When I tell people that I’m a member of a Speakers Club at which we give speeches for fun, they look at me as though I’m a few fries short of a happy meal.

When I tell them that some of the speeches are impromptu, they look at me with the eyes of a man who has been to the edge… and looked over.

If public speaking makes people slightly uneasy, then impromptu speaking makes them shake like a rumba dancer in the throes of colic.

It seems that in the hierarchy of Public Speaking fears, impromptu speaking deserves top billing.

“In the speech biz, speaking at a gathering with very little preparation and without the use of notes is called impromptu speaking. In everyday life, it’s often called “hell” and a few other words we can’t print here.
But despite its terrifying reputation, impromptu speaking need not be likened to trial by fire.”

Laura Rozakis, Ph.D.

Sure, impromptu speaking can be scary but there’s a lot you can do to make things easier.
 

Your speech is already written

The first thing to remember is that you are not likely to be asked to give an impromptu speech unless you know about the subject, so you’re already ahead of the game.
The second thing to remember is that your speech is already written!
Don’t believe me?
Here’s a little story to show you what I mean…

A man had just given a speech… it had gone down a storm.
The crowd were on their feet, clapping, shouting, asking for more.
When the applause had died down, the speaker returned to his seat, and the man next to him leant across and said….

“That was the finest speech I’ve ever heard, tell me, how long did it take you to write it?”

And the speaker replied…

“All my life….. all my life.”

He didn’t mean he’d been scribbling this speech all his life,
He meant that your speeches are shaped by your experiences.
Who you are, what you are, what you believe in.

The process of writing your speech is really about organising your thoughts, researching facts and presenting your material in the most eloquent and persuasive way possible.
You know before you start what you want to say.
In truth, your speeches are written… long before you pick up the pen.

When you walk to the front to deliver your impromptu speech, don’t forget, you’ve been preparing for that speech… all your life.

Be prepared

Someone once said of Winston Churchill, “Winston has devoted the best years of his life to preparing his impromptu speeches.”

Although it was intended as a putdown, it’s actually a compliment, because smart speakers are always prepared – to speak.

“If you’re going to a meeting where there is the slightest chance that someone might ask you to speak, go the Boy Scout route: Be prepared.
Make some notes about the topic that might come up in the discussion.
Jot down ideas throughout the presentation or panel discussions.”

Laura Rozakis, Ph.D.

Same applies to you, if you’re going to an event and there’s any chance that you will be asked to speak, prepare a few notes.

Your speech should have a purpose and a pattern

Your speech may be off-the-cuff, but you should still stick to the rules.

Firstly, your speech must have a purpose.

I don’t think that I’ve ever given a speech whose purpose was anything other than to persuade the audience to my way of thinking.
When you speak to persuade it brings out your passion and enthusiasm. You become alive and animated.
Whatever your subject, speak to persuade.

“The common knowledge divides presentations by various purposes.
Traditionally the big three are speeches to inform, speeches to entertain and speeches to persuade.

The uncommon knowledge is that everything you say involves persuasion.”

Malcolm Kushner

Secondly, your speech must flow logically and be easy to follow… it must have a pattern.

Here’s a simple pattern that you can use for any speech, prepared or impromptu:

1. Introduction – an attention grabbing opening and an indication of what your speech is about.
2. Development – three points to explain your argument and back up your point of view.
3. Conclusion – a summary of your main points, a call to action and a big finish.

As speech patterns go they don’t come easier than this one – use it when you’re under pressure and have minimum time to prepare.
 

Build up a stock of all purpose openings

The beginning is one of the most important parts of your speech; it’s also the time when you’re most nervous.
Make it easy on yourself – put together a list of “all purpose” openings.

Here are a couple to point you in the right direction:

If the audience know you have been asked to give an impromptu speech…
“At the very start, let me just say that we both have something in common.
You don’t know what I’m going to say… and neither do I.”
Robert Orben

My pal used to say, “I know very little about politics / economic / world affairs / cats / dogs / Mr Blobby… and care even less.” But maybe we should care.
Keith Davis
 

Quotes and one-liners are a great source of “all purpose” openings. And they’re easy to remember.
Here are a few to get you started plus an indication of the subjects where they can be used.

1. They say that change is inevitable… unless it’s from a vending machine.
   (time / the passage of time / changes in society)
2. Everything is possible… apart from skiing through a revolving door.
   (opportunities / life planning / challenges)
3. I must admit, whenever I feel the desire to exercise… I lie down until it goes away.
   (keep fit / diet / health / exercise / modern life)
4. My old boss used to say “There are only two things you need to know about life – Where there’s money there’s corruption and where there’s men and women – there’s hanky panky.” But was he right?
   (money / greed / life / life’s problems / complexity of modern life)
5. Clint Eastwood playing Harry Callaghan (Dirty Harry) once said to his lieutenant “I like a man who knows his limitations.” So what are your limitations?
   (setting goals / achievement / self imposed limitations)

That should get you started.
Please feel free to use them or better still, put together a list of your own.
 

Practise your impromptu… Join a Speakers Club

If you’re a regular visitor to easyP you’ll know that I’m a passionate advocate of Speakers Clubs. They are great places to learn all things Public Speaking related and they even have opportunities for you to practise your impromptu speaking.

The two big Speakers Club organisations are Toastmasters (internationally) and The Association of Speakers Clubs (throughout the UK).

Both offer challenges, which are specific to impromptu speaking:

1. The impromptu Speech assignment – in this assignment you are given three speech titles and you have ten minutes to choose one of the titles and prepare a six to eight minute speech. The impromptu speech assignment is a bit like ballet… it keeps you on your toes.
2. Topics – no preparation time at all here, you’re given a topic (a topic can be a word, a phrase, a saying, anything) and you walk to the front and deliver a two or three minute speech complete with introduction, development and conclusion.
   The topics session is often called the fun part of the evening… I’ve never understood why.

