Get your message across- clear communications count. That applies in almost every situation in life. Whether you are the mother of a troublesome teen stating boundaries or a boss setting objectives how you explain yourself is very, very important. A general who does not explain the war plan properly can be the cause of loss of life. A teacher who does not explain mathematics clearly will have pupils who will fail their exams. A clergyman whose sermon is complicated may lose members of his flock. A public speaker who does not get the message across clearly and concisely will certainly make his audience switch off. Such a speaker must ask himself the purpose of his speech. Does he want to inform or persuade or both? What exactly is the message he is trying to get across? How much preparation has he put into making his message one that a child could understand while an adult would find that its very simplicity had a deeper meaning? A good speaker will practise and practise so that when he is speaking he can concentrate on the message rather than on the fact that he is giving a speech. He will make his sentences short and snappy. He will paint word pictures. He will learn to use the microphone properly. Above all a good speaker will speak with conviction and clarity.

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Persuasive speakers have to take a position. Whether they are trying to persuade an audience to believe something or not to believe something they have to speak with conviction. They have to believe in what they are saying or it may not come across as being sincere. Most audiences are very quick to pick up on such insincerity. It would be rather like a member of one political party persuading an audience to vote for another party! That is not to say that all speakers have to speak from such conviction. Debaters, for instance, might speak strongly either in favour of or against the death penalty. They are merely playing with words and ideas. A good public speaker, though, even if he or she never debates, can learn a lot by listening to two sides of the one argument. If he or she is convinced by the winning arguments he or she may later speak on the subject with conviction and from the heart. It would seem that a good informative speech does not require the same belief. After all you are just giving facts about something or someone. Yet even those facts are coloured by your own feelings. If you are speaking about Pele, for instance, your belief that he was the best player ever should come through in your speech. If you are saying that laughter is the best medicine you.

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Sometimes there are occasions when we wish we could speak a foreign language. Nowhere is this more important than when you wish to give a speech or a toast. You might, for instance, be at a wedding in Italy or at a wedding anniversary in the Netherlands. You could happen to be attending a birthday party in Germany or a business conference in France or Portugal. Whatever the occasion it would certainly add to it if you could express your feelings in one of those European languages. Of course many people find it hard to write a speech even in English and have to consult the experts. Alternatively, they may simply be too busy to spend time writing a speech. It is certainly an added bonus for them if they know that they can find different translations of those speeches online. Such a speaker might not feel comfortable giving the whole speech in a foreign language but might like to use certain sentences or paragraphs saying something in English and then repeating it in his or her chosen tongue. The father of the bride might, for instance, warmly welcome his guests at the beginning of the speech in both languages and end by giving the toast to the couple in two languages. The Boss or the C.E.O. at the Christmas Office Party might like to thank his staff in English and another tongue and wish them a happy Christmas in both languages at the end of his speech. In this way a mixed audience will feel included and the speaker will find that his or her efforts are greatly appreciated. All he or she has to do then is to find someone who can teach him or her correct pronunciation of that foreign tongue!

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This is the time of the year when people struggle with speeches. That’s because November and December are months when there are lots of social occasions. A boss or C.E.O. preparing for the end of year function might be trying to find the right words to express his thanks to his staff for their hard work during a difficult year. The Chair or President of a club or association might want to say the right things at the Christmas party of that club or association. Often too a man struggles with what to say in a toast to the ladies or a lady has difficulty in finding the right things to say in her reply to such a toast. Such seasonal speeches should, of course, reflect the Christmas or Holiday period. They should emphasise the fact that it is the time of year for good cheer. A touch of nostalgia is also perfectly proper and acceptable. The speeches should emphasise how essential those present are to either the club or the company. In the case of those annual dinners the toast to the ladies should be gracious, light-hearted and appreciative while the reply should be ladylike yet can also be humorous and slightly tongue-in-cheek. In fact whatever the social occasion appreciation of those present is the keynote. So whether you are giving a vote of thanks to a speaker or toasting the guests a good speech will make them feel welcome and very important indeed. If necessary add a warm seasonal toast and you’ll find you’ve got it just right for the occasion.

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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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After dinner speakers are often accomplished speakers and experts in a particular field. What though of the poor person chosen to be M.C. for the occasion? Quite often that job falls on the shoulders of someone who might be an excellent club member but have no experience at all of ensuring the such an evening goes off smoothly. They will know, of course, that they should welcome the guests as pleasantly as possible and introduce the guest speaker. Before that though they will need to discover what form the evening will take and organise the other various speakers. There may be a vote of thanks given to the speaker and the M.C should ascertain whether he or she is giving that vote of thanks or whether some else is. There could be a toast to the guests and s reply from one of the guests and if so the M.C. has to know who is going to give it and allow time for both the toast and the reply. It’s possible too that there may be a toast to the ladies and that one of the ladies will then reply to that toast. Depending on the formality of the occasion the M.C. may do all the thanking him or herself. So there is a question of timing to be agreed with any speakers. The M.C. should also give those important messages such as that there is a ban on smoking or tell the guests where the emergency exits are. Above all the M.C. should end the evening on a positive and pleasant note. Basically then it is a question of getting the protocol right and making the evening as enjoyable as possible for all the guests. If they go home smiling you will know you have succeeded!

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Speechwriters face a major challenge when writing a speech. They have to decide what they want their speech to do. Do they want to inspire their audience to greatness? Do they want to make people laugh? Could it be they want to provoke people into doing something such as eating a good breakfast or donating an organ? They may, of course, simply want to make people feel good about themselves by telling them that they are unique and special. On the other hand they may want to rouse the passion of their listeners by telling them of an injustice being perpetuated in their name or by telling them that taxes are going to be raised again. On social occasions such as weddings or birthdays speechwriters should definitely want to get across the feel good factor. When they are writing a business speech it will pay them to be motivational. Naturally every speech is different and so are the challenges faced by the speechwriter. So they have to know exactly what they want that speech to do. So whether they want to inspire people to become great leaders or convince them that nuclear energy is bad they need to start off by asking themselves exactly what they want their speech to do.

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Writing a speech and delivering it are two different things. A lawyer may be well used to speaking in court but find it impossible to write a suitable speech for his daughter’s wedding day. A journalist might enjoy the challenge of writing a speech on success but fall to pieces when asked to stand up and deliver it. The secret of doing both is to write a good speech which will, in turn, give you the confidence to deliver it well. Writing such a good speech is about getting the essentials right. What do you actually want to say and to whom? The subject matter will, naturally depend upon your audience. If you are addressing an international conference on banking what you will say will have to be relevant to bankers. If you are speaking at a wedding anniversary party the theme of your speech should be about the couple and their marriage. So get your core message right and then find an enticing opening. A question or a relevant quotation is often a way to catch the attention of your audience. Add warmth and humour to your speech by speaking perhaps of a personal experience either with banking or with the couple. Make sure that you end it by reiterating your core message. In the case of bankers it might be that changing times need different methods of giving credit. An anniversary speech would obviously end with a toast to the couple in question. If you believe in what you are saying all you have to do is practise beforehand, take a deep breath on the night and then get up there and wow them.

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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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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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