Why You Should Stop Selling With A Script

“Memorized” is safe. “Off the cuff” is terrifying. 

So it should come as no surprise that I lost a bit of sleep the night before I appeared at Creative Mornings Denver to improvise an entire presentation, a.k.a. The Keynote Karaoke Challenge.

WTF is Keynote Karaoke?!

It works like this: you’re given a single prompt, the subject of your “presentation.” Then you wing an entire talk on the subject while trying to act as if you’ve prepared for it months in advance. 

Too easy? Well, while you’re winging it, completely random slides are advancing across the screen which you must incorporate into the subject of your presentation as well.

This took place during a special event with Creative Mornings Denver where four improvisers (myself included) came together to explore the ripple effect we have on each other and our communities.

That means this Keynote Karaoke Challenge was in front of a hundred folks in attendance and my good buddy, RJ Owen, chose the arbitrary slide images. Oh yeah, and if that’s not random enough, my prompt was “love.”

At this point you might be curious to watch me struggle to avert disaster with every slide advance, so if you didn’t already click on the video above, you can watch my roller coaster of a presentation here.

If for some reason you’re not convinced of the difficulty of this challenge, you should know that doing Keynote Karaoke is a lot like playing Jeopardy from your couch — it’s a lot easier doing it from the sidelines than under the studio lights.

Why the Keynote Karaoke Challenge Matters

An essential yet simple sales lesson I learned from performing stand-up comedy for over a decade is this: always speak naturally instead of from memory — your audience knows the difference.

Your prospects and clients are not captivated by the perfection of your delivery, but rather by your authentic connection.

Challenges, like Keynote Karaoke, are exercises in improvisation to help you be more in the moment. Even if you’re still determined to keep memorizing, you’ll eventually find yourself in a situation where you need to think on your feet, and improv practices like these will make you fearless.

Want to appear more confident in your next pitch?

Want to be a more successful salesperson?

Want to have an authentic connection with anyone?

Never memorize a script.