“Game of Thrones” Delivers ...

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Season 7 of “Game of Thrones” is off to an epic start with plenty of foreshadowing. My favorite was Sansa’s quip that she learned a lot from Cersei.

Still, I can’t see Cercei holding the Iron Throne to the end, and Daenerys Targaryen seems too obvious. Might Tyrion navigate his way to last imp standing? We’ll see.

Regardless, this seems like the perfect time to revisit our SlideShare deck on persuasive language that borrows a “Game of Thrones” scene from season 5, episode 8. This is the scene where Tyrion either wins over Daenerys and lands her chief counselor gig or ends up in the fighting pit for an unhappy ending, at least from his perspective.

Tyrion’s performance puts TED Talks to shame.

No slides.

No props.

No GIFs.

No teleprompter.

Just little old Tyrion commanding the stage with guile, strength of conviction and language with the gravitational pull of a magnet over ore.

Game of Thrones Tyrion

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It is genius and a lesson in persuasive language.

The scene demonstrates the power of losing the PowerPoint slides, which in turn directs all the attention on the words, the body language and the inflection of phrase. The combination comes together in showing what makes for persuasive language.

Considering that the scene starts with Daenerys shoo shooing Jorah to be still — “You will not speak” — makes Tyrion’s performance all the more impressive.

You can watch Tyrion in action in this five-minute video.

For my money, the passage is better than the classic “Help Me Help You” scene from Tom Cruise in “Jerry Maguire.”

Of course, Tyrion hits the right notes in addressing topics that he knows will resonate with Daenerys like the number of sinister individuals who would like nothing better than to detach her head from her neck — followed by a good dragon soufflé. In short, he paints the picture of the bad guy problem getting worse.
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Game of Thrones graph

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One final comment —

We’re not suggesting that PPT be banished from business. But for that critical moment when everything is on the line — your life, a game-changing contract, etc. — no slides can be the right move.

Here’s the SlideShare deck that has earned over 200K views since going live last year.


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  • Daily PR Brief - Mon 07/17/17 - ITK Blog

    […] 2017) 8 networking tips to strengthen reporter relationships (PR Daily – July 17, 2017) “Game of Thrones” Delivers Lesson on Persuasive Language (without the gore) (Ishmael’s Co… How to Create Thought Leadership, Part 1: Introduction (SHIFT Communications – July 17, […]

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