Speakers Clubs, a great place to learn the art of Public Speaking, impromptu or otherwise.
What are you waiting for?
Join today!
 

Time to have your say

What do you think?
Are you a little more relaxed about your impromptu speaking?
Do you have an impromptu speech success to share?
Please feel free to leave a comment, ask a question or pass on tips of your own?
 

Many many months ago I promised Melanie Kissell over at Solo Mompreneur that I would write a post on impromptu speaking. But then came the summer and my resolve faded in the bright summer sun.

To the indictment for Serious Procrastination, all I can do is hold up my hands and say “Guilty as charged.”

Here it finally is Mel, my sincere apologies and I hope you enjoy it.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to the following from whose books I have learnt much and quoted often:

Laura Rozakis, Ph.D. “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Public Speaking”

Malcolm Kushner “Public Speaking for Dummies”

Tony Carlson “The How of Wow”

I know this is a public speaking blog – but I want to talk today about online video. Bear with me and I’ll connect the dots for you in a paragraph or two.
You see, online video is the coming wave. Whatever line of business you’re in, if you don’t use it in marketing, you’ll get left behind. Far-sighted competitors who’ve adopted video will already be surfing that wave into the future.
Good online videos can do wonders for your business, yet many never get past the first hurdle.

Here’s where online video meets public speaking

Want to know the main reason most people don’t make videos for their business?
Because they hate the sound of their own voice.

“For many people this loathing of the sound of their own voice becomes a form of resistance – and stops them from pressing record on the camera again.”

So what can you do?
Here’s a thought for you – what voice do your present clients hear when you talk to them?
The same voice YOU hear when you press playback on a video recording!
The sound of your voice is something that you can do little to change – and you don’t need to.

Ever have a Client pull out of a possible business deal because he didn’t like the sound of your voice?
Nope, thought not.
So the first thing you need to do is change your mindset. Even though you hate the sound of your voice when you playback a recording, you just have to accept that it’s your voice. And get over yourself.

Confession time

I use Video a lot. I’ve got around 120 videos on my YouTube Channel, so I hear the sound of my own voice a lot. And I still loathe it.
But here’s the important thing – though I loathe the sound of my own voice, I don’t let it stop me creating the videos I need for my business. I’ve just learned to deal with it.

Now I didn’t know any better when I started creating videos, and it took me about thirty attempts before I started getting comfortable with the sound of my voice when I was editing. And I posted every single one of those first thirty videos to my YouTube channel.
And I can’t watch them now. They make me cringe. If I was doing it again I’d create a series of videos purely for the express purpose of getting comfortable on camera.

That’s what I came here today for – to share a way YOU can do this, if you’re in the position where you need to create online videos for your business but are finding it a struggle.

Get comfortable with video – One take at a time

So here’s what you do, create a series of 10 videos, edit them, post them to your YouTube channel and make them private or unlisted so no-one will ever see them. Even though you are never going to show these videos to ANYONE – not even your nearest and dearest – you still have to be professional

Set up your video camera in a room where you can have privacy and film a 5 to 10 minute monologue once a day for 10 days. I don’t care about lights or how the shoot is set up – all I care about is that you get comfortable with talking to a camera and editing your footage and not freezing at the sound of your voice.

The only other ingredient you need is a topic list. Pick 10 topics that you can talk about for 5 to 10 minutes. You could talk about your favourite sports team, your favourite band or your favourite film.
I know Keith likes his films, so every day for the 10 Day duration you could talk about a different film. And why you liked it. Or how it could be made better. It doesn’t really matter what you talk about.

Just talk into the camera for 5-10 minutes, then when you’ve finished, it’s vital that you take that footage,import it into your computer and edit it as if you were going to post it for all to see. (But don’t!)
It’s amazing, how quickly you get comfortable talking into a camera. You’ll find that though you never grow to like the sound of your own voice, when you hear it in your headphones it’s becoming bearable.
Once you get to that stage, you can start thinking about harnessing the power of online video.

The Gary Vaynerchuk test

Have you heard of Gary Vaynerchuk, he’s the poster boy for the online video generation? I won’t bore you with how he’s leveraged online video – Google his name and read about him, you’ll find out for yourself. He was probably one of the first video bloggers out there – he started in 2006 and he started creating a daily video on the topic of Wine.

Go to his website – tv.winelibrary.com – and watch a few of his latest videos. When you’ve watched two or three episodes, find the Archive section and go back to 2006 and watch some of the early videos and compare the two. The Gary V of 2011 is totally comfortable in the video medium and to use his own words, is absolutely crushing it. But the Gary V of 2006 is a bit stilted, awkward and unsure of himself. The difference is that he’s had a ton of practice at speaking to a camera and got very comfortable.

The more comfortable he’s got, the more his personality has come through. The more personality he’s displayed, the bigger his audience has become. It’s no coincidence that the bigger his audience, the more his business has grown (from a turnover of $4 million a few years ago, to $60 million now).

Online Video is only going to get bigger

I lied to you earlier, I said Online Video was the coming wave. Well, it’s not, it’s already here. Gary V has been making videos for 5 years and I’ve been making them for 2 and a half years. The question is why aren’t you making videos to promote your products or services? If you’re not making videos because you don’t like the sound of your own voice…. that’s something you can fix.

With a small investment of time you can get to the stage where you are no longer feel like sharp nails are being dragged down a blackboard when you hear yourself. You’ll still loathe the sound of your voice, but what’s important is you won’t let it stop you from creating videos.
And then you too, can surf the video wave to promote your business.

Time to have your say

Do you use video on your site?
Do you like the sound of your own voice or have you just learned to live with it?
Has this post tempted you to have a go at using video on your website?
Let me have your thoughts on anything and everything in the comments below – look forward to hearing from you.

