The ozone layer isn’t the only thing that affects the weather. In nature itself when it’s time for Santa and snow in Canada it’s time for the summer holidays with their sea, sand and surf in Australia. So weather is a very good topic for a public speaker. After all it affects all of us in one way or another. There are therefore, many aspects of it that could form the basis for a good speech. Obviously rain is a fairly mundane subject and fit only for polite conversation in Britain. Flooding and its consequences could, however, make a riveting speech. If you wanted to get people really thinking and talking you might talk about the authorities and their preparations, or lack of them, for such flooding. A talk about the meteorological service and its ability to forecast weather could also make for an interesting speech. The speaker might choose to speak about hurricanes and certainly there is plenty to say about the suffering they cause and the long term effects of them on a country or community. It’s a fact that climate change is extreme and we need to prepare for the worst. So any speech on the subject of our climate should be topical, informative and thought provoking. You see one way or another we’re all going to have to cope with it hail, rain or shine!

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A good speaker will respond to the response of his or her audience. That may seem difficult if he or she has a prepared script. If, however, the audience appears to be bored with something that is said then it may not be a good idea to continue with that prepared script. If he is speaking about sleep for instance and giving the medical reason for dreams it may prove be too technical for his audience and the speaker might be better to go on to where the script talks about the difficulties of getting up in the morning. If, on the other hand a speaker is talking about junk food and his audience responds well to where he or she talks about the need in a busy day for convenience foods, then that speaker can elaborate. He or she might say, for instance, that a banana is the best pre-packaged food on the shelf. He might go on to give a few simple recipes for meals that can be prepared quickly. Obviously you cannot tell in advance what way an audience will react but a good speaker will be aware of how interested they are. If there are lots of coughs and shuffles it is a sign that things are not going to well and it is a good idea to change the speech slightly. If, on the other hand there is rapt silence, appreciative laughter or lots of clapping then the speaker has them captivate and can afford to add a little more information. Naturally a speaker should not go over his allotted time but if that is not an issue it is better to use audience reaction to determine whether to add or subtract a little.

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Writing a speech is like designing a garden. The boundary is the length of the speech and after that it is up to you what you plant in your particular garden. You may choose a thorny subject such as abortion or suicide. Alternatively, your words could be like perennials, words of wisdom that will influence people for years to come. . You might, for instance speak about leadership or how to be successful. Like flowers in a garden your speech could be colourful with lots of quotations and examples. Some gardeners like to have mixed flowers in their flowerbeds and a speaker might speak of different happenings and different people. Annuals are those flowers that give a great show for just a little time. You could write a speech that will only be pertinent as long as it is topical. Political speeches are often like that as politicians open a new hospital or school. Some plants die no matter how much care and attention you give them, perhaps because of drought or indeed heavy rainfall. A speech that has too many statistics can also wilt and die. You cannot put the scent of a garden into a speech but you can speak about various scents. You might talk about a freshly cut lawn or the smell of coffee brewing. You might get your audience sniffing if you spoke about a barbeque sizzling. Whatever about scents your speech should have some order and harmony in it just as the nicest gardens do. So choose your theme and get gardening.

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The Casino isn’t the only place we gamble. Every day we gamble with our lives on the roads and in our homes and hospitals. In fact life is one long gamble yet we never seem to see it that way. We always expect it to go along uneventfully until something happens to shake us out of our complacency. In the case of weddings making a speech seems to be a bigger gamble than marriage itself. That is if you are the father of the bride and expected to give a loving, witty and memorable speech about your daughter. Then and only then do you realise how little you actually know about her, her hobbies and activities. Quite often you have to consult the oracle or her mother in other words, because somehow women are expected to know these things. With her support you can get together your ideas and draft your speech. What are the things you should say and what should you leave out? It’s probably safer not to mention the fact that she had already brought home a dozen different boyfriends for your approval. It’s safe enough to mention the fact that she had a teddy bear she called Snoozy that she insisted on bringing everywhere with her. In fact you could probably mention that it is undoubtedly in her case ready for her honeymoon trip. Every bride is different and the same applies to every wedding speech. Some things are constant however and saying how much you love your daughter applies to all daughters of whatever race or creed. You can bet on that.

