Since your takeaway is at the very top of the pyramid, your introduction is particularly important. It sets the stage, and gets your audience excited for your main idea and its supporting arguments.

The following flow is an effective way to set up the main idea of your pyramid.

Situation: The context, the time, and the place. Something everyone can agree on.

Complication: The problem, relevancy, sense of urgency to listen or act.

Question: The question that naturally arises following the complication. This is the start of the question and answer flow.

Answer: Your main idea.

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