About Paul – Paul Wolfe started out as a Quantity Surveyor but found that the 9 to 5 didn’t agree with him. He escaped to the French Alps where he formed a group and played bass guitar. He took his first online steps teaching bass guitar via online videos and soon had students in America, Canada, Argentina, Holland, Australia, Singapore, Germany and Denmark. Paul now teaches business online at his hugely successful site “One Spoon at a Time“. If you’re interested in Marketing or Online Business be sure to pay him a visit.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:

Paul Wolfe for his super guest post. Paul blogs over at “One Spoon at a Time“.
Mish Sukharev for the Microphone thumbnail on flickr
Katie Tegtmeyer for the Finger to lips photo on flickr

What a great occasion, the 2011 Oscars Award Ceremony, attended by the great and the good and there standing out like a varicose vein in winter, “The King’s Speech“.
Best film, best director, best original screenplay and of course best actor, Mr Colin Firth.
From Darcy’s wet shirted enticement to stirrings in his abdomen… does this man have no self control?

But enough talk of his peccadilloes let’s take a look at Colin Firth’s acceptance speech.
I don’t know what you think, but I loved it. This is my take on his speech:

1. Humorous opening – “I have a feeling my career has just peaked” – nice easy start to his speech, relaxes the audience and the laughter relaxes him.
2. Humility – “I’m going to be brief with my gratitude for being on this extraordinary list of nominees” – even hugely successful movie stars need humility.
3. Gave thanks – “My deepest thanks to the academy” – one of the main purposes of an acceptance speech is to give thanks.
4. Humour throughout – “Harvey who took me on twenty years ago… when I was a mere child sensation” – a smattering of humour throughout keeps the audience with you.
5. One serious point to give the speech focus – “David Seidler whose own struggles have given very many people the benefits of his beautiful voice” – even a humorous speech needs one serious point or the speech becomes a piece of fluff.
6. Just enough emotion – he stays in control but there is just a hint that his voice is on the verge of cracking.
7. Spoke to the time he was given – the winners have obviously been told to be brief… and he is. It’s just good manners to stick to the time you have been given.
8. Finished by going back to the beginning – “And now if you’ll all excuse me, I have some impulses I have to attend to back stage” – audiences love closure, finishing by going back to the beginning is a great way of providing closure and signalling that you have finished.

I’m not saying it was a perfect speech, there were a few umms and ahhhs and he kept looking down at the award… but eh, I enjoyed it. Take a look at the video below and see what you think.
This is the best quality video I could find, my apologies for the sound and picture quality.

Did you notice how quiet the audience were?
Silence can mean boredom, and I should know, but on this occasion the audience are quiet because they are listening intently to what Colin Firth has to say. They want to hear more.
Colin has both good content and delivery, but he has something else that lifts his speech… occasion.

Content delivery and…. occasion

In my last post I looked at Content and Delivery but both are secondary to the occasion.
If you look at the truly great speeches, they were all delivered at times of heightened emotion or emotional turmoil.

• Abraham Lincoln – “Four score and seven years ago our fathers…”
• Winston Churchill – “We shall fight them on the beaches…”
• Martin Luther King – “I have a dream that one day this nation…”
• John F Kennedy – “Ask not what your country can do for you…”
• Earl Spencer – “I stand before you today the representative of a family in grief…”

Five classic speeches delivered on occasions of high emotion and I defy anyone to read them… and not be moved.

“Churchill’s speech after the military disaster that led to the evacuation of the British Army from Europe at Dunkirk… is a great speech… not only was the prime minister’s deep throated delivery forcefully defiant in a hushed Parliament, and broadcast to the world, but the overriding reason was the historic occasion: at that moment tyranny was on the verge of victory, and democracy’s main weapon was Churchill’s rallying voice.”
Great Speeches in History – William Safire

The Oscars may not have the gravitas of the occasions above, but there is plenty of emotion flying around. As Paul Hogan points out in his 3G’s speech… “The atmosphere is pure electricity.”

Your speeches, your great occasions

What are your great occasions, your occasions of heightened emotion?
You may never have to deliver a “Fight them on the beaches” speech, but there will be times when you can make a difference.

• Family events – christenings, weddings, funerals.
• Work related – job interviews, presentations.
• Social – your speeches at the Speakers Club you’ve just joined.
• Blogging – videos, guest posts.

I know what you’re going to say… these aren’t great occasions. Well they are to you so perhaps you should treat everything you write or perform, as though it was your Gettysburg Address, just in case.

Time to have your say

What did you think of Colin Firth’s acceptance speech?
What great speeches have you heard and what was the occasion?
Do you deliver your speeches as though every occasion was a great occasion?
Do you write your blog posts as though each one is a historical gem?
Let me have your thoughts on anything and everything in the comments below – look forward to hearing from you.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:

Period Dramas for the Colin Firth thumbnail

I was chatting to Colin Firth last week…. not that Colin Firth, my neighbour Colin Firth.

Incidentally my wife has never been the same since she saw that Colin Firth in the lake scene in Pride and Prejudice.
Even now if you mention Mr. Darcy… her legs turn to jelly.

Anyway, I was explaining to Colin that many actors just can’t give speeches. They can breathe life into lines written by others, they can add drama and passion, but ask them to be themselves and deliver their own material and they deliver the lines with all the verve and panache of a speaking clock.

“…the only example of an actor who did become a great public speaker that I can think of is Ronald Reagan, but he’d already been rolling his own speeches on the lecture circuit for General Electric long before he became Governor of California – with a contract from the company that required him to tour GE plants ten weeks out of the year, often demanding of him fourteen speeches per day”
Professor Max Atkinson

And it was reassuring to know that Colin agreed with me. He may have had a couple of white wines, but he did agree with me.

Thing is, a great speech is a mixture of two things… content and delivery.
The content gives a speech form and meaning and the delivery holds the attention of the audience and makes your words stand out, like a varicose vein in winter.
Content and delivery, the Yin and Yang of a great speech, without both, your speech falls apart.

