and how we can work with AI as creatives?This is an episode for: creatives, storytellers and anyone that builds decks with (or without) AI.What’s in the Spice Cabinet? Learn more about Scott’s work on his siteScottHull.comTeam PowerPoint or Google Slides?Scott - I would say PowerPoint but it’s dependant on who I have supporting meColin - PowerPointWalkout songs? Scott - Blow Wind Blow by Jimmy Rogers or Jump Into the Fire by Harry NilssonColin - Minor Swing by Django Reinhardt

Mikey’s Resource Roundup: AI for presentations, Better comms for managers & a Brad Pitt throwback.In this short n sweet episode, Mikey clues us in to the Presentation Thinking beat with an article he just read, a course he just took and—naturally—one of his favorite movie clips of all time.This is a Spice Cabinet-esque episode that’s chock-full of goodies on how AI can best help to create powerful presentations, professional education greatness from West Kao and a throwback movie clip on the importance of the process via 1992’s favorite Brad Pitt film, A River Runs Through It. “In order to be clear in our communication or clear in our writing, you must be clear in your thinking.” —Wes KaoThis is an episode for: anyone that designs presentations, folks looking to integrate AI, managers looking to improve comms and 90s films fans.   What’s in the Spice Cabinet?Article by Nancy DuarteWhat GenAI Tools Can and Can’t Do for Presentations Follow Nancy Duarte for moreCourse that I just tookWes Kao’s Executive Communication and Influence for Senior ICs and ManagersCheck out more of Wes Kao’s work here One of Mikey’s favorite movie clipsA River Runs Through It (1992)You know the scene where Norman gets his paper edited further and further down to a quarter of its original length by his dad? Mikey says: “ To me, it highlights that importance of process and skill and craft and brevity, you know, and clarity. This stuff doesn't just happen.” Want to improve your storytelling skills on a holistic level? Join us at Story Camp July 23-24 in Park City, Utah!

Hayley Langsdorf is an artist that uses Sharpies to illustrate big ideas from board rooms and beyond. She is a self-described “live scribe” for events, meetings and conferences. Hayley’s 2019 TED Talk, “Drawing out our collective intelligence", draws out—literally—the power of the pen. As humans, we’re all moved by story; and when visuals are added, it’s extra memorable. Even simple figures and shapes—doodles during meetings to help illustrate what was talked about can create a more powerful record than a list of bullets. Hayley’s talk reminds us that simple visual storytelling can help support day-to-day communications. She argues that drawing out ideas to get on the same page could help reduce over-used jargon, excess emails and even combat stifling office environments. Business communicators, consider this your cue to get the colored pack of Sharpies. This is an episode for: doodlers, communicators of all kinds and self described “non creatives”. What’s in the Spice Cabinet? Watch Hayley’s talk for yourself:“Drawing Out Our Collective Intelligence”Find more of Hayley’s workThoughts Drawn OutLinkedInThis TED talk reminded us of…The “Marketoonist” extraordinaire, Tom Fishburne - author of Your Ad Ignored Here Tim Pollard’s work- author of The Compelling CommunicatorWes Kao’s work on keeping people engaged Hayley’s dream talk (according to us)Venue? - Something hosted by Bic or Micron or Sharpie?? Walkout song? Beautiful World by Colin Hay

If you are interested in presentation design, you might already know Mike Parkinson—founder of Billion Dollar Graphics, speaker, trainer and self-described “visualization and graphics geek”. Mike joins Mikey to chat about how he got into such a niche business, his “M&M” approach, visual storytelling through data and, of course, how AI is shaping the design landscape. In Mike’s realization that AI isn’t going anywhere and his feeling that designers should embrace that fact, he’s developed 3 truths around this:Designers or creatives who embrace AI will thrive AI might always be part of the process—but it won’t be the productAs designers, we want to be able to learn to use the right tool the right way. Use your tools accordingly! This is an episode for: designers of all kinds, data viz nerds and anyone curious how to work with AI, rather than against it. What’s in the Spice Cabinet? Where to find Mike’s work:Billion Dollar GraphicsFollow Mike on LinkedInHe may or may not be working on a new book…stay tuned! Rapid fire round:Google Slides or PowerPoint: [no hesitation] PowerPoint!!! Fave color? Blue - apparently the most universally appealing colorDream presentation place? Croatia Go-to walkout song?Titanium - David Guetta, Sia

After exploring WHAT Visual Storytelling is with Creative Director Allie Wilson in Episode #166, we thought it’d be useful to establish exactly HOW to achieve successful Visual Storytelling. What are the “rules” to implement in each of your slides?In this episode, Molly sources data directly from presentation designers of GhostRanch to inform several clear “rules” for visual storytelling—keeping ONE idea per slide, establishing a clear hierarchy of information, being intentional with content and keeping your style consistent. While these may seem like simple concepts, breaking out of the typical Header + Bullets style can go a long way.In our continuous journey for Presentation Excellence, we talk about avoiding the dreaded “Death by PowerPoint” a lot. By establishing these clear parameters, Molly also gives context and a 2025 update to that constant corporate phrase.This is an episode for: non-designers, visual storytellers and anyone that creates presentations. What’s in the Spice Cabinet? Watch David JP Phillips’ OG TED Talk:“How to avoid death by PowerPoint”Listen to Mikey and Molly discuss it in Episode #67Want to dig into DEFINING what Visual Storytelling is? Queue up Episode #166 with Creative Director Allie WilsonNeed help establishing the type of slide you’re working with to get started?Prezent has a great blog - “10 powerful visual storytelling examples for successful presentations”Want to improve your storytelling skills on a holistic level? Join us at Story Camp July 23-24 in Park City, Utah!

