I met David in the context of the Job Talks project, where, through the IEO (Innovation and Entrepreneurship Office), I was invited to participate for the second time, by giving the Workshop “Sell yourself in a minute” on pitch. It was suggested that David gave his testimony because this year 4 student of the FMUL’s Master Degree in Medicine won a pitch competition from Nova Medical School's iMED this year.
David is passionate about communication. You can see in all the sharing he does, in the funny examples he gives, in the interest and effort to show more and add something to the speaker. We met so that he could explain a bit about his path to winning the pitch competition and why he likes to communicate so much.
How did your liking of communicating come about, have you always been a good communicator?
David: When I entered the Faculty, I wasn't very good at presentations…. In fact, I was very bad at them. There were those times when I was in high school and my classmates liked it so much that they asked the teacher to leave the room early. (He laughs, ironic) And all that changed when, in year 2, I had a workshop on “How to make presentations” organized by the AEFML and where we trained paraverbal and body language. It was the best workshop I've been to so far. I've had dozens of training sessions on presentations, communication and pitch, and since then I've started to improve my presentations and realize that this is what I liked. I wanting to make more presentations, to train better, the gestures, the tone of voice… I realized that is one of the things I enjoy doing the most.
And how did this opportunity to participate in the iMED competition come about??
David: At the end of year 3, during the summer holidays, a friend from Nova invited me to an IMed competition that had been created that year. Basically, we gained an internship by trying to convince the panel that we were the best person to get that prize through a pitch. I thought, "Yes, this is communication, I like it", so I started finding out about the awards. One was an internship in neuroscience research, which interested me the most. So, I applied for that. I tried to check out the criteria: my motivations, why I should be chosen for that internship and what uses for it I would have in the future. And there is this applicability at the level of Psychiatry, Oncology, and even a link to the rest of the body, because nowadays there is a more specific science called Psychoneuroimmunology, which suggests a relationship between emotions and immune system changes, allowing us to associate the reason why certain people who feel down have more infections, and possibly also why changes in mental states may lead to certain autoimmune diseases. And this is fantastic for me, it's one of the things I like best, alongside the fact that this project is related to the lymphatic system, which means greater proximity to Psychoneuroimmunology. It was about this applicability that I spoke in my speech, that there may be a correlation between neurodegenerative diseases and lack of sleep. Regarding the criterion pointing the reasons for choosing me, this was more difficult, but I had already done an internship, I had already been and still am a Neuropharmacology junior assistant, and, most importantly, it was the motivation and taste for the project and the internship. That's what I tried to show in a video lasting less than 3 minutes. I had no idea how I was going to be able to say everything in less than 3 minutes, to say the least, because, as I have more background in informative communication, I really enjoy using slides, and couldn't use them. And it was hard, I banged my head on the table, days and nights thinking "How am I going to do this well?", "How to do this so that they choose me?". It took me a long time, I tried hard, but then it paid off because they chose me and I was in the top three. In the second phase, the top three had to do the same pitch style on stage for more than 100 people, with the panel behind us. We could not present directly to the panel, we could not turn to the panel, nor look at them, just at the audience. That was hard.
How was this experience?
David: It was terrifying and fantastic, a mix of both: terrifying because, whenever you go on stage, you're exposing yourself, you're vulnerable. When giving a presentation, whether it's a class presentation or Solvin'It, you're always afraid that something goes wrong, that people don't like it and get disinterested and that affects us. But at the same time, it's fantastic because it's something I like that gives me so much joy. Being able to use the techniques, and through stories, but especially with passion, being able to capture other people's attention, being able to enthuse the audience with my speech, tailoring it to suit them, and they like it, give me huge satisfaction.
And what do you think has improved, what changed between the first and the second pitch?
David: I had defined what I wanted to do more… In the first, I had no pitch training, I was completely lost, I wasn't sure about what to do… I tried to use informative communication techniques that I already knew, but they were not very appropriate, they were more suitable for information giving and not for persuasion. From the first pitch to the second, I had training in persuasive communication as part of a partnership between iMed and speak and lead, a start-up project that focuses on communication and pitch. From then on, I was able to fine-tune certain techniques, my body language, the way I should take people, how I should talk about my affairs enthusiastically, chain the information, move beyond motivation and what made me choose this internship and expose my strengths subtly. Finally, it is important to end up with a conclusion that keeps them open-mouthed. That is precisely what I tried to do. I also went to see the pitches of the other competitors, during the training with the start-up, we had to do our pitches so that we could be helped, as part of more practical training, so I observed other competitors, especially those who were competing for the same internship as me. I realized that there were many things in which they were good. One told the story that his grandmother had had Alzheimer's, so he tried to investigate more about the disease since he was a child and was enthusiastic about the internship because of it. Since this research internship was related to Alzheimer's, this story was a strong point in his favour, and, at the same time, it was a way of establishing empathy. I realized that the fact that I could relate to the audience and include that motivation at the same time as a "two in one" situation was very strong and it was one of the things I used as well.
How did you establish this empathy then?
David: I told the truth: since I was a kid, I liked the idea of researching Neuroscience, to understand how the brain makes certain things, how can a biological mass composed of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen have critical thinking, be capable of calculating, abstract thinking, solving equations, creating art, doing fantastic things that machines can't do. As a child I asked myself "how can we do this?", “how can we learn or memorize certain moments?". There is so much we can do that I can't explain. Even the fact that I can move this muscle consciously amazes me at times how it is done. I can see that there is a certain impulse coming out of my brain that will communicate with the muscles in my hand and that is why my hand moves. Now, how the brain can somehow generate the momentum, "say" it wants this muscle to move, that is what fascinates me. Not to mention more complex actions, like talking, writing, or even thinking about anything and everything.
And do you think that influenced the panel?