A great speech needs content and delivery

What an actor brings to a speech is the delivery, so if you want to learn how to deliver a speech watch the actors.
If you really want to see actors deliver a speech, take in a little Shakespeare at your local theatre. There are lots of great speeches in Shakespeare’s plays and stage actors really know how to use their voices.

“We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition:
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.”
Shakespeare – Henry V

Fortunately I live about half an hour from Stratford-upon-Avon so I’m a regular visitor to the RSC and Swan theatres. Don’t worry if you can’t make it to the theatre, take a look at this fantastic video with over 40 examples of great speeches in films.
It’s only a couple of minutes long and don’t blink… or you’ll miis half a dozen.

That is one great video, which I first saw over at JohnZimmer’s Public Speaking site and I hope it reminds you of some of your favourite films and some of the great speeches in them.
Point is, as the video shows, actors can deliver great speeches, but they need great material to produce a great speech.

Time to have your say

So what’s your strong point, content or delivery?
I guess that most bloggers are good with content, but could you deliver your content with power and passion?
Perhaps you have a great voice but can’t write a speech to save your life?
Let me have your thoughts on anything and everything in the comments below.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:

Professor Max Atkinson for his post on Award Speeches
RSC for the Actor thumbnail
John Zimmer over at Manner of Speaking for posting the film clips video

All this talk about which film will win the best film award, The King’s Speech, Black Swan or The Social Network, has got me thinking about the Oscars.
And when you think about the Oscars, you can’t help but think about those awful acceptance speeches.

These guys may be trained actors who know how to use their voice and deliver lines, but when it comes to a real speech, they couldn’t lead a congregation in silent prayer.

But why should we expect actors to be any good at giving speeches?
This is what Professor Max Atkinson has to say:

“After all, their skill is to deliver other people’s lines in a way that portrays characters other than themselves, which is a very different business from writing your own lines and coming across as yourself.”

Fair comment Prof.
So if you’re an Oscar nominee looking for advice before you pen your acceptance speech, fear not dear friend, your acceptance speech doesn’t have to be a blubber fest, easypublicspeaking is here for you.

Advice from Crocodile Dundee

Fortunately Mr Paul Hogan, Crocodile Dundee himself, has looked into the problem and has some useful advice for the winners when they deliver their speeches.
His advice can be summed up in the three G’s.

• Be Gracious
• Be Grateful
• Get off

I don’t think that I can improve on that so just sit back and let Mr Hogan spin his straw words of wisdom into golden nuggets of advice.

There you have it dear friends, the 3 G’s of golden advice from Mr Hogan himself.
And in closing I’d like to thank my mother, my father, my…………
I love you all, goodnight.

Time for you to have your say

So what do you think?
Why are acceptance speeches so bad?
What’s the most cringeworthy acceptance speech you’ve ever heard. The one that made you wriggle with embarrassment?
Are there any Brits out there who changed their nationality after watching Kate Winslet’s acceptance speech at the 2009 Golden Globe awards?
Let me have your thoughts on anything and everything in the comments below.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:

Professor Max Atkinson for his post on Award Speeches
Prayitno for the Oscar photo thumbnail on flickr
Melanie Kissell over at SOLO MOMPRENEUR for showing me how to write short sharp posts

I watched a great film over the Christmas break, Chocolat starring Juliette Binoche, Judi Dench, Alfred Molina and Captain Jack Sparrow himself… Johnny Depp. I’ve seen it before but I’d forgotten what a clever film it is, well worth a second viewing.

The film is set in a small French village and the plot revolves around the arrival of a single mother who sets up a chocolaterie and begins to tempt the locals with the sensual pleasures of her offerings. Unfortunately this is not a village that is big on sensual pleasures and the Mayor and Priest are soon plotting our heroine’s downfall.
Enter Johnny Depp as an itinerant river gypsy whose alternative lifestyle only increases the threat to the values and lifestyle of the village.

This is a film that examines human frailty, it deals with prejudice, bigotry, hypocrisy, self interest but ultimately… it offers us redemption.

These are weighty issues, issues that most of us would rather ignore. Hardly the stuff of riveting viewing.
So why is the film so successful?
Because it does three things…

1. It makes a serious point, it has a purpose – this is not a film about chocolate, although the French are very serious about their chocolate. In fact they consider UK chocolate to be grossly inferior to their own. An attitude for which every Frenchman should be horsewhipped. But I’m a tolerant man… and forgive them that.
   It’s a film that shows you how others behave and then asks you to look at your own behaviour.
2. It makes the point without preaching or lecturing – there are no lengthy sermons or bouts of breast beating in this film. It simply uses gentle humour and caricature to shine a light on the darker side of human nature.
3. It has an ending that leaves you feeling good – there are emotional highs and lows throughout the film, you laugh you cry, but as the closing credits roll you feel that perhaps the world is not such a bad place. The ending offers us redemption and leaves you feeling optimistic and positive about the future.

Three little things that turn a celluloid piece of eye candy into a satisfying and uplifting experience.

Try it in your Speeches and Presentations

Strikes me that the movie moguls have come up with a winning formula so let’s see how you can apply the Chocolat principles to your speeches and presentations.

Make sure that your speech or presentation has a purpose

Before you start writing your speech make sure you have a clear purpose. What are you trying to achieve? To clarify what you are trying to achieve, and to remind you when you start to wander, at the top of your script write… “The purpose of this speech is……………”
Everything you write should be written with your purpose in mind.

Your purpose could be:

• To inform people of the reasons for the Credit Crunch
• To entertain people at a social gathering
• To persuade people to vote for you

“The common knowledge divides presentations by various purposes. Traditionally, the big three are speeches to inform, speeches to entertain and speeches to persuade. The uncommon knowledge is that everything you say involves persuasion” – Malcolm Kushner

Once you decide the purpose of your speech or presentation… writing it becomes a whole lot easier and the end result will be much more effective.

