As Sears Holdings Corporation, owner of Sears, Roebuck and Co. and Kmart, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, I think of how they impacted the world. They invented department stores as we know it. Everything Amazon is, everything Alibaba Group is, Sears already was. Years ago, mentions of them might’ve filled inspirational speeches because of […]
Speech Tip: Dreams + Power = Change (How Great Speeches Work) We look often at MLK as a great speech giver. He was that. High school speech teams study his deliver. There was more than eloquence, though, that upset white supremacists and other racists. He had power. King was effective. He was effective because he […]
Speech Tip: Set the Bar High (The Big O) Have you ever gotten a standing ovation? It’s a hard to describe feeling, but when someone receives one, they know. And they know they want another. It is like laughter to a comedian. It is a buzz like no other. No speechwriter can guarantee one and […]
Speech Tip: Boldly Go (Inspire More Effectively) When looking to boldly inspire, speaking loudly sometimes pretends to be boldness. Speaking with passion, speaking emphatically, is helpful. True boldness speaks to potential change. True boldness challenges the audience beyond their imagination but within their possibility. True boldness says, “We share a great dream. We can accomplish […]
Speech Tip: Study Sermons. One way to learn what your great speech should be like is to read great speeches. Sermons are a major category of such greatness (just ask MLK). Take a look at Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God (Jonathan Edwards).
So let us begin anew — remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate. – JFK, 1961 Inaugural Address Discuss on LinkedIn. Discuss on Facebook.
Speech Tip: Reality Check. Speeches are ephemeral. They live and die in the wind. Aside from the few speeches well-cited as points in history, most aren’t remembered a week later. This doesn’t diminish their impact. The point of the speech isn’t to be a thing in and of itself. It is to influence. Keep that reality […]
Speech Tip: Simple Power: Senator Barack Obama’s Speech at 2004 DNC Convention was effective. The question is why and what can be learned for use in our speeches. As I’ve often been quoted, speeches are theater. So is was with this one. Obama delivered some of the most impactful words in a campaign. He seemed […]
Academy Awards, Anyone? The speeches are to the Oscars what the commercials are to the Super Bowl. They aren’t the main event or the live performance of music, but they are a big part of it. Like the gowns, there is the good, the bad, and the ugly. Anyone nominated for an award would do […]
Speech Tip: You can be great. Got a keynote coming up and you want to challenge your audience to push through whatever glass ceiling they’re living under? Trying to raise a massive amount of money for an important cause? Looking to energize a crowd to change the world? Want to have an incredible speech? Yeah? […]
Speech Tip: You can be great. Got a keynote coming up and you want to challenge your audience to push through whatever glass ceiling they’re living under? Trying to raise a massive amount of money for an important cause? Looking to energize a crowd to change the world? Want to have an incredible speech? Yeah? […]