A Speech Formula That Works
Many speakers and speech coaches (me included) have written about the proper methods to structure a presentation.
Here are some commonly referred to steps:
- Grab the audience’s attention
- Provide compelling material to keep their interest
- Conclude with a motivating call to action.
In an ideal world, you have time to take a message that is important to you, craft it, practice, get feedback, make adjustments and repeat the process until you have a masterpiece.
Sometimes, you don’t have time for all of that preparation. You have no time to prepare, and have to deliver on the spot. Even in these times, you can still use the format mentioned above to deliver a memorable message.
Speech Lesson From a Little League Baseball Coach
One of the best examples of this was a post-game speech delivered by Dave Belisle in 2014. He was the head baseball coach of the Cumberland Americans, a Little League team from Cumberland, Rhode Island. The team had just experienced a heart-breaking loss in the Little League World Series.
The essence of his message was this:
“I’m so proud of you and the effort you gave today, and throughout this tournament. You played hard, you never quit and you played the game the right way. These are lessons you’ll take with you the rest of your life. You can hold your heads high”
How He Used a Traditional Speech Model
Watch the video and you’ll see the framework of a great speech:
- Capturing his “audience’s” attention right away.
- Supporting evidence for his main point.
- Wisdom that will impact his team far beyond the moment. He concluded on an up note.
I haven’t had the opportunity to talk to Mr. Belisle. But based on my research of his background, I’m sure he’d tell me that he never rehearsed those words. He has most likely given many other speeches like this to other teams he has coached.
Repetition of a basic message, based upon a repeatable process, gives you the foundation of a presentation that can leave a lasting impact. If you want to create a speech that touches lives far beyond the moment it’s delivered, I can think of no better example than that of Dave Belisle.
To see the speech, .
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Michael’s mission is to help leaders, managers and sales professionals communicate with more confidence, impact, and influence. This passion is born from his own communication difficulties early in his career.
Fortunately, he discovered that public speaking is like riding a bike, swimming or driving a car - it’s a learnable skill. Once he discovered this ‘secret’ he became a voracious student of the craft. He took courses, studied some of the world’s best speakers and storytellers and continues to study presentation and business storytelling skills.
He is hired by companies and organizations, leaders, managers and sales professionals, and TEDx speakers to help them become more confident, impactful and influential communicators.
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Michael,
This is the very best summation of all that you teach regarding speaking. Clear, concise, and compelling in its message. Thank you for sharing the video and your thoughts.
Thomas
Thanks, Thomas. I try to practice what I preach.