Great Speeches
We all have to make presentations, give talks, present our ideas in meetings, or get up in front of a group and talk - but we never think of them as speeches.
Reality - we are giving a speech. And if we are going to give a speech, we might as well make it a great speech.
When I was put in the position of having to make a number of presentations, I thought I did well. Then one of the other speakers pulled me aside and said "your material is good - but your presentation stinks".
That was a wake-up call and this is the result of my search to find some resources on "How to Make Great Speeches".
And, yes, I'm a lot better at speaking now, but I still work on improving. DT
Those engaged in different trades, professions and departments of commerce have organizations for the protection and promotion of their respective vocations, and practically these associations have become debating societies, reaching conclusions and forming rules which cannot be ignored by those whose business interests are involved.
The doctor is often summoned to testify in court, perhaps he is associated with the faculty of some medical college, where he is called upon to lecture.
The business man is frequently placed upon educational committees; the farmer called upon at agricultural meetings; the employee to explain business affairs to his employer; in fact, there is no position in life that cannot be bene-fitted and advanced by knowledge of public speaking.
An excellent exercise is that of paraphrasing, translating written thought into one's own words as rapidly as possible
Acquire the habit of listening critically to the best speakers, noting the words particularly when the climax is reached and the speaker's emotions are deeply stirred; afterward try to reproduce the speech in your own words
Every speech, however short, should contain, beside the introductory, a short story illustrating the subject, the climax or summing up, and the close.
It has been well said that an anecdote, if well told, will prove more interesting and potential than the most eloquent utterance or the most elaborate argument. Large audiences have frequently been convulsed with laughter or bowed down with grief by its mighty influence. They are also rich treasures to the man of the world who knows how to introduce them in fit places in conversation. No speech is complete either at a public gathering, at the banquet table, social session, or even small home gathering, without an appropriate story.
The first thing for the public speaker to do is to gain the confidence and sympathy of his audience. Under no circumstances is he to antagonize or prejudice his audience against him in the beginning. There are many methods available for public speakers by means of which his audience may be made suggestible and uncritical and accept almost any conclusion which is presented to them.
A favorite method is to begin by telling a humorous story bearing upon the subject, or an apt quotation. Let the story be fairly well told and it will not fail to capture an audience. The introduction if rightly prepared and given will do much to win an audience at the very beginning and secure to the speaker sympathetic attention and confidence. A careful study of the following introductions, many of them taken from oratorical masterpieces, will reveal the practice of successful speakers.
The closing of the speech, brief though it be, furnishes an opportunity for the most effective oratory. As final impressions remain longest in the mind, the climax should consist of a summary of the main points, an emphasis of the central truth, an appeal to the emotions, a call to action.
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