Don’t preach or lecture to the audience

What’s the old saying? “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.” It’s the same when speaking to an audience. They don’t want to listen to you preaching and telling them that they should change their ways. Forget the vinegar and start using the jam.
Entertain the audience, add some humour, tell them a story and get them on your side, and then you can fulfil your purpose and make the points you want to make.

“When the mouth is open for laughter, you may be able to shove in a little food for thought.” – Dr Virginia Trooper

Amuse, entertain, add a bit of showbiz. The audience will have a good time and don’t worry, they’ll remember your message.

Make sure the audience leave feeling better than when they arrived

If you want to depress the audience, ask them to watch the TV news or read a newspaper. Your job as a public speaker is to inspire the audience and leave them feeling positive and optimistic. The audience should leave happy, content and full of the warm fuzzies.
Give the audience good news, give them solutions to their problems, transform the poverty of their expectations with the riches of your words.

Even if the situation appears hopeless and you don’t have an answer or a solution, point to the future give them hope. For a brief moment for a fleeting second, let them believe.

Let me have your thoughts

Have you seen the film?
Do you apply the Chocolat principles to your speeches and presentations?
Do you apply the Chocolat principles to your blog posts?
Let me have your thoughts and ideas in the comments below.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:

The Internet Movie Database for the Chocolat thumbnail
EuroMagic – Martin L for The Chocolates photo on flickr

Last week in June, first week in July… Wimbledon fortnight, in the UK sales of tennis rackets go through the roof as people are inspired by their heroes.
The icy coolness of Borg, the grit and determination of Nadal, the sheer bloody mindedness of McEnroe and the balletic arrogance of Federer. Each of them transforms a simple game into an art form and provides inspiration along the way.

It’s the same in any area of life, you meet inspirational people who point your life in a completely new direction. That school teacher who inspired you to work towards getting to university, your first boss who showed you what could be achieved by sheer hard work and that good friend who showed you the value of real friendship.

Public Speaking is no different, we all need inspiration and this video will provide just that. It will move you, inspire you and take your Public Speaking to the next level.

This is a TED video, which I first saw on John Zimmer’s website, “Manner of Speaking“. John has some great material on his site so if you get a few minutes, head on over and take a look.

“TED is a small non-profit organisation devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences — the TED Conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Oxford UK each summer — TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Project and Open TV Project, the inspiring TED Fellows and TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize.”
From the TED website http://www.ted.com

The video is over 20 minutes long, but I guarantee that if you watch the first minute, you’ll watch it to the end. And believe me… this is one ending you won’t want to miss!

Don’t analyse just watch, learn and above all… enjoy.

Were you inspired?

What do you think?
What did you like most about the speech, the message, the humour, the interplay with the audience?
Has the video made you look at Public Speaking in a new way?
Leave me a comment and let me have your thoughts.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:

John Zimmer for posting the video on his website.
TED for providing such great material.

Take a look at the photo, what do you see?

A letter, a lady and a light, but I bet you’re not satisfied with just the facts. You want to know the story behind those facts….. Who’s the lady? What’s in the letter? Is it a love letter? And most importantly is the ending to this story happy or sad?

Don’t know what you decided but for me that flickering candle can only mean one thing… sad, sad, sad.

We’re all the same, you, me, Mr Spock, we see the world through a mist of facts but we make sense of it with our emotions.

Writers and Playwrights use emotions…

"If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?"
Merchant of Venice by William Shakespeare

Songwriters use emotions…

"And when no hope was left in sight. On that starry, starry night. You took your life, as lovers often do. But I could have told you, Vincent. This world was never meant for one as beautiful as you."
Vincent by Don McLean

Film makers use emotions…

"I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time… like tears in rain… Time to die"
The replicant Batty from the film Blade Runner

And as a Public Speaker… you should definitely use emotions.

Why use emotions in your Speeches and Presentations?

It can be scary to stand in front of an audience and show your emotions, you’re letting them see the real you. Much easier to deliver your speech from behind a protective cloak of formality and facts. Here are a few reasons you should throw that cloak away, take a few risks and lift your Public Speaking to the next level.

1. Emotions let the audience know that you are human – the audience don’t want to listen to a fact spitting machine, they want to connect with a living breathing human being. Make that connection by showing your emotions and letting them know you are just like them. You get angry, you get sad, you know how to have fun and you know when to show compassion.
2. Emotions help us to remember – we remember things that have emotional connections, for instance… what scene do you remember most from Walt Disney’s Bambi? I bet it’s the scene where Bambi’s mum senses the hunters and shouts "Run Bambi Run". We see Bambi running and then we hear a shot…..
   Why do most of us remember that scene? Because that scene smashes into our hearts like an emotional juggernaut and we bear the scars forever. If you want the audience to remember your speech, your main points, your call to action, give them a few emotional hooks to remember.
3. Emotions make us take action – Phan Thị Kim Phúc is the child in the Pulitzer Prize winning photograph taken during the Vietnam War. The iconic photo shows her at about age nine running naked on a road after being burned on her back by a napalm attack. Once the public had seen that photograph the politics were swept aside by emotion… the war had to end.
   

   "Change happens in the boiler room of our emotions – so find out how to light their fires."
   Jeff Dewar

No need to become Mr Angry overnight, build up your emotional arsenal piece by piece.
Start by injecting a little enthusiasm and passion into your speeches and presentations. Then add a sprinkling of fun, enjoyment and happiness. And when you have the right subject and feel comfortable… bring in the emotions that have the biggest impact but most of us are reluctant to use, anger and sadness.

"A speech is not about facts and numbers; it’s about story, meaning. A memorable speech rests on the quality of the connection between the speaker and the audience."
Tony Carlson from his book The How of Wow

How to show emotions

As a Public Speaker you have a great advantage when it comes to using emotion. You can use emotive words but more importantly, you can use your voice and your body.