David: I think so. The fact that I tell a story about when I was a child, which many people identify with, allowed me to empathize and talk about my motivations at the same time, and that was important, one of the best things I did in that speech.
Was there anything else you think you developed?
David: I think I was able to shrewdly move from my motivations to my strengths, which needs some subtleness.... It's really hard, because when we talk about our strengths (I felt and I think that the other competitors felt it too), we try not to talk about it directly so we don't sound arrogant. But we were told in the training sessions to "Try to do it subtly". That is why I have tried to mention my motivations, explain that I have always enjoyed neurology since I was a child, but right now, instead of being a matter of curiosity, I am more motivated about the human side of it, I want to be able to treat people in the fields of Psychiatry, Neuropsychology, or simply being able to help and improve people's lives. I assumed that was why I wanted the internship. From then on, I said that I knew I could contribute to the internship for several reasons: being a Neuroscience junior assistant, having already done research, and having soft skills, such as communication or problem solving skills, and that I got them from organizing committees or volunteer projects. About this last part, I have friends who work on research projects, who often tell me stories where these soft skills are needed.
How do you think one can develop these soft skills in communication?
David: I feel that people who go to communication workshops do so to try to improve. And that's obviously good, but the truth is that to be good at communicating, to be better trained in pitch or presentations, a workshop or one training session are not enough. It is a continuous job, there has to be a long term investment. I spent many hours training my presentations, studying them, watching communication videos, seeing how to improve my body and paraverbal language, certain techniques I could use, tips I learned on the net and managed to use, or even reading books on how to deal with people that have given me more knowledge. In short, it is a huge investment. And then the practice… a lot of practice. We have many presentations at this Faculty and it is a good opportunity to train this kind of communication, where we test our verbal, paraverbal and body language.
In the meantime, you were also present at the Pitch Workshop where you gave your testimony in the context of the Job Talks. How was it?
David: I had some difficulty. We always have a hard time talking about ourselves and trying to interest the public at the same time. One of the biggest challenges is to bring something that thrills and excites us to an audience we don't know whether they have the same enthusiasm and passion as us. So I tried to see if I could talk about my experience enthusiastically, but at the same time mention tips or tricks they could use. This last part was to try, in a way, to give them what I thought they wanted, which turns out to be the easiest way to get attention. Because, otherwise, it would be hard. As an aside: it is we who must improve as presenters. This has always been my philosophy that made me better in presentations. Whenever I give a presentation, and if I see that the audience is not interested, I think about what I could do better, I wonder if I could have been more dynamic and these are the things that make us learn and improve. After the workshop, I asked people what they thought, and they told me they liked it. Some told me that I was too dynamic. Was I dynamic?, I thought. But for me this is not a criticism! Another aside: I think the definition of a good presentation varies from person to person. I felt it with Solvin'It, where I started as a junior assistant last year, and I included funny memes and videos because I know this is what will catch the attention of most students, although some people don't agree with that. I even got the students to dance, and luckily they liked it (it was risky, but what matters is that they liked it, and I think they gave me better feedback for it)! Regardless of who we are, or what we think a good presentation is, we have to tailor it to our audience. Sometimes I didn't do it and then I failed. Some lecturers, for example, did not like the informal presentations I gave, but when it is for students, it is usually the other way around. The secret is always to tailor our presentation to the public. If it has to be more formal, then it will be more formal, if it has to be more informal, then make it more informal. But whatever style is needed, we should also try to show enthusiasm and passion for what we are talking about, because if we do not show passion and enthusiasm, we can hardly excite the audience.
What tips can you give to be a good communicator?
David: First of all, as I have already implied, people have to be aware that this is something that is not only for themselves but also for others. And when I say this, it is because if we want to convey a message and we want people to receive it, we have to direct our message to the people in front of us. In a presentation, this means we have to give the audience what they want or like. If I want them to retain what I am telling them, I have to transpose or structure my message in a way that they like and feel comfortable receiving. And the way the public likes to be treated also counts. The best way is to always consider the others’ point of view, the others’ opinions, the way others like presentations. If we tailor our presentation to our audience, it's also a way of respecting their point of view. Another tip is to practice a lot. However, personal experience and training just isn't enough, as some learning about the subject is required. People have to be guided, it helps to have someone directing us and telling us what to do best. If we go on without being aware of this, the training can go wrong. This is what happens in our Faculty: we have little training, and of the few training opportunities we have, there are many students who do not register because they do not realize the importance of this skill. Alternatively, they can always search the Internet for well-known sources, TED-Talks, or even companies or communication blogs made by experts in the field.
Did you feel that throughout your life you have learned and evolved in the way you communicate?
David: I had a religious background and listened to pastoral sermons every week. These sermons used a lot of persuasive communication, and I was unknowingly being influenced by these sermons. Looking back, I used this kind of communication in my presentations, which didn't go well because I didn't have enough training. I used to listen to the sermons and say, "Wow, I want to do this!", but then I failed completely when using the same style of communication in school presentations, because a sermon is persuasive communication and a presentation is informative communication. They share some factors, but the goals are different. By informative communication, I mean the content and the characteristics of a topic, often about history or science. In persuasive communication, we want to show that a product, a lifestyle, or whatever, is the best. It makes no sense in this latter type of communication to only mention the characteristics: what makes this and that. We have to try to convince people. Then, another thing I failed to do was to tailor my speech to the public. When I was a kid, I didn't realize that. In presentations made to my class, I didn't do it for my classmates, I did it for myself, and I thought I had to do it that way because it was the way I preferred it. I thought this was how people would like it because I liked it, or how I thought the teacher would like it. But no, when we make a presentation, it has to be for others, not for us.
Thank you so much for your testimony, David.
Sónia Teixeira
Editorial Team