Speech Making for Life

Dr. Lynn Meade

Take Offs: Getting the Speech Started Right

has been said that
a speech is like an
airplane. Both require a good take off
and a good landing. A good
introduction makes for a
smooth take-off and may
even be considered the most
important part of the speech.
After all, if you fail to capture the audiences attention, then your whole speech
is a waste because no one is
tuned in.
You must grab the audience right away.thats why
the beginning of the speech
is called the grabber. The
speaker must grab the audience and make them hungry to hear more.

Give a startling statistic

Offer a surprising fact

Tease your audience

with only part of the
information

There are a few speech

killers, you should NEVER
do these.

Here are a few ways to draw

the audience in and create
information hunger.
Tell a story

Tell a joke

A speech is like an airplane.

It needs a good take off.

The bottom line is this.

The phrase, you never

get a second chance to make
a first impression is especially true for presentations.
Audiences decide to listen in
the first few seconds, so you
must convince them that you
have something good to say.

Ask questions

plaining to the audience

why you are unprepared, why you are not a
good speaker, or any
other negative thing
that will set the wrong
pace.

Never tell the audience

your full biography up
front. This will likely
lull them into sleep. If
you must give biographical information, do it as
a handout or a story.
Never apologize. Ex-

A good take off sets the pace

for the rest of the speech. It
should be well thought out
and it should be intentionalthat means that you
really took the time to consider the impact of your
words. It should never be
something thrown on at the
last minute.
It is a good idea to
memorize the first two lines
of your speech. Since you are
most nervous when you first
start to speak, it is a good
idea to have a firm idea of
exactly what you want to say
and how you want to say it.

so with confidence! If you are

a little nervous, it is normal.
Most speakers share that after
the first few words of the
speech, they begin to relax.
Make sure you know
those first few sentences, make
sure you have purposefully
chosen them for maximum
impact and make sure you deliver them with confidence.
Take-off strong and give your
passengers the ride of their
lives!

When you deliver the first

few words of your speech, do

Give Them a Map: Let Them Know Where They are Going

A preview is a map of your

speech. It lets the audience
know where they are headed.

People become frustrated

and restless when they dont
know where they are going.
Audiences want to know
where all this talk is headed.
Listeners decide early on if
your speech is presentation is
worth listening to.
After you engage the audi-

ence with your grabber, you

should offer a brief overview
of what will be in the speech.
In technical terms, this is
called a preview.
A preview is like a map
that tells the audience where
they are headed. By being
very specific, it helps the au-

dience members to organize

the information in their
minds in a way that they can
better remember it.
Audiences tend to get lost
unless you give them a map.
A good speaker lays out the
route and lets the audience
just where they are going.

Its A Visual Thing Using Visual Aids

Many speeches will require you to
visually demonstrate or visually illustrate speaking points. When using
physical objects, there are several important things to remember.

tracting. Instead, project a picture of the

item and then allow audience members to
come to a table later to view the original
artifact.

Be considerate of your audience and

Timing is everything with visual
what might offend them. I was surprised,
aids. You need to consider beforehand if for example, that several students took
you want to keep your visual hidden
offense when a student showed a poster
until just the right moment or if you
of a mother nursing an infant. An ofwant the item sitting out the entire
fended audience is rarely a listening autime.
dience. Also, consider that perfume,
The most important thing to remem- incense, candles, and other scents may
ber about a visual aid is that it should cause problems for allergies.
enhance the message that you are givTake the time to explain your visual
ing. For that reason, it must be large
aid. Leaving an item to sit on the table
enough for the audience to see. If it is a without ever mentioning it tends to frussmall item, consider taking a picture of trate the audience. They want to know
it and putting the picture on the projec- what it is there for.
tor for everyone to see. Do not pass
Overall, consider how to best help the
items around the room, it is very dis-

Most people learn visually.

A well used visual aid will help
the audience members
understand and remember your
speech.

audience understand using your visual

aid. Let your visual aid be an anchor to
help them remember your speech.
If you have several visual aids be sure
to make a list of everything you need to
bring. You wouldnt want to forget anything!

The Speaking Occasion Get the Facts

When you are
invited to
speak, it is
important to
gather information about
the audience
and occasion.