"Learning takes place when you kick them into a higher attention level. Touch their hearts, their minds will follow."
Lilly Walters

So lets say that you want to show the audience how enthusiastic you are about something… what do you do? Just think what you do normally when you’re enthusiastic. I speak louder, speak quicker, become animated, my face lights up and I smile. You may do that or you may do something different.

Once you know what you do normally, do the same in front of the audience, but exaggerate everything. How much you exaggerate depends on the size of the audience. If you’re talking to three people, there’s no need to exaggerate at all. If you’re talking to thirty people, you exaggerate slightly. If you’re talking to three hundred people… you can really let it go. And if you’re talking to three thousand people… could you please send me the name of your agent.

Here is a check list to run through when you’re trying to convey a particular emotion.

1. Use the right words – no need to use big words, but at moments of high emotion you can use a little rhetoric to add impact. In the opening line of his eulogy to his sister Diane Princess of Wales, Lord Spencer uses a list of three to emphasise his simple words.
   

   “I stand before you today the representative of a family in grief, in a country in mourning before a world in shock.”
   Lord Spencer at the funeral of his sister Diana Princess of Wales

2. Use the right voice – your voice is the most important element in conveying emotion. You can change volume, pace, pitch, intonation and you can….. pause, to convey emotion.
3. Body gestures – make sure your body is in sync with your voice. If you are talking quickly to show enthusiasm, make sure you are animated. If you pause to show sadness, make sure you stand still.
4. Facial gestures – take a look at the two girls in the photo at the start of this section. Great facial gesture done without thinking. What facial gestures can you use to convey your emotion? Even if the audience can’t see your face, making the gesture will have an effect on your voice, which the audience will hear.

Best way to use emotions

Here are a few tips on how to get the most out of using emotions.

1. Use emotions in short bursts – if you use an emotion for too long, it loses its impact. The solution is to use emotions in short bursts with normal bits in between. Light and shade, ebb and flow.
2. Go easy on the negative emotions – emotions such as anger and sadness can have the greatest effect on an audience but too much can make them feel uneasy. Use the negative emotions sparingly.
3. Mix up those emotions – to get the maximum impact from an emotion, contrast it against an opposing emotion. For example, if you have a sad section in your speech make the preceding section light hearted and humourous. Then slowly lead the audience into the sad section. Make em laugh, make em cry.
   

   "Humour is only a fragrance, a decoration… everything human is pathetic. The secret source of humour itself is not joy but sorrow."
   Mark Twain

4. Finish on a positive – don’t forget… if you’ve taken the audience to a dark place, don’t leave them there. Bring them back by offering them a solution, giving them hope, showing them that they can change things for the better. Make sure they leave feeling better than when they arrived.
   

   "Audiences want speakers to end speeches on a high note – to give them a fleeting look at the land of promise. Who wants to listen to the preachers of doom and gloom?"
   Thomas Montalbo from his book The Power of Eloquence

5. Don’t try and fake it – only use emotions that you genuinely feel. Exaggerate those emotions but don’t try and fake it. You’re a Public Speaker not a con man.

How do you use Emotions?

If you’re a Public Speaker, someone who gives Presentations, a writer or a blogger, how do you use emotions? Do you concentrate on happiness, do you concentrate on sadness, do you use a mixture? Are there emotions you avoid. Let me have your thoughts and ideas in the comments below.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:

Simon Howden for Victorian Love Letter photo on free digital photos
John Steven Fernandez for The Eye photo on flickr
Ali Brohi for Two Girls photo on flickr
Elena Lagaria for Girl with Tear photo on flickr

I’ve just had a great long weekend in London. I took Friday off and went down on the train. Had a stroll on the embankment, visited the Tower of London and the highlight of the weekend… a visit to the Globe theatre to see A Midsummer Nights Dream.

The Globe theatre is constructed in the original Shakespearian style, circular on plan with an open air section in front of the stage. This is theatre as Shakespeare meant it to be – theatre in the raw.
The layout allows the actors to interact with the audience, to form a bond, to pull them into the play. Public Speakers call this interaction "Rapport" and that’s what this post is all about… Rapport.

A speech is not a monologue

As a Public Speaker you should never think of your speech as a monologue, a one way process. Although only one person speaks, a speech is still a two way process between the speaker and the audience. Your job is to establish and reinforce that interaction, to make the audience feel involved.

"A speech, even a boardroom presentation, is live theatre… More important, what makes a memorable speech is the same thing that makes a memorable stage play, the quality of the connection between the audience and the player."
Tony Carlson from his book The How of Wow

Let’s see how the actors make that connection and then see how you can do the same in your speeches and presentations.

How the actors create Rapport

The layout of the Globe theatre increases the interaction between the actors and the audience. The stage is low and the audience closest to the stage are standing. The actors aren’t performing to a blacked out theatre, they can touch the audience, they can sense their reactions, they can see the whites of their eyes. But Shakespeare used lots of other tricks to create rapport with the audience.

1. Humour – humour creates an immediate bond between the actors and the audience and the laughter of the audience is their way of taking part. Shakespeare could be described as the Max Miller of his day. Who’s Max Miller? Go ask your mum.
2. Physical interaction – the low stage of the Globe plus the standing section of the audience directly in front of the stage, allows the actors easy access to the audience. They can go into the audience, they can make an entrance through the audience, they can become part of the audience and they can bring audience members onto the stage.
3. Provoke a response from the audience – humour is the easiest way to provoke a response from the audience – you say something funny and the audience laugh – but there are other techniques that the actors use.
   • Spoof sympathy – you’ve seen this a thousand times. The actor comes to the front of the stage, looks at the audience and says something like… " I’m all alone, nobody loves me." and then pretends to cry. The audience know it’s a spoof but they still join in and say… Awwwww. That’s the response the actor is looking for.
   • Stun the audience into silence – sometimes the loudest response of all… can be silence. There are moments of great sadness in Shakespeare’s plays and at those moments, you can hear a pin drop.
4. Adlib responses to the audience – Elizabethan audiences showed no reverence for the Bard’s work. They shouted out whenever they felt like it. Audiences at the Globe are more subdued but they still shout out comments… and how they love it when the actor comes back with a reply. In the production I saw several of the actors came out of character and entered into the banter with the audience… went down an absolute storm.

