Key terms used across trebalchowsky.com and the Pick Up the Mic program.
C
CFP (Call for Proposals / Call for Papers) — The process conferences use to solicit speaker applications. A conference CFP asks for a talk title, a short abstract, and sometimes speaker bio and past recordings. Submitting a strong CFP is the first step to getting on stage.
Cohort — The group of participants in a single run of Pick Up the Mic. Each cohort has a maximum of 10 people. Cohort members give each other feedback throughout the course using a structured format.
D
Deck — The slide presentation that accompanies a talk. A deck in Tre’s methodology is built after story architecture is locked — slides serve the story, not the other way around.
Delivery — The HOW layer of the framework: voice, presence, physicality, inflection, and vocal tone. Delivery is practiced after the content is structured.
F
Framework (WHY / WHO / WHAT / HOW) — Tre’s four-question structure for building a talk. Work through the questions in order: why you’re giving this talk and what you want the audience to take away; who specifically is in the room; what you will say; how you will say it.
H
Haunting — Tre’s term for a talk that stays with an audience long after the event. The goal is not just to inform but to haunt: to give the audience an idea, image, or question that surfaces two weeks later.
HOW — The fourth question in the framework. How do you embody the talk? How does your physicality, inflection, and vocal tone reinforce your message?
I
Information density — The tendency to over-pack a presentation with facts, data, and bullets at the expense of story. Information density is the most common problem Tre sees in technical speakers.
P
Performance session — Week 5 of Pick Up the Mic: the live delivery session where each participant delivers their complete talk to the cohort, receives structured feedback, and walks away with a video recording.
Pitch — Submitting a talk proposal to a conference CFP. A pitch includes a title and a conference-submission description.
Process — The repeatable method for building a talk from scratch. Tre’s coaching addresses story structure and process, not just delivery mechanics.
S
Script — The word-for-word written version of a talk. Participants in Pick Up the Mic leave Week 5 with a script. A script is not the same as reading from notes on stage — it is the foundation from which a speaker learns to speak freely.
Stage ready — Having a complete talk package ready to pitch and deliver: title, conference-submission description, script, slide deck, and recorded delivery. Stage ready means you can submit to a CFP tonight and walk on stage tomorrow.
Story architecture — The structural framework of a talk that determines how information is sequenced and delivered. Story architecture is distinct from content: two speakers can have the same information but very different architectures, with very different results.
T
Talk — A prepared, narrative presentation delivered from a stage. In Tre’s methodology, a talk is distinct from a lecture or slide deck walkthrough: it has a goal, an intended audience, a story, and a deliberate emotional arc.
Talk goal — What you want your audience to feel, know, or do after hearing your talk, and how you want to haunt them two weeks later. The talk goal is established before any content is built.
V
Voluntold — Being assigned to give a talk by someone else (a manager, co-founder, or conference organizer) rather than choosing to pitch independently. Pick Up the Mic is designed for both those who pitch themselves and those who are voluntold.
W
WHAT — The third question in the framework. What is the core message? What stories support it? What makes it unique and worth the audience’s time?
WHO — The second question in the framework. Who specifically is in the room? A talk built for everyone lands with no one.
WHY — The first question in the framework. Two layers: the talk’s goal (what the audience should feel, know, or do) and the speaker’s personal why (why this stage, why now). Most speakers skip this and open a deck.