We finally got around to talking about who some refer to as the “father of storytelling”—and the 3 Act Structure—the one and only Aristotle.In this “Book Club”-esque episode, Mikey and Molly read “Poetics”—an exploration of genre and the elements that make a great story all that it is. Film buffs and students of storytelling have been examining it for years and we’re here to make our own Presentation Thinking connections. From the “tragic beats” in a plot, to character arc, to the “cherry on top” that is song and spectacle—Aristotle’s early mappings of storytelling still resonate strongly today.This is an episode for: film buffs, story nerds and Aristotle fan-girls.What's in the Spice Cabinet?Read Aristotle's “Poetics” for yourself. Note that quotes and experience will vary slightly depending on the translation you read Buy the book (from a local bookstore!)Read it onlineSome helpful extras summarizing “Poetics”Ask Literature (YouTube)StudioBinder - tons of film references! (YouTube)Study.com SummaryScreencraft (Blog)How did we get into this again?Aristotle’s rules of storytelling come highly recommended by award-winning writer Aaron Sorkin his MasterclassWant to improve your storytelling skills? Join us at Story Camp July 23-24 in Park City, Utah!Aristotle’s walkout song?Molly says that country music is full of good storytelling so—Goodbye Earl by The Chicks 

Social scientist Christopher Cummings takes the TED stage with his talk “The dark magic of communication: how we manipulate others” to show us that communication is like magic—and magic can be used for good or evil. (Dun dun dunnnnnn!)What kind of “dark magic” could we be talking about? As a social scientist and health/risk communicator, part of Christopher’s job is assessing risk and just how dangerous or risky something actually is. We all know there’s a difference between perceived risk and actual risk but how does that get determined? Christopher walks us through synesthetic ideation, the risk algorithm, how ‘affect’ and ‘fear’ both play a role in communicating risk and why it’s important to be critical of headlines and overly hyped media.Mikey and Molly have seen their fair share of neuroscience-backed communication TED Talks but this was a fun (and important) new spin. This is an episode for: neuroscience nerds (Christopher makes it digestible!!), journalists and communicators or presenters that relay important or sensitive information. What’s in the Spice Cabinet? Watch Christopher Cummings’ 2017 TED TalkThe Dark Magic of Communication: how we manipulate othersWho did Christopher remind us of?“Pete” from Hulu’s The Bear - played by Chris Witaske(What we think) Christopher’s walkout song is? Evil Woman - ELOHave a fave TED Talk we haven’t talked about yet? Send it our way!molly@ghostranch.com

B2B folks everywhere:You’ve probably heard of “visual storytelling” and how important it can be for your brand and for your presentations. However, like many a buzzword, we’ve seen the phrase thrown around so much, we fear its true meaning is often confused with a focus on style, rather than substance. Visual storytelling goes beyond decoration, embellishment and off-brand AI imagery. True visual storytelling helps marketers achieve clarity in their communications—it helps to bring the core of our messages to life with meaning and memorability.To join us in this Visual Storytelling deep dive, we invited Creative Director of GhostRanch Communications, Allie Wilson, to unpack its definition, how it works, why it matters now and the immense value of investing in it at all.Because Allie presented on the same subject at the PMA Summit in NYC in March, we also get into her own Visual Storytelling methods, design red flags and how she put together her presentation.This is an episode for: brand strategists, graphic designers and anyone that has to put together presentations.

experience of all varieties (we’re talking Oracle, Q2 and more). The throughline of her work? Communication is everything—and she joins the pod to share her perspective on how these soft skills (like presentations!) have evolved and shifted with the growth of product management in general. From establishing clear and consistent messaging to selling a vision, April doles out many a word of wisdom. (Ahem, expert alert!!) This is an episode for: product marketers, managers, presenters & communication nerds. What's in the Spice Cabinet?Find April and connect! On LinkedIn! Via the Women in Product GroupPowerPoint or Google Slides?PowerPointProduct Marketing leader to learn from?Marty Cagan of the Silicon Valley Product Group - “he’s kinda like the Godfather of product”Check out his books and more hereApril’s walkout song? Welcome to the Jungle by Guns N’ RosesFinal words of wisdom for Presentation Nation?One thing I always tell everybody that's ever worked for me when you're presenting: nobody probably knows more about this than you. So don't stop. Like when you mess up, nobody knows. You know?...The soft skills, the presentation—it's the future. You know, it's one of the core things I look for and I know a lot of the other leaders I work alongside and have worked alongside with, look for. You can be the smartest person in the room, but if you cannot articulate what you're doing, that is a problem.

At this point in our storytelling journey, Mikey and Molly have learned a lot about the “science” of storytelling and why our brains click so well with remembering (and being moved by) narrative. However, journalist, author and teacher Will Storr’s 2018 TED Talk “The Science of Storytelling” presents something we haven’t heard yet. From understanding how our eyes are constantly evaluating for change with movements called “saccades” to understanding all stories as gossip—a means for survival and sharing of information—Will’s 6 elements of the science behind storytelling are truly unique.Will helps to understand that through our personal “hero’s journeys”, living with purpose and applying purpose to any story is the thing that brings resolve and a “eudaemonic happiness.” In other words, the pursuit of happiness in life is part of the reason that stories can resonate so well. This is an episode for: Brand managers, big thinkers and story nerds.  What’s in the Spice Cabinet?Listen to Will’s TEDxManchester yourselfTune in hereFind more of Will’s work OnlineOn InstagramHis newest book released February 2025 is called A Story is a Deal: How to use the science of storytelling to lead, motivate and persuade