Tacos and Tequila: Rick Bayless
The best presentations are delivered by people who don’t spend all their time studying PowerPoint or presentation delivery. In fact, there are times that I think that many of us who obsess over PowerPoint or delivery are wasting our time. Wouldn’t focusing on doing be better? And besides, isn’t it much more fun to talk about something that you are really passionate about?
I understand that there are many people who are passionate about presentation delivery. I believe they are similar to people who are passionate about cameras but don’t use them to express themselves by taking beautiful pictures (Leica collectors).
Rick Bayless is a chef who is 100% in love with Mexico. This passion started when he was a mere 14 years old and currently drives his professional life. You can read about how he fell in love with Mexico on his Web site.
Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless
Rick is passionate about bringing the joy he has found in Mexican cooking to the masses. Whether is it a book, a trip to one of his restaurants, Frontera salsa from the grocery store or his TV show, he is passionate and wants his customers to have a great experience. In short, he wants to create raving fans.
Rick’s television show, Mexico One Plate at a Time, is where he really shines on the presentation front. On the show Rick uses visuals and his very effective voice to entice the viewers to come along on a journey through Mexico. Then he encourages us bring the excitement into their own kitchens. He has a knack for making the complicated seem doable: This skill has gotten me to try some of his recipes myself. Order his books or watch his TV show and you will want try them too.
Rick has something that all presenters need: He has the heart of a teacher!
Don’t take my word for it, look at some videos featuring Rick.
Rick discusses his restaurant Topolobampo in this video. Granted, he has lots of television experience but these videos are just great. You can really sense his personality in them. You don’t hear this said much but that is the holy grail of public speaking. When you can project your personality you are doing great work. Caveat: If your personality sucks you will want to hide it;)
In this video talks about his philosophy on food. He even discusses that his customers are constantly pushing him to seek the edge and go past it. Personally, I love that philosophy. In this video Rick displays the communication skills that make him so dog gone effective. In fact, he is more effective impromptu than most people are with rehearsed presentations.
If you are a fan of the Obamas you will enjoy this video where Rick discusses having them in his restaurant, Topolobampo. It is not political and is very interesting. There are even some funny pictures of President Obama eating.
I hope that you enjoy learning about Rick. He is a very interesting guy. I am going to write another post about him soon. Yes, he is that interesting!