Questions to Ask:

Do you have a podium?

How many people will be attending?

A microphone?

How much knowledge do they have

of my topic?

A projector?

What else will they be doing? Eating? Other speakers?

What type of room will I be speaking in?
How long would you like me to
speak?

Handouts help the audience analyze, remember, or reflect on the content of your speech. Make sure handouts have a purpose and you are not
giving a handout just for the sake of
having something to hand audience
members. You might want to include
your name, phone number, and email so
people can contact you later.
It looks more professional to create
a custom handout and not just give
your audience a copy of your Power
Point slides. (The exception is in educational settings and training seminars).
Always, make sure the copies are
clean and neat. Make more copies than
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Handouts
When it comes to
handouts.
Timing is everything

you think you will need and find out

beforehand if you should make your
own copies or if the speech organizer
will make copies for you.
Handout timing is important. If your
handout contains lots of supplemental
reading material, it may be best to give
it at the end. You dont want the audi-

A table to set visuals on?

Can I come early and look at the
room?
Can you make copies of the handout
or should I bring them? How many do
I need to make?

ence reading extra material when they

should be listening to you. Take the
time to think about when the handouts
will most benefit the audience.
Have an assistant ready to help distribute handouts especially in a large
setting. Communicate clearly how and
when you want the material distributed.
It is very important to remember that
your handout will live on long after your
speech; it forms a lasting impression of
you. Look at your handout carefully
does it send the right message? Is it a
document that you want to be remembered for?
Speech Making for Life

Making The Perfect Power Point

4.
To make the most of Power Point, construct your slides with these rules in
mind.
1.

2.

3.

Pick one background color and

stick with it. Never have one slide
of one color and the next slide with
a different color.

5.

If you use the Power Point templates, make sure that the dcor of
the template does not overpower
6.
the text or graphics of your slide. If
you have photos in your presentation, it is best to use a plain template.
Either have a very dark background with white or yellow letters
or have a very light background
with black or navy letters. Remember, it may look good on your
screen but it changes when it is
projected so it is best to stick to the
dark/light combination. As a general rule, red, orange, purple, and
green tend not to project well as
backgrounds.

7.

Use a plain font for text. Research

demonstrates that it is easier to read
when projected. Plain font means
letters without fancy tails. Best to
use as Ariel, Verdana, Trebuchet,
and Tahoma.
Make sure the text size is AT
LEAST 28 point. Smaller font sizes
are difficult to read. If you are speaking in a large auditorium, you should
use a larger size.
You should never have more than
seven words across on a slide and
never have more than seven words
down. Too many words on a slide
make it difficult to read. Too many
words cause the audience to have to
choose to read your slide or to listen
to you speak.
Rarely should you write a full sentence on a slide. Instead, write only
brief bullet points Remember the
point of Power Point is to provide
visual cues not to provide the content
of your speech. A short bullet point
helps the audience remember the
complete sentence that you speaking.

Power Point provides visual cues

to accent your speech. Power
Point should never be used as
your speech or your speech notes.

8.

At the end of your presentation, always add a couple of blank slides. It

looks very unprofessional for the last
slide to say end of show.

9.

Realize that you do not have to have

a slide for every point in you speech.
Power Point should enhance your
speech, where no slide is needed,
insert a black slide.

10. Just because Power Point makes

sounds, fancy slide changes, and
makes graphics spin doesnt mean
that you should use them. Avoid
these unprofessional add-ons.

Give a Speech Not a Slideshow

Here are tips for delivering a speech
with Power Point:
Never let your speech become a slide
show with a few words from you for
aesthetic purposes.
Print off your Power Point Slides as a
handout and keep a copy with you so
that you know what is coming next.
Read briefly from your speech notes
and NOT from your Power Point.
Do not stand in front of the projector.
Test this beforehand. You cannot always tell if you are in front of your
slides. Put tapelines on the floor if necessary to keep you out of the way.
Never tell the audience you can read
this slide while you talk about some-

thing else. If it is important, read it for

them or talk to them about it. If you
read the slide, read from your notes not
from the projection.
Never let your Power Point be your
speech. You are the speech and the
Power Point only helps the audience
focus on the speech. Dont lose sight of
its purpose.
Dont turn your back to the audience to
read your projected slide.
Dont stand in front of the slide to point
out a chart or detail. Use a laser pointer
instead.
Be able to give your speech without
your slidesyou never know when the
technology will fail completely.

