Speech Making

The Basics of good Speech and Great Speakers

Speech making basic tips and advice

“According to the Book of Lists, the number one fear in the Western World is
the fear of speaking in public…”

Nearly as dreaded as snakes and spiders, public speaking and Speech making ranks high in causing fear in many of us. Whether your motivation is a desire to learn or simple necessity, here is a really simple guide to writing and giving a speech. Topic - A great speech starts with a great topic. It is so important that you select a topic that interests you, and you believe will interest your audience. Is this speech about something already know? Then take a blank piece of paper and write down as many facts as you can think about this subject. Put them randomly around the page with circles or boxes drawn around each thought. Then draw lines to link the thoughts together in a meaningful way. An excellent website for this type of brainstorming can be found at www.mindmap.com. Careful consideration of each kind of audience analysis will help you gain a better understanding of your audience so that you can select a topic and prepare a speech that will appeal to your listeners’ interests while still respecting their uniqueness and diversity. Introduction:  Now take your sheet of ideas and write a 3-sentence introduction. If you were going to describe this to me over a cup of coffee what would you say? A key to giving a speech is a conversational tone. In the introduction tell your audience what you’re about to say. The first thirty seconds of your speech are probably the most important. In that period of time you must grab the attention of the audience, and engage their interest in what you have to say in your speech. Once you have won the attention of the audience, your speech should move seamlessly to the middle of your speech.

“Go over the Speech Making basics again and again, make sure you have it, this is the way to master this art.”

Body:
In three subsections (A, B, C or I, II, III) expand on your introduction. What is the first most important thing you want your audience to know? The second most important? The third? Make each section about 2 or 3 paragraphs long. Keep referring back to your brainstorm page. Most good writing, we are told over and over again, must have structure. A good speech is no exception. By providing your speech with a beginning, middle, and an end, you will have laid the foundations for a successful speech that fulfils all of your aspirations. Conclusion:  In the introduction you told them what you were going to say. In the body, you told them again in detail. In the conclusion now tell them again. Tell them what you’re going to say, tell them, and then tell them what you said. Make the conclusion about 2 times as long as your introduction. Do you want action with that? A speech is made to inform, to persuade, or to move to action. Finish off your speech with a statement that meets one of those purposes. Along with the opening two minutes of a speech, the final part of a speech, known as a 'closer' is equally important. Research shows most people remember the closing remarks most.