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Malcolm X was known for his ability to move an audience with his
passion. He said, “If you don’t stand for something, you will fall
for anything.”
And it’s a good point about public speaking. Becoming a great
speaker is for nothing if you don’t use it as a tool of
leadership. We speak because we’re trying to connect with people
and move them somewhere.
So when you’re speaking, take a position and defend it.
We once heard a Senior Vice President for a large
company rehearsing for a presentation. He was laying out
the reasons why a particular program for a company
needed to be terminated. But he was avoiding saying “Let’s
end this program.”
Our coach said, “I sounds like you think they need to
end this program.”
“Yes,” he said.
“But you never explicitly say, ‘Let’s end this
program.’”
He said he was worried about the political implications
of taking such a stand. He wanted to lay out the
problems with the program and hope the audience
members would reach the conclusion on their own.
We understand how he feels. Leadership takes courage.
Good speaking takes courage.
Malcolm knew that.
At Speechworks we help our clients learn how to
communicate in a way that connects and persuades. If
you’re interested in becoming a great communicator give
us a call at 404-266-0888 or check out our website at
www.speechworks.net. |