Blank Slides
You do not always have to have
a Power Point slide on the
screen. Sometimes your slides
distract from what you are
saying.
Consider This:
Insert black slides in between
or use the blank button for
those times when you want the
audience to look at you directly
without the distraction of a
slide.

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Do Not Think About the Pink Elephant!

hatever you do, do not think
about the pink elephant. Stop!
Dont think about the pink elephant
with its cute pink ears and hot pink
tail. How are you doing? If you are like
most people, not too well.
Now, try this. Think about a green
monkey. Go ahead. Picture its green
curly tail and it fluffy green fur. So
heres the question, when you were
thinking of the green monkey, did your
image of the pink elephant go away?
For most people, it did.
Whats the point? The point is that
before a speech, most people tell themselves, I wont be nervous, I wont be
nervous, I wont think of the pink elephant. Do you see where Im headed

all worked up because they know that

adrenaline is good. When you speak,
adrenaline is good. When your heart
Instead of saying, I wont be nervraces and you feel your heart beat, it
ous. Say things like,
means that your all
This speech is going to be
We dont want to
pumped up. For footgreat! I can do this. or
ball players it means
get rid of the butterflies
My audience will love the
your ready for the game,
part where I
We only want them to
for speakers it means
The most important
your ready for the
fly in formation
thing about conquering
speech.
your fear is to put your self talk into perThe goal is not to get rid of the
spective. If you tell yourself positive
butterflies but to make them to fly in
things, you will feel positive. If you tell
formation. Its all a matter of perspecyourself negative things, you will feel
tive.
negative.
Think about the green monkey. Think
Think about the locker room before
about how great your speech is going to
the big football game. The players get
be.
with all of this? Telling yourself not to
be nervous rarely helps.

Research
Facts, data, and statistics are all important parts of speech making. When
done well, they can enhance credibility
and lead to greater understanding.
When done poorly, they can lull the
audience into boredom.

Help the audience visualize big numbers by explaining them. How much is
a trillion? .

Use simple charts and graphs to explain trends. Keep it simple and clean
rather than cluttered and overbearing.

Better to use 1 or 2 great facts and explain than to overwhelm the audience
with two many research items.

Challenge yourself to present

facts, data, and statistics in
interesting terms. Boring
research is almost as bad as no
research at all.

Ending the Speech The Landing

is very important that you end a
speech well. The landing
should recap the main thoughts
of your speech and provide one lasting
thought.
A good ending gives a sense of closure and lets the audience know when
to clap. Good closures should be well
thought out and not tacked on at the
last minute.
There are several ways NOT to end
a speech. Saying, thats all or the

Page 4

end are weak ways to end the speech.

Some challenging endings might include:

A question the audience can carry

with them.

A closing story.

A challenge for the audience to do.

A quote that makes them think.

A well constructed sentence that ties

the main ideas together.

Speeches, like airplanes, need to have

good landings.

Speech Making for Life

Dont Make Your Audience

Read Your Lips...
So Speak Up
the audience cant hear you,
your speech is worthless. It
sounds overdramatic but it is
true. If your content is interesting,
your Power Point is perfect, and your
confidence is superb, but your speech is
inaudible ...your speech is worthless. It
becomes an exercise in lip reading and
most people will not trouble with trying
to read your lips. At that point, your
speech becomes a waste of their time
and yours.
Very few speakers give their voice
projection enough practice. Practice
speaking from your diaphragm so you
can project your voice. Two great ways
to practice are number one, sing to the
radio and number two, sing in the
shower. When you practice your speech
at home, use your diaphragm and project your voice rather than practicing in
a whisper. On the day that you speak,

Look Them in the Eyes...

You Are Talking to People
Not to Walls
Important Presentation
Rules:
Speak loud and clear
Look at audience
members directly

have a friend in the room who will give

you the speak up sign or let you know if
your microphone needs adjusting.
I cant overemphasize enough the
importance of voice projection. Practice,
practice, practice and on the day of the
speech, dont hold back!

