Mastering the Art of Persuasive Public Speaking

Unleash the Master Within

Passion leads to mastery. You cannot inspire others unless you are inspired yourself. You stand a much greater chance of persuading and inspiring your listeners if you express an enthusiastic, passionate, and meaningful connection to your topic.

Tell Stories

Brain scans reveal that stories stimulate and engage the human brain, helping the speaker connect with the audience and making it much more likely that the audience will agree with the speaker's point of view.

Practice Relentlessly

Practice relentlessly and internalize your content so that you can deliver the presentation as comfortably as having a conversation with a close friend.

Teach Something New

An unfamiliar, unusual, or unexpected element in a presentation jolts the audience out of their preconceived notions and quickly gives them a new way of looking at the world. You can only inspire when you give people a new way of looking at the world in which they live.

Deliver Jaw-Dropping Moments

The jaw-dropping moment is anything in a presentation that elicits a strong emotional response, such as joy, fear, shock, or surprise. It grabs the listener's attention and is remembered long after the presentation is over.

Use Humor Without Telling a Joke

Humor lowers defenses, making your audience more receptive to your message. It also makes you seem more likable, and people are more willing to do business with or support someone they like. Lighten up; don't take yourself (or your topic) too seriously.

Stick to Your Time

Researchers have discovered that “cognitive backlog”—too much information—prevents the successful transmission of ideas.

Favor Pictures Over Text

This technique is called “picture superiority.” It simply means we are much more likely to recall an idea when a picture complements it.

Obama's Former Speechwriter Shares Tricks for Writing a Speech

• Write like you talk: A speech is meant to be spoken, not read. That simple fact has a few important implications: use short words and write short sentences. Avoid awkward constructions that might cause a speaker to stumble.
• Tell a story: Like any good story, a speech has its own narrative. A good story can be a lot more powerful than the most compelling facts and statistics.
• Structure matters: It's usually harder to figure out the right structure for a speech—the order of the points to make—than the words themselves. The order of those points matters because an argument that's clear and logical is more likely to be persuasive.
• Be concise: Challenge yourself to cut as many words as possible from each sentence without losing the line's meaning.
• Be authentic: Sharing a personal story can help you find your voice and build a connection with the audience.
• Don't just speak: Say something.