Captivate Your Learner with Your Opening

Vickie finished her opening last week by promising Karl that she can teach him how to engage his audience which is his happy destination.

And of course, as Karl has been promised a happy destination, he now wants to know more.

Now Vickie transitions to the next step in her introduction with a question, “Shall I Explain?”

Karl finds himself nodding yes.  Of course, he wants to know more.  He’s now ready to explore the learning part of Vickie’s Modlette.

Vickie’s revised opening may seem long as we reviewed it but it was actually only 106 words.

The Structure of the Captivate Opening:

The structure of this opening is relatively simple:

• The opening line is short and invites learners into the Modlette.
• A short description of a scene Karl recognises follows . . . he’s always working hard to prepare his presentations
• Vickie empathises with Karl’s struggle to engage his audience
• She promises a happy destination where Karl can engage and even entertain his audience
• At the end, the opening transitions to the learning steps of the Modlette.  By now Karl is hooked and is eager to work through the rest of Vickie’s Modlette.

The objective of the opening is not to summarise the Modlette.  The opening should encourage your ideal learner to start working in your Modlette so they can reach your learning objectives.

Next week I’ll introduce you to 2 types of opening lines that invited your learners into the next narrative.