"Books have been written about the power of theatre, but they all boil down to one thing: entertainment. Theatre engages our senses, our sensibilities. It makes us aware of the subtleties and ironies of life."
Tony Carlson from his book The How of Wow

That’s how the actors create rapport… now it’s your turn.

How you can add Rapport to your Speeches and Presentations

So what can you learn from Shakespeare? What can you steal to help you create rapport with your audience? Surprisingly… rather a lot. Here are a few techniques to get you started.

1. Eye contact – interaction with the audience starts with eye contact. The majority of the time you should be looking at the audience, not down at your notes.For a few pointers on maintaining good eye contact, take a look at my post – Eye Contact in Public Speaking.
2. Watch your I / You ratio – this is an idea from Patricia Fripp, she explains that to make sure that the audience feel included in your speech make sure that you use the word You more than you use the word I.
3. Humour – one of the easiest ways to build a bridge to your audience and get feedback. What’s the feedback? Laughter… or lack of it in my case. Don’t forget that humour in speeches is not about telling jokes it’s about making the points you want to make but in a humourous way. For ideas on adding humour to your speeches and presentations check out my post – Public speaking humour.
4. Ask a question – easy to get a response from the audience if you ask them a question. Two types of questions you can use are:
   • Real question – this is a question where you expect a reply, such as:
     "Has anybody bought a ticket for the 2012 Olympics?"
   • Rhetorical question – this is a question where you don’t expect a reply, such as.
     "Is the world such a bad place?"

   Whatever type of question you ask…… make sure that you pause, look at the audience, wait for the response and if appropriate, give a reply.

5. Provoke a response from the audience – you can use the Spoof Sympathy or Stun the audience into silence as the actors do or try the methods below:
   • Ask them to do something.
     "Put your hand up if you drove here tonight."
   • Ask them to think about something – this is the mental equivalent of asking them to do something.
     "Think about your first day at school. Were you happy? Were you sad? Did you cry for your mum?"
   • Pretend that you’ve forgotten something, hesitate and get the audience to shout out the answer.
     "That actress in Sex and the City, Sarah Jessica…….. " – if you scratch your head and pretend that you’ve forgotten the name, someone in the audience will shout out "Parker" and you can say "thank you sir / madam, I was having a senior moment."

   A great way to involve the audience…… provoke a responce.

6. Adlib – you don’t have to stick rigidly to your script. If something goes wrong, if someone says something, you can use the opportunity to throw in a few adlibs and interact with the audience.

"A speech is not about facts and numbers; it’s about story, meaning. A memorable speech rests on the quality of the connection between the speaker and the audience. Use techniques of theatre – plot, character, suspense – to connect."
Tony Carlson from his book The How of Wow

Take another look at the quote above, especially the bit that says "A memorable speech rests on the quality of the connection between the speaker and the audience." and make sure that in your next speech or presentation… you make that connection.

You are taking a risk whenever you use Rapport

Once you start interacting with the audience… you can’t predict what’s going to happen. So in that sense you’re taking a risk. To help reduce that risk make sure that you prepare. If you ask a question…. what responses might come back, if anything goes wrong… what will you say. It always helps… if you can prepare those great saver lines and adlibs.

Add Rapport to your Speeches and Presentations

Take a look at your own speeches. Are they monologues or do you include the audience? Take another look at the various techniques for creating rapport, pick out two or three for your next speech and don’t forget to leave me a comment and let me know which work for you.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:

Francisco Rojas for Buckingham Palace / Guards photo on flickr
Kai Chan Vong for Tower Bridge photo on flickr
Graeme Weatherston for Millenium Bridge / St Pauls photo on free digital photos

Special thanks to the Globe Theatre for allowing me to use the top graphic "William Gaunt plays Worcester in Henry IV Part 1 at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre. Copyright John Haynes 2010"
Particular thanks to Sian-Estelle Petty Communications Assistant at the Globe for her help, assistance and support.

A message from the Globe.
“Due to high box office demand Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre has extended the 2010 Kings and Rogues season with an additional 8 performances of Henry IV Part 1 and Henry IV Part 2. The season will now close on 9 October.”

If you’re planning a visit to London treat yourself to a fantastic evening at the Globe. Visit the Globe Theatre booking office and make a booking.

Did the graphic get your attention? Did it shock you? Did it make you stare? Did it make you pull a face?
Don’t worry it’s not me after a night on the town and it is paint not blood!
Point I’m making, is that pictures grab your attention, they provoke an emotional response. Powerful allies for any Public Speaker or Presenter.
In order to harness that power you have to turn your abstract ideas into concrete images using words not paint. You have to create word pictures.

Here’s an example.
At the end of his career, General Douglas MacArthur returned to West Point, to address the cadets. He spoke as a soldier of one era to the soldiers of another….

“The shadows are lengthening for me. The twilight is here. My days of old have vanished – tone and tints. They have gone glimmering through the dreams of things that were. Their memory is one of wondrous beauty, watered by tears and coaxed and caressed by the smiles of yesterday. I listen, then, but with thirsty ear, for the witching melody of faint bugles blowing reveille, of far drums beating the long roll.”

This is a great example because it uses two senses. We see the “wondrous beauty, watered by tears..” but we also hear the “faint bugles blowing reveille..”. If you read that and you aren’t moved… check your pulse!

A more well known example.
This is an exerpt from Reverend Martin Luther King Jr’s “I have a dream” speech.

“Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all God’s children. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.”

A passage full of images that not only drive home the message, but make the message easy to remember.

