How can I tell my story without boring everyone?
October 6, 2010 7:18 PM Subscribe
I agreed to step in as a last-minute speaker at a rally for public education tomorrow. I found this question about speaking at rallies, which was really helpful. Now the problem is that I'm worried about being boring. How can I be a really lively, exciting speaker, especially considering that I'm speaking partly about personal experiences?
I've been to several rallies where there was one speaker who was just awful. Often, that person has gone on and on about some personal experience that, while relevant, does not merit the focus given; they may explain too many background details, or fail to relate their story adequately to the matter at hand. I hope to shy away from those two problems, knowing that they're common. Are there further things I can keep in mind to keep my speech more interesting for attendees? After all, they have no reason to care about what happened to me - they care about threats to public education. I don't know what I have to contribute to that, other than my own story, which is pretty much "I had to drop out of our state school because I owed three thousand dollars in back tuition; it took me four years to come back and it's been really hard. This kind of thing really happens to people. Go vote."
The guy who's speaking before me is talking about K-12 education, and the person after me will be talking about casualization of the academic workforce (e.g., adjunct and postdoc positions).
Thanks for any advice you can give.
I've been to several rallies where there was one speaker who was just awful. Often, that person has gone on and on about some personal experience that, while relevant, does not merit the focus given; they may explain too many background details, or fail to relate their story adequately to the matter at hand. I hope to shy away from those two problems, knowing that they're common. Are there further things I can keep in mind to keep my speech more interesting for attendees? After all, they have no reason to care about what happened to me - they care about threats to public education. I don't know what I have to contribute to that, other than my own story, which is pretty much "I had to drop out of our state school because I owed three thousand dollars in back tuition; it took me four years to come back and it's been really hard. This kind of thing really happens to people. Go vote."
The guy who's speaking before me is talking about K-12 education, and the person after me will be talking about casualization of the academic workforce (e.g., adjunct and postdoc positions).
Thanks for any advice you can give.
I had to drop out of our state school because I owed three thousand dollars in back tuition; it took me four years to come back and it's been really hard. This kind of thing really happens to people. Go vote.
This is a totally good starting point. You can fill this in with some more personal details about who you are, why you're there, what happened, how it could happen to anyone, what the flaw in the system is, how you surmounted your obstacles, how it was a struggle, what needs to change, and how people CAN change it if they work together.
I think most important at big rallies is that people can't hear very well, and depending on the crowd, they can applaud freaking everything. So I'd focus on having sentences that are short, that can be said loudly and emphatically and being ready to pause between them if people start saying "yay" or whatever. Figure out how long you're going to talk for in advance. Give people a concrete "walk away from this talk and do THIS" idea and mostly keep it short.
posted by jessamyn at 7:34 PM on October 6, 2010
This is a totally good starting point. You can fill this in with some more personal details about who you are, why you're there, what happened, how it could happen to anyone, what the flaw in the system is, how you surmounted your obstacles, how it was a struggle, what needs to change, and how people CAN change it if they work together.
I think most important at big rallies is that people can't hear very well, and depending on the crowd, they can applaud freaking everything. So I'd focus on having sentences that are short, that can be said loudly and emphatically and being ready to pause between them if people start saying "yay" or whatever. Figure out how long you're going to talk for in advance. Give people a concrete "walk away from this talk and do THIS" idea and mostly keep it short.
posted by jessamyn at 7:34 PM on October 6, 2010
Pick people out in your audience and look them in the eye - make eye contact.
posted by leafwoman at 8:17 PM on October 6, 2010
posted by leafwoman at 8:17 PM on October 6, 2010
Only speak about what you are passionate about!
Good or bad, it is always easy to discern the difference.
I am a recently retired, 40 year educator. Principal and teacher. Much of my career was mundane and matter of fact.
But, the remaining part would fill volumes. My passion would sear the reader's hands.
I don''t think you can have conviction without relaying personal experience. It is how you tie it to the universal that counts.
In my years of listening to countless presenters, very few made a difference. For some bloody reason, the more removed they were from educating kids, the larger their fees. They once did work with kids, but now they write books or give presentations. Yawn.
