Okay, so I had this thing I was working on, a presentation, right? And I got this idea stuck in my head. I wanted it to have that feel, you know? Like those really polished talks, the ones that stick with you. A lot of that, I figured, comes down to the music, the soundtrack playing underneath.
I started calling this little side-project my ‘soundtrack ted’ mission in my head. Sounds a bit silly now, but at the time, it felt important. I wanted that slick, emotional pull you get from a well-timed piece of music in those big-stage talks.
My Search Begins
First thing I did? Jumped online. Typed in all sorts of things like ‘inspirational presentation music’, ‘background music like TED talks’. Man, what a rabbit hole. Page after page of generic stuff. Some sounded okay, but mostly it was that really bland corporate music, the kind that makes you want to fall asleep.
Then I thought, maybe I should check out those royalty-free music sites. Signed up for a couple, some free, some paid trials. And I listened. And listened. Hours went by. Seriously, my ears felt numb. So much music, but finding something that felt right? Really tough. It was either too dramatic, too cheesy, or just plain distracting. It needed to support what I was saying, not overpower it.
I even tried rewatching some actual TED talks, trying to pinpoint the music they used. That was harder than I thought. Often it’s custom-made, or mixed so low you can barely identify it. Plus, just copying them felt wrong somehow. Their music fit their talk, their message. Would it fit mine?
The Big Realization
That’s when it sort of hit me. I was so focused on copying that ‘TED sound’ that I wasn’t thinking about my actual presentation. What was I trying to say? What feeling did I want people to leave with? It wasn’t about finding some magic track someone else used.
So, I changed tactics. Instead of searching for ‘TED style’, I started searching by mood. Calm, thoughtful, hopeful. And I looked for simpler stuff. Piano, maybe some light strings. Nothing too complex.
I also realized I didn’t need music playing the whole time. That can be really annoying, actually. Maybe just a short bit at the very beginning, to set the tone? And another short piece at the end, to wrap things up? Keep it subtle.
Found a couple of tracks this way. Simple piano melodies. Not earth-shattering, not super dramatic like I first imagined. But they felt… right. They fit the pace and the message of my presentation. I tried them out, just short snippets at the start and finish.
And you know what? It worked. It added just a little touch of polish, a bit of emotional resonance, without being overwhelming. It wasn’t the big ‘soundtrack ted’ I initially chased, but it was effective. Sometimes, I guess, chasing someone else’s idea just leads you back to figuring out what works best for you. Took me a while to get there, though.
