Most sermons are longwinded. Most college lectures are longwinded. Every presidential State of the Union address is longwinded. We’ve all been sitting in the audience thinking, “Would this guy just SHUT UP!” Meanwhile, our speaker is thinking, “They’re already falling asleep and I’ve only been speaking for two minutes!”
So, how can we ensure our audience enjoys the sound of our voice as much as we do? Longwinded orators speak conceptually. Captivating speakers communicate visually. I’m not referring to visual aids. I’m referring to using stories, analogies, demonstrations and play-acting that create a mental picture. So much of our brain is wired towards sensory input: touch, tastes, sights, sounds and smells. There is nothing wrong with communicating concepts. The problem arises when one communicates lists of concept. That’s why so many college lectures are brain-numbing. They have lists of concepts disconnected from real-world experience. Concepts only become real when they’re made concrete—tapping into the experiential, sensory nature of our brain. Take time to translate concepts into concrete experiences. You’ll cover far less concepts, but your audience will grasp them!
Each of us has a need for relationships. Great speakers form a relationship with their audience. But, how do you do that? Support your speech with examples from your life. Tell them about: your loves, your failures, your successes and your foibles. But, what if you don’t have those personal examples to support what you’re talking about? Quite simply, you don’t know the topic well enough to talk about it. Impersonal book knowledge will quickly put your audience into a coma.
Great speakers move an audience emotionally. Laughter is the most powerful emotion. If you can present an intelligent presentation that has people laughing two or three times per minute, you can be a professional speaker. If you consistently receive four to six laughs per minute, you can be a professional comedian. You can find countless books on how to write jokes and structure comedy. You can learn a ton from them. You can also learn a ton by getting on stage. What I’ve found is people are most funny when they share their: loves, failures, successes and foibles. Laughter is more an outgrowth of the speaker-audience relationship than it is about finding a magic joke formula.
Great delivery also helps conquer longwindedness. The secret of delivery isn’t focusing on delivery. The more you focus on it, the more you’re focused on yourself and the less you’re focused on the audience. The secret of delivery (at least for most people) is overcoming fear. We fear when we focus on our ego. We overcome fear when we focus on our audience, purpose and message. Dynamic delivery is a restoration of who we are when relaxed and talking with family and friends.
One component of delivery is critical in overcoming longwindedness—eye contact. If you don’t look at your audience, you lose your audience. If you aren’t paying attention to them, why should they pay attention to you?
I’ve given you several points on overcoming longwindedness: 1) Speak in concrete, sensory-oriented terms. 2) Form a relationship with your audience by sharing your life. 3) Connect to your audience emotionally by uncovering your life. And, 4) Look at your audience. I’ve communicated these concepts in a few minutes, but mastering them will take a lifetime.
