How to Start a Speech: Two Killer Tips
How to Start a Speech: Two Killer Tips
It’s okay. It’s not your fault. You were just wired that way.
You, like everyone else, enjoy talking about yourself. You’re a cool person with cool experiences, so why wouldn’t you?
Especially if you have a microphone pointed at you with a roomful of people who have been told that you are the person who knows best when it comes to your topic. It’s only natural to brush your shoulders off and let the awesomeness of you waft over you. It’s a pretty cool feeling.
So naturally, you think – either consciously or unconsciously – that since you have been given this platform and people have come to hear you, then they must be interested in learning about you.
by Helga Weber
And so, you open your speech with some information about you, why you’re the person talking about this topic, and how you got to be the head honcho on stage.
While I have no doubt that your credentials, background, and experiences are very interesting, this isn’t the best way to open your speech. Don’t worry! You will still be able to talk about yourself. That part has its rightful place just a little later in your speech.
More often than not, I see people start their speeches by talking about themselves, not the audience.
I don’t know if it’s a desire to establish credibility. I don’t know if it’s being deemed an “expert” that initiates a myopic point of view. I don’t know if it’s just an ego trip that triggers it.
I think that for different people each of these apply.
By opening your speech with “how I got here” rather than “this is what I can do for you right now,” increases the probability that your audience will tune you out and tweet on their phones. (more…)