Presentation Persona Spotlight: Matthew McConaughey

For his upcoming film The Dark Tower, Matthew McConaughey is hitting the press tour with television appearances. Each interview further proves how the actor is a master story teller and lives by the moment. I watched McConaughey’s recent appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and was intrigued by how the simple interview format turned into an informal storytelling session. These two clips showcase his talent at becoming a character and making the most simple story entertaining.

McConaughey’s laid back attitude and natural ability to hold a conversation make him a charming speaker to watch. He can draw in an audience with his smooth, southern voice and make you laugh with his slightly absurd humor.

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What would his presentation persona be? Based on our Badge assessment, he would score high in one of the four quadrants which include Exploration, Sharing, Response and Durability. This indicates that McConaughey’s persona would be the Performer. Here are my reasons why he fits this persona the best.

presentation persona

Presentation Persona Spotlight: Matthew McConaughey

 

Exploration

The actor’s laid back attitude is one reason why he scores low in the Exploration quadrant. This quadrant measures how much preparation is put into a presentation beforehand. McConaughey is more of a go-with-the-flow type of guy. This works in his favor because of his natural storytelling talents. But if he was presenting on a business or political topic, he would appear unorganized and unrehearsed.

Sharing

This is the high score for the Performer. This presentation persona loves being in front of a crowd and can entertain just about every audience. Obviously, McConaughey has decades of experience with this line of work. He has made a variety of films that speak to all different kinds of audiences. And like in the videos above, he can turn a typical sit-down interview into an interesting and funny conversation. This is why audience have loved his work for so long.

Response

While the Performer loves to tell stories, they don’t share the limelight. Audience engagement is often an afterthought, which is why this presentation persona scores in the mid- to low range. McConaughey keeps the attention on him rather than sharing it with the talk show host, which is normal for this situation. But if he were giving a presentation to an audience, the attendees would feel left out from the fun. By including a discussion or taking questions, the Performer could improve this score.

Durability

What was the main message that McConaughey was trying to send with this interview? It’s hard to tell because he went a little all over the place. Because of the low scores in Exploration and Sharing, the Performer also gets a score in the mid- to low range in the Durability quadrant. By paying closer attention to the detail of how he wants to market his message, McConaughey could be entertaining crowds while leaving them with a memorable impression. However, we have to give some props for his quotable movie lines.

“Alright, alright, alright.” – Matthew McConaughey

He’s cool, he’s funny, and he can tell a story, which makes Matthew McConaughey a captivating Performer.

Want to know your presentation persona? Take our Badge assessment to find out!

More from the Ethos3 Blog:

The Presentation Personas Who Are Natural Storytellers

Presentation Persona Spotlight: Stephen Colbert

Why Story-Making is the New Presentation Storytelling

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