Do you have any business on the podium? Why? What do you know that bears sharing? Limit your scope to what you know and live. Leave the rest to John Dewey, et al.
Best to you!
posted by private_idaho at 9:32 PM on October 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
Good or bad, it is always easy to discern the difference.
I am a recently retired, 40 year educator. Principal and teacher. Much of my career was mundane and matter of fact.
But, the remaining part would fill volumes. My passion would sear the reader's hands.
I don''t think you can have conviction without relaying personal experience. It is how you tie it to the universal that counts.
In my years of listening to countless presenters, very few made a difference. For some bloody reason, the more removed they were from educating kids, the larger their fees. They once did work with kids, but now they write books or give presentations. Yawn.
Do you have any business on the podium? Why? What do you know that bears sharing? Limit your scope to what you know and live. Leave the rest to John Dewey, et al.
Best to you!
posted by private_idaho at 9:32 PM on October 6, 2010 [1 favorite]
Err on the side of too short. Don't talk about it if it isn't directly relevant to your main point. Don't be afraid to pause quietly and think of a direct, brief way to say something, instead of rambling on and on trying to say it. Finally, make a few strong statements, and don't hesitate to return to them when you've made a point that reinforces it. Did I mention err on the side of too short?
posted by davejay at 10:19 PM on October 6, 2010
posted by davejay at 10:19 PM on October 6, 2010
Brevity. Thank you! Next...
posted by eccnineten at 5:04 AM on October 7, 2010
posted by eccnineten at 5:04 AM on October 7, 2010
"I had to drop out of our state school because I owed three thousand dollars in back tuition; it took me four years to come back and it's been really hard. This kind of thing really happens to people. Go vote."
Bam. Done.
posted by Michael Pemulis at 9:57 AM on October 7, 2010
Bam. Done.
posted by Michael Pemulis at 9:57 AM on October 7, 2010
I'm a pastor, so I have the challenge of being relevant/interesting/passionate/not boring every week, so my suggestions are:
1. Be brief and make eye contact, as said above.
2. If you ask your audience a rhetorical question, pause and make eye contact for two seconds. This is not the time to look down or at your notes. When you make eye contact here, people more readily feel like they personally have been asked the question.
3. Speak passionately like you mean it, and don't ask "Can you hear me?"
4. Be yourself.
5. Find ways to make the speech engaging to the audience. Even consider having a refrain that people repeat back to you, or a question that they repeatedly answer. A friend of mine spoke at a public education rally, and he went to the podium while Twisted Sister's "We're Not Gonna Take It" was playing, and it created the framework for his speech. Every time he made a point, he asked, "What do we want the legislators to hear" and each time, with increasing volume, the crowd replied "WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT!" He ended his speech with that question and answer, walked off the stage after five minutes, and the people were going nuts, still saying "We're not gonna take it!" as they walked to their cars.
Remember, just about everyone at a rally is on your side and wants you to succeed, so be energized knowing they are with you.
Good luck!
posted by 4ster at 10:53 AM on October 7, 2010 [1 favorite]
1. Be brief and make eye contact, as said above.
2. If you ask your audience a rhetorical question, pause and make eye contact for two seconds. This is not the time to look down or at your notes. When you make eye contact here, people more readily feel like they personally have been asked the question.
3. Speak passionately like you mean it, and don't ask "Can you hear me?"
4. Be yourself.
5. Find ways to make the speech engaging to the audience. Even consider having a refrain that people repeat back to you, or a question that they repeatedly answer. A friend of mine spoke at a public education rally, and he went to the podium while Twisted Sister's "We're Not Gonna Take It" was playing, and it created the framework for his speech. Every time he made a point, he asked, "What do we want the legislators to hear" and each time, with increasing volume, the crowd replied "WE'RE NOT GONNA TAKE IT!" He ended his speech with that question and answer, walked off the stage after five minutes, and the people were going nuts, still saying "We're not gonna take it!" as they walked to their cars.
Remember, just about everyone at a rally is on your side and wants you to succeed, so be energized knowing they are with you.
Good luck!
posted by 4ster at 10:53 AM on October 7, 2010 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by ovvl at 7:28 PM on October 6, 2010 [1 favorite]