Public speaking

Speeches are comprised of three components:

• Logical: this component deals with the content, the points presented, the order in which they are presented, and the general structure of the speech.

Before reading the newsletter, I encourage you to view the following videos. The first one is an interview with Caroline Kennedy. The following two links are similar in content, but the second one has a slight twist. You only need to listen to the first 30 seconds of each to get the point:

The opening of a speech is one of its two most important parts. There are many great ways to begin, and for each great beginning, there is an equally awful opening. So in today's newsletter, we will look at five awful ways to begin a speech, and counter them with 10 great ways to begin instead.

Here are five awful ways to begin a speech:

Public speaking involves three components:

• The logical component, which deals with the content of your speech. This component addresses issues like structure, facts and statistics, how many points you will cover, and so on.

Think back to all of the stories of your childhood. Almost everyone has heard about "Little Red Riding Hood." What's the moral of that story? Listen to what your parents tell you or something bad will happen to you.

How about "The Three Little Pigs?" Work hard, don't be lazy or something bad will happen to you.

And so on.

One of the reasons people dislike giving speeches is that they are afraid of what the audience will think about them, or what the audience will say about them. Has that ever happened to you?

It's not often that a movie adequately captures the power of a great speech. Sometimes it feels too syrupy (as in many sports movies); sometimes it seems forced (as in many political movies); sometimes, though, they get it just right.

When you speak to people, do you inadvertently put ideas in their heads that are the complete opposite of what you want them to think?

A few days ago I watched a news report on the current food crisis around the world. At one point, the reporter interviewed a representative of a food aid agency who sought to illustrate the current problem. In less than fifteen seconds, with few words, she made a lasting impact on me. Here's how.