Dopamine, Motivation, and Presentation

for Retail News Magazine 5/2022

To Win Attention and Motivate an Audience, We Must Evoke Curiosity and Provide Meaning.

“In the end, people won’t remember what you said or did—they’ll remember how you made them feel.”— Maya Angelou

Dopamine and Curiosity

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter in the brain. It plays a key role in the reward system and is essential to motivation.

• It makes life more enjoyable when we anticipate rewards or new experiences.

• It drives us to seek out and achieve those rewards—be it a product, insight, or personal gain.

In presentation design:

Start with a short, engaging introduction, then outline the main points you’ll cover—ideally around 10 items for a 20-minute talk.

• This helps listeners track where they are in the presentation.

• It stimulates curiosity, as they look forward to what’s next.

By doing this, we trigger natural attention and allow a smooth transfer of information to our audience.

An Interactive Approach

We’ve all experienced boring presentations—the kind where we remember nothing but the feeling of wasted time.

When presenters fail to engage, the audience’s attention drifts.

If we only remember the monotony of graphs and data, the presentation has failed.

Solution: Get the audience involved.

“Learning by doing” is the most effective way to retain information.

• Involve listeners directly to prevent passive, one-way information flow.

• When they’re active, their attention remains on you—multitasking becomes impossible.

This approach transforms your talk into an engaging and memorable workshop, enhancing both the experience and the effectiveness of the information transfer.

The Presenter’s Power to Influence

In earlier articles, we discussed the concept of Flow—a mental state of deep focus.

An engaging presentation can induce Flow in the audience.

• A skilled presenter can make even dry facts feel inspiring and enjoyable.

• The format, presenter’s delivery, and environment are just as important as the content itself.

We tend to remember presenters who:

• Use humor,

• Encourage interaction,

• Spark curiosity, and

• Leave us with positive emotions.

These elements lead to heightened focus and effortless learning.

Stimulating Human Motivation

To gain attention and motivate your audience, you must:

• Evoke curiosity, and

• Connect your message to their needs.

There are two key types of motivation:

• Internal – driven by our own desires and identity.

• External – driven by cues from our environment.

Through thoughtful design and delivery, you can influence both.