You really want to communicate

with your audience, you must look at
them. Speeches are for people and
the way that we connect with people
is by eye contact.
Some well meaning folks have taught
people to look at the back wall, stare at
peoples foreheads, or look through
people, not at them. Dont listen to this
advice. People can tell when you are
avoiding eye contact and the result is that
they feel like you are not trustworthy, you
are evasive, or you are not confident.
These are not the things that you want to
communicate.
Look at people directly. Look at people
at different places in the room. Know your
speech well enough that you spend more
time looking up than looking at your
speech notes.
Look at your audiencethis speech is
for them so let em have it!

To Gesture or Not to Gesture, That is the Question

WHAT NOT
TO DO WITH YOUR HANDS

Do NOT put both hands in your

pockets, you look insecure
Do NOT jingle keys or change in
your pocket
Do NOT hold hands clasped behind your back
Do NOT fidget with a pen, necklace, or slide clicker
Do NOT tap of pound on podium
Do NOT wring hands
Do NOT fiddle with note cards

One of the questions that people

frequently ask is, What do I do with
my hands?
Research demonstrates that speakers who gesture are seen as more credible, more persuasive, and more likable.
For those reasons alone, it is a good
idea to gesture.
But wait, theres more
Other studies show that gestures
help people to think and communicate
more clearly. In other words, gestures
actually help the speaker to think of the
next point easier and to speak it more
clearly.
With all that, whats not to love
about gestures? Practice your speech
using gestures and let them flow naturally rather than force them.
The bottom line is that gestures
work! Try them and see for yourself.

Volume 1, Issue 1

You hands communicate

powerful messages

Did You Know ?

Touching your thumb to your pointer
finger lightly can release stress.
Try this during a speech when you are
at a loss for what to do with your
hands.

Page 5

Dr. Lynn Meade is an instructor in the Department of Communication at

the University of Arkansas. She loves to speak, she loves to teach, and
she loves to coach others to reach their maximum potential.

Dr. Lynn Meade

479-445-4967
[email protected]

Lynn has a doctoral degree in higher education college teaching and

leadership and a masters degree in communication. She has taught
communication skills for over twelve years and considers teaching her
hobby that pays. But teaching others to improve their communication
skills is not just her hobby, it is her passion.
Lynn also shares her passion as a motivational speaker. She offers stories, advice, and encouragement that inspires others to reach within
themselves and reach their maximum potential.
Lynn also conducts executive board retreats, hosts teachers and
speakers workshops, and offers personal speech coaching. She brings
her experience as a fundraiser, salesperson, and not-for-profit director
to the communication table. Whatever the venue, she believes that
communication is transformational because words change people.
Lynns scholarly pursuits include editing a communication textbook,
writing articles on the challenges of parenting a child with ADD, and
writing an academic book chapter on students with disabilities. She also
enjoys writing for fun and is published in Chicken Soup for the Soul and
several local publications.

Speech Transforms Both You and Your Listeners

The most important thing to remember
about speechmaking is that it transforms both the one who speaks and the
one who listens.
As a speaker, you should always consider your audience. What is it that
THEY need that I have to offer. How
can I meet their needs. How can I
choose words that will help them to
understand and how can I show them
the things that they need to know.

When speakers consider how their

words transform the audience, they will
take more responsibility for their
speech choices. They will realize that
their words do matter. They will realize that their words change people.

As a speaker, you should always realize

that your words will transform you. As
you try to find the right way to express
an idea, you will develop a new clarity
on your topic. As you speak with conviction about a subject, you will believe in
it even more than before.

Find something you believe in and

share it with others. What makes a
good or bad speaker is a persons ability
to take the thought and feelings they
have for a topic and share those
thoughts and feelings with others.

The Greeks would say that a good

speaker had dunamis.
A speaker with dunamis
spoke with great power.

The power came from

the belief in the topic
and the presentation of
that topic. In English,
we transformed the word dunamis to
dynamism and dynamite.

Your goal as a speaker should be to

have dunamis!

Go ahead, unleash your power!