You have to know your purpose. This is one of the similarities of life, courtship and speeches.
You have to answer the questions: (Life) Why are you here? (Courtship) What’s your intention in courting that girl? (Speech) What do you want to achieve with your presentation? You won’t be so excited about life if you do not know your reason why. You will not move forward in courtship if your intention in approaching someone is not clear. Your speech will not serve you and your audience if you don’t have a purpose.
In my book SPEAK, I shared three general purposes of a speech: show, shine, and sell.
To show is to inform the audience about a person, a cause, a procedure, an object, an idea, a concept, a place, or an event.
To shine is to inspire or entertain. You may want to inspire your audience and uplift their spirits. You may want to appeal to noble motives and inspire them to pursue higher goals. On the other hand, you may want to entertain them by making them laugh or simply painting a smile on their faces through your words or message.
To sell is to persuade or convince. You may want them to do something – to support your project or advocacy, to say yes to your proposal, to buy something, or vote for you. You may want to convince them to agree with you – with your belief or conviction.
Before you proceed in your speech preparation, your purpose should be crystal clear. This way, you know what to include in your content, you know how to support your point, and you know how to approach this particular project.
Do this everytime you prepare a speech. With the purpose in mind, you will have more chances of achieving it. This exercise will come in handy even in other areas of life – oh yes, including courtship. 😉
(Chris Dao-anis, CPA, DTM is a presentations coach, keynote speaker, and leadership trainer. Get a free copy of his book by joining his SPEAK 2.0 Public Speaking Workshop on March 16 in Baguio City. Check the details and register at http://bit.ly/SpeakBaguio. Hurry seats are limited!)