In his book “Lend Me Your Ears” Professor Max Atkinson says…
“…. something all effective speakers have in common is a capacity to use imagery in interesting and imaginative ways.”

Good speakers know that people remember pictures far longer than words. They know the images will be remembered when the words are long forgotten. So let’s take a look at the various techniques you can use. Techniques that will make your words stand out… like a varicose vein in winter.

Similes

Similes make it clear that you are comparing something to something else. They use the words “like” or “as”. “Her smile lit up the room like a thousand suns” is a simile.
Muhammad Ali’s catchphrase is a great example of a couple of similes… “I’ll be floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee.”

You can use similes to make a serious point, add a touch of humour or add a few rhetorical flourishes to your speeches and presentations.

To make a serious point

The Archbishop George Carey used a simile, which he developed during his eulogy at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.

“Like the sun, she bathed us in her warm glow. Now that the sun has set and the cool of the evening has come, some of the warmth we absorbed is flowing back to her.”

To add a touch of humour

Short sharp similes are a great way to add humour to your speeches and there are thousands to choose from.

“Paying alimony is like feeding hay to a dead horse.”
Groucho Marx

“He made a noise like a pig swallowing half a cabbage.”
P.G. Wodehouse

“Barbara Cartland’s eyes looked like two small crows that had crashed into a chalk cliff.”
Clive James

“Writing free verse is like playing tennis with the net down.”
Robert Frost

To form a three part list

The three part list is a common rhetorical device used by speakers (more on rhetorical devices in a later post). It is often used by politicians to trigger applause. For example… “I shall fight, fight and fight again to save the party I love.” Hugh Gaitskell.

“A hippie is someone who walks like Tarzan, looks like Jane and smells like Cheetah.” Ronald Reagan

To form a puzzle – solution sequence

A puzzle – solution sequence is another rhetorical device. In the first part, you pose a puzzle to the audience, in the second part you give them the answer. For example…
“Life can seem like a blunt pencil… pointless” Blackadder
Because of their two part structure similes are ideal for forming puzzle – solution sequences.

“John Donne’s poems are like the peace of God… they pass all understanding.”
King James I

Serious point, humorous point or a touch of rhetoric, spice up your speeches and presentations with a sprinkling of similes.

Metaphors

Metaphor doesn’t use the words “as” or “like” it leaves it to the listener to get the point for themselves. If you say “Your heart melted”, that’s a metaphor.
Lots of metaphors were used to describe Margaret Thatcher. She was known as “the iron lady”, “Atilla the Hen”, and the “imaculate misconception”.

Metaphors don’t have a two part structure and are therefore not as useful as similes for adding rhetoric. They do however add considerable power to your word pictures and even… a bit of humour.

Pour on the power

“There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires.”
Nelson Mandella

“Opportunity eagerly stretches out her arms to us. As we open our eyes each morning, she forgets and forgives any neglect of the past. Each night we burn the records of the day; at sunrise, every soul is born again.”
Cavett Robert

“Life is a narrow vale between the cold and barren peaks of two eternities. We strive in vain to look beyond the heights. We cry aloud and the only answer is the echo of our wailing cry”
Robert Green

A splash of humour

“… his whole tone was that of a disillusioned, sardonic philanderer who had drunk the wine-cup of illicit love to its dregs but was always ready to fill up again and have another.”
P.G. Wodehouse

Not as versatile but in many ways more powerful than similes look for opportunities to weave metaphors into your speeches and presentations.

Analogies

Analogies are extended similies and metaphors used to develop and flesh out a theme. For instance, you could say that business is like a game of football. You have to learn how to play as a team. You have to know when to attack and when to defend and you have to learn that you don’t always win. Of course if you’re an England supporter… you already know that.

Martin Luther King used the analogy of “Cashing a cheque at a bank” in his famous “I have a dream speech”. He developed it in a way that summed up the issues that had given rise to the civil rights movement.

“In a sense we have come to our nation’s capital to cash a cheque. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.
This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of colour are concerned…”

To give your speech a framework to hang your points on and to help the audience remember those points, try using an analogy.

Go easy on the adverbs and adjectives

When you first start adding “word pictures” to your speeches, you may be tempted to create them using adverbs and adjectives… resist at all costs.
In his book “On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction”
William Zinsser has a few things to say about Adverbs and Adjectives…

On Adverbs…
“Most adverbs are unnecessary.
Don’t tell us that the radio blared loudly – blare connotes loudness.
Don’t tell us that he clenched his teeth tightly – there is no other way to clench teeth.
The same applies to effortlessly easy, slightly spartan, totally flabbergasted.
Don’t use adverbs unless they do necessary work. Spare us the news that the winning athlete grinned widely.”

On adjectives…
“Most adjectives are also unnecessary.
Most writers sow adjectives almost unconsciously into the soil of their prose to make it more lush and pretty and the sentences become longer and longer as they fill up with stately elms, frisky kittens, hard bitten detectives, sleepy lagoons.
Not every oak has to be gnarled.”

This may be a book about writing well but the same is true for your speech script.

Let me know your favourite word pictures

Do you have any favourite similes and metaphors?
What similes and metaphors do the graphics on this post conjure up for you?
Let your comments flow… like fine wine at a feast.

Credits:
My thanks and gratitude to:
Dan for Bleeding man photo on flickr
EclecticBlogs for Sunrise photo on flickr
Seyed Mostafa Zamani for Melting heart photo on flickr
Vramak for Football photo on flickr

And the following authors whose books I have used as references and quoted throughout this article.

Professor Max Atkinson – Lend Me Your Ears: All You Need to Know About Making Speeches and Presentations
Rosemarie Jarski – The Funniest Thing You Never Said: The Ultimate Collection of Humorous Quotations
William Zinsser – On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction
P.G. Wodehouse – Wodehouse Nuggets: An Anthology
Robert Baldwin and Ruth Paris – Book of Similes

Please note – links to books are Amazon affiliate links