Ian Wharton

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Using three beloved feature films, this free lesson covers the definitions of the Inciting Incident — the only part of narrative structure you need to use when selling an idea, whatever the stakes. It covers: ➤ What is it?➤ Why is it so crucial?➤ How do we use it to our advantage?

Make 'storytelling' more actionable.

This course covers three simple and widely applicable principles that will help make your ideas more memorable and get buy-in.

Founder and CEO of Aide Health

Apple Design Award winner, author and tech founder. 20+ years of innovation.

Sell the Idea: How to pitch and present for maximum impact

Sr. Principal Product Designer

Creative Director

Junior UX designer

Founder

Co-founder

Sr. Product Designer

Sr. UX Researcher

Senior Product Designer

Project Manager

UX Designer

Google

Gymshark

Accenture

frog

Ever struggled to get someone to see what you see?It's not the idea; it's the way it's sold. Even the best ideas in the world can fall at the first hurdle — when they are communicated to the people needed to bring them to life. Whether that's a design manager, an executive, a $10m client or an investor. Keeping an idea alive at this moment is the real challenge. This course will arm you with three principles to do just that. 'Storytelling' is a superpower, but usually unactionableYou've probably been told to "just use storytelling." Like everyone else, you likely found that vague and unhelpful. And yet, it's the most important skill to have if you want to accelerate your work and career. This course simplifies storytelling into a single element that you can easily use to your advantage.If you dislike pitching, you're not alonePresenting your work can feel exposing. Most people don't want to do it or fear it. That can wreak havoc on how an idea is expressed. The good news is this isn't a skill reserved for an elite few; you just need a simple method of preparation so you can confidently walk into the room, whatever the stakes.

Join over 2,000 alumni and give your ideas unmistakable potential.

A practical method of storytelling

How to avoid the common pitfalls of pitching ideas

Effective selling that avoids caricatures and theatrics

See the Principles at work in three real-world pitches

Design, product and strategy professionals in agencies or in-house teams who need to sell their work to clients or managers.

Founders of startups from the stages of Pre-Seed to Series A who are going through growth or venture capital fundraising.

Cross-functional teams who are required to conduct frequent internal ‘upwards selling’ to VP-level execs or the C-suite.

How brevity wins in the era of overload

Your audience is distracted and has no time. Use brevity to capture their attention against the odds.

Stand out by saying less

A simple method to communicate your ideas clearly, using fewer, sharper words.

Get buy-in on your ideas

Verbosity is cheap and feels like competence. Understand the reasons why so you never fall into its trap again.

Why we overexplain and oversell

Why great ideas fail to get buy-in

Uncover the hidden reasons why buy-in slips away and how to avoid them.

The silent killers of pitching and presenting ideas

Simple ways to navigate interruptions, doubts, and misaligned expectations.

Practical tools for tough moments

Designed to help guide the delivery of an idea in both content and form.

A technique called 'The Surgeon'

Make storytelling less vague, more actionable

Remove the complexity and ambiguity of storytelling so you can apply it to your day-to-day with impact.

Storytelling that's fit for pitching and presenting work

The only part of narrative structure you need to focus on. What is it? And how do we use it to our advantage?

The Inciting Incident

One is good, one will kill your pitch. This lesson covers a simple tool to prepare for, and avoid unintended conflct

Two types of conflict

Avoid a common pitfall when presenting ideas

Our ideas need to be fully understood. This exercise, when neglected, causes the majority of unfulfilled ideas.

The power of setting context

A simple, widely applicable and practical method to ensure your idea isn't miscommunicated or misinterpreted.

How to kill friction, detachment and poor judgement

Anytime we present an idea, we are in one world, our audience is in another. This lesson covers how to close that gap.

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Ian Wharton

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