Matt Abrahams
Lecturer in strategic communication at Stanford Graduate School of Business, author of Think Faster, Talk Smarter and host of the Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast
Matt Abrahams (Lecturer in strategic communication at Stanford Graduate School of Business, author of Think Faster, Talk Smarter and host of the Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast) has appeared as a guest on 1 episode in TMT. Topics they speak about most include Public speaking, Job interviews and hiring, Filler words.
In their words
Positions and remarks grouped by topic, each with the exact quote and where it was said.
Public speaking
Abrahams urges presenters to start like an action movie with a story, question, poll, or statistic before introducing themselves.
“start your communication like an action movie. How does an action movie start? With action”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 25:55
Abrahams opposes memorizing speeches because comparing delivery to a script consumes cognitive bandwidth needed for connection.
“So I tell my students all the time, it's about connection, not perfection”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 22:43
Abrahams advises nervous speakers not to pre-apologize because it primes audiences to look for signs of nervousness.
“All we are doing is priming you to pay attention to everything I do that confirms I'm nervous”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 20:50
Abrahams recommends structuring and ending communication around what the audience should know, feel, and do.
“Know, feel, do. What do you want people to know? How do you want them to feel? What do you want them to do?”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 16:33
Abrahams argues that attention is the most precious commodity today and that talks should not begin with a slow roll.
“To my mind, attention is the most precious commodity we have in the world today. Our attention is constantly being scattered”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 14:49
Job interviews and hiring
Abrahams says he coaches candidates to answer the question, give an example, and connect it to the job, which dramatically improved his interviews.
“I want you to answer the question. I want you to give me an example so I can really understand what that means”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 10:55
Abrahams recounts asking greeters how candidates treated them, having found many are rude to staff yet polished with the hiring manager.
“I have found many people treat the folks who are greeting and moving them around very rudely”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 10:09
Abrahams says he prefers warm calling over cold calling, both teaching at Stanford and when interviewing, and considers blindsiding candidates unfair.
“When I teach at Stanford's Business School, I don't believe in cold calling. I believe in warm calling”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 7:46
Abrahams argues that when put on the spot, one should commit to an answer and connect it to the bigger picture.
“I think the answer is you commit and you try to connect what you say to the broader, bigger picture”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 5:15
Filler words
Abrahams recommends ending each phrase out of breath so the necessary inhale creates a pause instead of a filler word.
“So if we train ourselves to end every sentence and every phrase out of breath, What must I do before I start speaking again? I have to inhale”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 43:16
Abrahams argues that in an AI era a few disfluencies make speakers sound more human and authentic.
“in a world of AI where everything can be perfect and polished, having a few disfluencies and repetitive words actually makes you more human”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 43:46
Professional credibility
Abrahams says people over-index on credentials and should instead demonstrate credibility through stories, examples, and testimonials, like Costco samples.
“Many of us get locked into demonstrating our competence by listing all the credentials that we have. Show people, tell them stories”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 48:34
Message structure frameworks
Abrahams claims structured information is remembered at least 40% better, citing cognitive neuroscience.
“Structured information is remembered 40% better at least”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 41:17
Journaling
Abrahams describes nightly recording one communication success and one failure, then reviewing weekly to make a plan.
“I will write down one thing that went really well in my communication and one thing that I didn't think went well or went poorly”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 37:37
Small talk
Abrahams says the secret to small talk is asking questions and leaving space, citing his mother-in-law's phrase 'tell me more.'
“The secret to small talk is asking questions and then giving space for answers. And that's where my mother-in-law was amazing”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 35:05
Humor in leadership
Abrahams calls humor high-risk 'black belt level engagement' and advises self-directed humor tested in low-stakes settings.
“humor is what I call black belt level engagement. It is risky”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 32:41
Presentation slides
Abrahams holds that slides should only simplify, amplify, or clarify, and should use images rather than text.
“So slides can help, but they're for your audience. They're not a teleprompter for you”
The Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk: 712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your Feet (Oct 25, 2026) · Listen from 24:46
Appearances
712: Matt Abrahams - How to Become a Better Communicator: Speaking With Confidence, Structuring Your Message, and Thinking Fast on Your FeetThe Learning Leader Show With Ryan Hawk · Oct 25, 2026 · 55 min
Ryan Hawk talks with Stanford lecturer Matt Abrahams about interviewing, opening and closing talks, small talk, filler words, reflection journaling, and communication structures.
Often appears with
- Ryan Hawk · 1 shared episode