Last Thursday evening was the first official TEDx Wolverhampton rehearsal on stage at the Arena Theatre…

So, on Wednesday I met up with Dr Sophie Gwinnett, my friend and fellow speaker, to run through our talks.

I’d been trying to learn mine over the past week. I’d recorded it on my phone so I could listen to it and practice as a I walked around London, Birmingham and everywhere else I’d been recently.  I thought I’d made a good start.

And then I heard Sophie’s.

She had hers down (very almost) to a T.

I didn’t.

I was going over the allotted 12 minutes by a lot. (One time it hit 17 minutes!) I was stumbling over words. I was trying to remember parts. Not a good look.

I knew I still had plenty of work to do on the performance. I hadn’t realised I had so much more editing still to do. Reading from the page, I discovered, is a lot quicker than reciting from memory.

When you only have 12 minutes to speak, every sentence needs to be finely crafted. Every word counts.

Too many words and the text is bloated. Too few and some of the impact might be lost. It’s a fine balance.

It’s one of the reasons why the first draft is never the final version.

When I’m writing web copy, it goes through seven sweeps (as taught by Copyhackers in Copy School). It ensures that every word on the page has as much impact as possible, moving the reader to take action.

The seven sweeps are:

1. Clarity – is it clear?
2. Voice and tone – are they consistent all the way through?
3. “So what?”
4. “Prove it” – are all the claims backed by enough proof?
5. Specificity – specific details make the story come to life so much more than vagueness and generalities.
6. Heightened emotion – will the reader feel enough, without going overboard?
7. Zero risk – if the reader thinks that they’ve got something to lose, they’re not going to take action. How can you help them to feel confident in their decision.

When possible, I get another set of eyes (either a copywriter friend or my dad) to make sure it’s the best it can be.

So while I realised I had plenty of work to do, I still had plenty of time to get it right. I was also really grateful to get Sophie’s feedback to help me slim it down.

And after the rehearsal on Thursday, it’s changed again.

The first draft of my TEDx talk seems like a distance memory. I’ve forgotten which version I’m on now, there have been so many. It’s like I’ve been chipping away at a block of marble.

But I’ve enjoyed the process and I’m hoping that my story is going to help others get through difficult times. That will make it worth the effort.

There are still a few physical tickets left for TEDx Wolverhampton on 1 October, and there are some streaming tickets so you can watch it from the comfort of your own home too. Check it out here.

(The video will be added to YouTube a few weeks after.)