I Speak…

Public speaking can be stressful. When we look at a TV screen or sit in an auditorium to listen a speech, we can pick out a great speaker straight away. Look at how at ease Reverend Robert H. Schuller was in front of his audience. How does he manage to be so in control? Experience. I, personally, believe people over-complicate what they have to do when they stand up to speak publicly. I decided that I would put together four thoughts that I have when I’m planning to speak in public. Let’s check them out…

The Time & The Season

The occasion for the speech can go a long way in helping you determine the topic. Your speech topic will vary depending on whether the occasion is celebratory, just plain fun, solemn, or professional. Here are a few ways that the occasion can help influence your speech topic.

If the occasion is solemn, such as a funeral or memorial service, then your topic should be serious and relevant to the occasion.

If the occasion is fun, such as a toast at a bachelor party, then it’s time to bring out the fun anecdotes and stories and to make people laugh — not to share your passion for coin collecting.

If the occasion is celebratory, like a wedding, then you need to provide some light-hearted humor as well as some serious and sentimental points.

If the occasion is professional, then you need to stick to a professional topic, such as website design, and not focus on your personal experiences.

Know Your Purpose

Your purpose is related to the occasion and is the goal you want to achieve through your speech. Your purpose can be to inform, persuade, or just to entertain your audience. A speech can have a variety of purposes, but it’s important to be acquainted with the most common purposes.

To inform your audience, you’ll need to provide relevant facts and details about a subject that reveals information allowing your audience to see a complicated subject in a more ordinary light, or to learn about a completely foreign subject.

To persuade your audience, you’ll need to use rhetorical techniques, metaphors, and convincing evidence from experts to show them that they should do something, whether it’s to elect you for office, recycle more, or take the time to volunteer in their communities.

To entertain your audience, you’ll need to draw on personal or anecdotal material, tell a few funny stories, show off your great sense of humor, and make your audience laugh, even if you’re communicating an underlying serious message.

Know Your Audience

Consider your audience. If you want to connect to your audience, then you should consider their knowledge before you select a topic. If you’re giving a speech to a group of aspiring writers, then you can comfortably reference other writers and literary terms; if you’re speaking to a group that knows very little about writing, be careful when you make more obscure literary references.

If you’re speaking to a group that has expertise in a subject, then you won’t have to waste their time by discussing the most basic aspects of that topic. You can jump right into the nitty-gritty.

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