A stage for missed opportunities: when spontaneity becomes a loop of clichés.

A few days ago, I attended an event where leaders from different fields took the stage to share insights. They all followed the same invisible script: detached, unprepared speeches, full of "I'm going to speak from the heart" and "that's it, folks." Somehow, they were all trying to be funny and Miss Congeniality.

The result? A symphony of clichés, where each speaker, in their eagerness to be lighthearted, repeated—with creative variations in intonation—exactly the same thing as the previous one.

I confess that, amidst that marathon of improvisation and copy/paste, I missed those speeches that left a mark. Remember them? The ones that made you reflect, think even days later? There was a ritual: meticulous preparation, a clear message, strategic pauses, paper in hand as a silent witness to the care and importance that person gave to the moment. It was almost a ceremony—something between a TED Talk and a poetry recital. An art.

Today, in the age of TikTok attention spans, it seems that depth has become a crime, almost shameful. The prevailing idea is that everything must fit into 7 seconds, be funny, and preferably accompanied by a meme. But what about when the subject demands more than just a punchline?

It's something to think about: being unpretentious doesn't have to mean being unprepared. Perhaps it's time to go back to writing a draft on paper or in a notebook, to having references, rather than trends.

Perhaps true audacity lies in daring to think before speaking.

Juliana Albanez

Speaker - expert in communication and sales.