I finally finished Stranger Things.

And like a lot of people, I felt… flat.

Not because the show was bad. In fact, most of it was brilliant—especially the early seasons. The world-building. The music. The quiet moments with Steve and Dustin.

But that final episode?

It dragged.
It fizzled.
It didn’t stick the landing.

And it reminded me of something I see in talks all the time.

A speaker holds the room for 20 minutes—clear message, great rhythm, engaged audience. But then they trail off. Their last slide limps by. There’s an awkward “Um, that’s it. Thanks.”

No clarity.
No crescendo.
No moment to remember.

And unfortunately, our brains are wired to let that final beat shape the entire experience.

💡 ONE IDEA WELL

Psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Barbara Fredrickson coined the Peak–End Rule: we don’t remember the full experience of an event. We remember the peak… and the end.

A painful medical procedure? If it ends gently, it’s remembered more favourably—even if the average pain score was higher.

A holiday? You remember the magical meal or the moment you missed your flight—not every hour in between.

Same goes for talks.

You can do everything right. But if you don’t finish well, that’s what people remember.

TV knows this.

👎 Game of Thrones built eight seasons of loyalty… and lost it all with a rushed final arc.

👍 The Good Place ended with grace and quiet satisfaction because the creators planned the last episode before they shot the first.

And then there’s Twin Peaks.

Die-hard fans (like me) remember Fire Walk With Me, but ask most people what stuck in their minds, and they’ll say the scene where Dale Cooper bangs his head into a mirror.

Final moments linger.

So do final slides.

🧰 TRY THIS

✅ Plan your ending first
Before you open PowerPoint, write the last thing you want your audience to feel.

✅ Use contrast, story, or stillness
Your final beat doesn’t have to be dramatic. It just needs to feel like an arrival, not a fade-out.

✅ End on your own terms
Don’t trail off with “Any questions?” Say what you came to say. Then stop.

✅ Design a “Peak” too
Find a single moment—an insight, a slide, a laugh—that creates an emotional high point. Then shape the rest of your talk around that.

🧭 ASK YOURSELF THIS

📎 WANT TO DIVE DEEPER?

Check out this companion post on Dual Coding Theory — because how you end isn’t the only thing that matters. It’s how you layer meaning along the way.​
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Speak soon,

Andy

PS Want your team to speak with more clarity and confidence?

I run workshops that go beyond “death by PowerPoint” to show how real communication works.

Get in touch—let’s make your next session the one they actually remember.