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What do you do when you cannot decide on a topic for a speech? The answer is simply open the dictionary and select a word. The first word to catch your eye might be “Abandoned”. You could then write about the nuisance of abandoned cars, or the sorrow of abandoned babies. Of course you might prefer the word “Abbey” and if so you could talk about taking sanctuary in the church attached to the abbey or bell or indeed it could lead you to research the Dissolution of the monasteries by Henry the 8th. Further on in the dictionary is the word celebrity and of course you would have plenty to say about your favourite celebrity or about how you hate celebrity TV shows or love celebrity magazines. What about the word “Schooling?” It should give you plenty of ammunition for your speech simply because most of us were at school and either loved it or hated it. You could talk about the school curriculum and how you would change it or how you think that obese children should have to walk to school every day. As your audience will consist of others who attend or have attended school this is a subject that will resonate with everybody. Going to the end of the dictionary you may find the word “Zymurgy ” which is likely to puzzle your audience but as it is the branch of chemistry concerned with fermentation you might be on a winner if you spoke about the damage caused by drink or the pleasure it gives. Whatever word you choose there is a topic for everyone right there on your shelf.

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Has it ever occurred to you that speeches are a lot like people? Some are long and some are short, some are funny and some are serious. Just as people express different views and opinions so too do the speeches we hear. The ordinary man or woman has lots of different experiences and in speeches speakers use those experiences to illustrate their talks. People can come across as being happy or sad and this too is reflected in the speeches they give. Even the way people dress is often the same as the way they speak. They can be casual or formal in their addresses to an audience. The speeches can reflect their characters too. Some speeches, like speakers, are passionate, others full of pathos. Of course there are speeches that do not reflect speakers too. Take a debate, for instance, where a committed socialist might speak in favour of capitalism. If he were a good enough debater no one would know where his sympathies really lie. Another speaker might study a subject just to give one speech on the topic but really have no interest in that topic at all. That, of course, is just how we sometimes pretend interest in what someone else is saying although, in reality, we are bored. Put simply the speeches we give are really an extension of ourselves and the way we live our lives.

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Writing a speech should make you think. It shouldn’t be something that you rattle off from the top of your head. If it’s a wedding speech, for instance, you should think about how you can enhance the day for the couple with loving words. If you are speaking in a debate, of course, you should think about the points the other side will use and undermine them with your clever rhetoric. If you are speaking at a parent teacher meeting you should consider why parents send their children to that particular school and slant your speech accordingly. Whatever the occasion you should study the audience and what will be relevant to them. It’s no good giving a dynamic speech on nuclear policies to
a group of people who are only interested in sport. That is not to say, though, that you shouldn’t be able to stimulate your audience by making your topic interesting and riveting. So if you can talk about a nuclear plant being built on the local football pitch you could use that topic but from a different angle. So think about your audience, think about how you will approach your speech and think of the standing ovation you will get if you get it right.

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Most of us would feel proud if someone told us that they thought we had leadership qualities. It is a quality, of course, that we expect army officers and business executives to possess. Community leadership is very important and good leaders can make a huge difference in the communities they serve. There is nothing magical about it. Leadership doesn’t have to be an innate quality. It can be an acquired skill and it can be taught. A speech that tells your audience how to develop the confidence necessary for a leadership role will be of interest to most listeners. Such skills can be developed in everyday life but if you can develop your leadership skills in the office you will certainly benefit and probably make a name for yourself.

So it doesn’t matter if your audience consists of high powered executives or a local group. Your speech can make them feel better about themselves and show them how to develop the necessary qualities of a Lee, a Nelson or a Lincoln.

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How do you choose a speech to suit your audience? It’s quite easy if you have been asked to talk to engineers about town planning. Obviously your speech will be technical and geared towards that particular audience and you’ll probably be an expert anyhow. If, however, your audience is more general and you are not an expert you should choose a subject that is common to all. Health is always a good idea because it affects us all. So you might speak about Diabetes, Asthma or another ailment such as Acne. Other subjects might be something we all do such as sleep or dream. In that way you will capture the attention of your audience and hopefully, you won’t send them to sleep!

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Obviously the first thing you should consider when writing a speech is your subject choice. You may, of course, be overwhelmed by the thought of speaking at all but a well chosen subject will attract your audience. Your subject will, of course, depend upon the occasion and most importantly, it will depend upon the audience. You may have a choice in subject matter or you may not. In some respects I think being given a choice makes it harder.

Whatever you choose I recommend that you write your speech about something that you know about. The reason for this is simple. It will make it easier to find something interesting to say about a subject that you enjoy. Secondly your passion and enthusiasm will communicate itself with your audience.

If you have been given a subject that you consider boring, you will write and give a boring speech unless you can tackle that subject from an unusual angle. If you have to talk about bees, for instance, maybe you could do your speech as though it were written by an overworked Queen Bee. If you are talking about music perhaps you could talk about students who have stumbled their scales on your keys. Stimulate your audience by making their imagination work. It’s the secret of a good speech.

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