I used to think what makes a speech? How should I construct one? Used to spend most of the time contemplating. Then one day I started to make use of the thoughts coming to my mind and write them & structure them to create a speech.
After constructing 100s of speeches in Toastmasters & for my day job, digesting talking points in one slide or 3 minutes discussion with a customer to delivering speeches on any occasions – now I keep on experimenting on a simple premise.
A speech is a conversation. With your audience. With your customer. With your colleague. With your spouse (yes, remember the underlying emotion and expectation for this one – in my opinion- that makes it the most difficult as well as most fulfilling one – more on this on another day ??). In any conversation, you need 3 points to share – point #1 – a problem, point #2 – exploring the problem, point #3 – your learning about the solution to the problem (or even about the problem at a deeper level).
Whether we are selling an idea, a product, a 5-to-7-minutes-long-information-packet as a speech, a proposal, going on vacation, going to a restaurant – this 3-point formula never fails. This is the starting point of any speech.
If you have a high-level idea – think on above 3 points. In next one hour, your speech outline will be ready.
Now, why 3-point “something”? That “something” is about the introduction & conclusion of your speech. Introduction of the speech is to let the audience tune in to your speech frequency – so that audience transitions from their world into your world – your ideas and thoughts. Remember – “raise your hand”? That’s my favourite way of transitioning.
The conclusion is about making your message (most likely the solution, point 3) special for your audience – by using vivid/sensory language, rhetoric, emotional connection, a powerful quote so that the takeaway lingers in your audience’s mind even after you move on from that talk/presentation/speech.
So, can you get ready with your “3-point something” on anything that matters to you or to someone you care? Remember that action has more grace than a lofty idea. I hope, your next conversation/speech outline will be ready by the end of the day!
Thanks…
–Samit
