I’m going to be a little vulnerable here and let you see a video of me giving a new speech for the first time, practicing in front of a Toastmasters Club. It’s material that I will be developing into a longer keynote.
If you watch the video (9:51), and then read the annotated speech below, you can learn some speech writing (and delivery) techniques that can help you engage your audiences and get your message remembered.
Bonus tips:
- Video yourself–there’s nothing like self-evaluation for quick improvement!
- Consider joining a Toastmasters Club to practice your presentations. You get a live, supportive audience, and feedback.
The annotated presentation
(the written speech, not exactly as I gave it, but as I wrote it, with notes in red as to the reasoning/value behind various parts):
Leaders Stay Curious: Why Asking Questions Beats Knowing Answers
Have you ever completely misread a situation? Made some assumptions that turned out to be wrong?
[The opening uses a couple of rhetorical, thought-provoking “you-focused” questions to engage the audience and tap into a common experience, before transporting the audience to my related story. Also specifically note that I do not say “Have any of you . . .” I speak to the audience as if I am speaking to an individual, which makes it connect more.]
That’s what I did in the summer of 1982 when my husband and I moved from Grand Forks, North Dakota to San Diego, California for my husband’s first job out of college. I still had 2 years of college left. [brief context to set up the story] One day, while my husband was at work, I was driving along the interstate, practicing going on on-ramps and off-ramps—I’d never done that in North Dakota. It was a blue-sky day, and my radio was full blast playing Olivia Newton John [popular song at the time, like taking a musical time machine back in time] . . . Let’s Get Physical . . . Physical. I wanna get physical. [I sing this, badly. Acting out the driving, describing the color of the sky, and singing provide additional sensory texture] It totally didn’t matter that I can’t sing. [self-deprecating humor–the safest kind of humor is to make fun of yourself] And then, in my rear-view mirror, I saw this guy behind me on a motorcycle with these annoying flashing lights. [Misinterpretation of the situation provides the set up for more self-deprecating humor, and supports my point]
Weird. But, I’d been in California for a week and was getting used to things being a little weird. I was not going to let this weirdo bother me. But then this guy started speeding up. He was chasing me. So, I sped up. Then he starts speeding up. So, I put the pedal to the metal and really got some distance between us. [escalation of conflict – my misinterpretation of the situation makes it even worse, more humorous!] But, then zoom! He pulled up right alongside me, matching my speed. I turned and looked at him. He looked at me. I could see my reflection in his mirrored sunglasses. [provides a sense of dread–I can’t even see his eyes, plus it gives people more of a visual] After staring at me for a few moments, he gave me the finger. NO. Not that finger. [humor] The index finger—he pointed for me to pull over.
At that moment, My life flashed before my eyes and I realized 2 things: 1. I had just led a police officer on a high speed chase and 2. In a very short time I would be wearing a very different wardrobe—a bright prison orange . . . Orange is not a good color on me. [This aside gives insight into me, that I was vain when vanity wasn’t important–adds some character color] I pulled over, turned off the radio, and waited for what seemed like an eternity for him to approach my car. Thoughts raced through my mind . . . I would be separated from my husband. I wouldn’t be able to finish college. I would have to use . . . a communal toilet. [Rule of 3 in humor. Make the first two items expected and the 3rd unexpected] The officer finally approached my car. . .his hand was at his hip. . .on his gun. If I make a wrong move he could kill me! [exaggerated thoughts are humorous] What do they do on TV? Roll the window down, driver’s license out. . .both hands on the wheel. [Clearly, I hadn’t been stopped by a cop before–I was really naive!]
He stared down at me, his lips a thin line. [In the actual presentation, I don’t say this, but only act it out. You don’t have to say everything when you can act it out.]
“Ma’am, why didn’t you stop earlier?” [Having some dialogue in a story really makes it come alive. I shifted my stance between speakers, from the officer staring down with a hand on his gun, to me with my hands on the wheel]
The tears started rolling down my face. I’m sorry officer, but I’m . . . from North Dakota.” [humor . . . a stupid statement!]
“Well, Ma’am. I’ve never heard that excuse before.”
“I thought you were some weirdo chasing me. I didn’t realize you were a police officer. Police don’t ride motorcycles in North Dakota—it’s too cold!.” [humor]
The cop took his sunglasses off, I guess to get a better look at his first bona fide “Hick.” [I actually took my glasses off to act out the scene more]
He shook his head, and after looking at my North Dakota driver’s license [put glasses back on], gave me a fix-it ticket for a non-functioning tail light. Boy, did I mis-read that situation.
I’ve forgotten the amount I had to pay for the ticket, but I’ve never forgotten the lesson: I can be wrong. My assumptions can be wrong. My interpretations can be wrong. [this is the “debrief” part of the story–why it matters. It also serves as a transition]
I can be wrong. You can be wrong. Everyone can be wrong. [parallel structure with phrases “can be wrong” makes the phrase stick in the brain, also did in the previous paragraph]
So, what’s wrong with being wrong?
Being wrong can lead to bad decisions.
Being wrong can lead to disaster. [repetition of “being wrong” makes the phrases build upon each other. That’s 10 uses of the word “wrong” in about half a minute. In the actual presentation I think I added, “especially if you don’t ask questions.”]
A few years after I learned about motorcycle cops, I was working as an engineer when one day I got a call from my husband. He was waiting at a car dealership for a repair and was watching TV. With a strain in his voice, he said, “The Space Shuttle just exploded.”
73 seconds after takeoff, on a blue-sky day, the Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart, killing all 7 crew members, including a teacher. It was because of an O-ring failure. It could have been prevented, but NASA managers disregarded warnings. They didn’t stop to ask questions. As a new engineer at the time, this incident profoundly affected my thinking about the importance of pausing, and asking questions. [A personal connection that is serious, purposefully not used at the start, as it works better to have an emotional up than an emotional down to start with]
Taking the time, pausing, to ask questions, to question assumptions may not the be quickest route to making decisions. But asking questions can lead to significantly better decisions, better solutions. [added “better solutions” because it bridges to the quote below]
As one of the smartest people in history, Albert Einstein, once said:
“If I had an hour to solve a problem and my life depended on the solution, I would spend the first
55 minutes determining the proper question to ask, for once I know the proper question,
I could solve the problem in less than 5 minutes.” [this quote by a famous person adds credibility]
Determine the proper questions to ask . . . don’t just be an expert at answering questions, be an expert at asking questions. A questionologist. [made up word, I think–a little humorous]
We do have such experts among us . . . people who are naturally curious, who are courageous in asking really tough questions . . . We call them . . . children. [Children aren’t often considered experts, so this is somewhat unexpected]
A big part of childhood is . . . asking questions
Lots and lots of questions
How many questions do you think a 4 year old asks in a day?
In one study, 4-year-old girls averaged 388 questions a day. Imagine if you had twin 4-year-old girls–almost 800 questions a day! [note in the actual presentation, I left out “almost 800 questions a day” because people started laughing–I didn’t need to add it in. this statistic also adds another piece of credibility, and supports my point] I don’t have to imagine that. I have twin granddaughters! [I have a personal connection to this statistic!]
We’ve had countless conversations like this one . . .
“Grandma, can we go play outside?”
“Because it’s raining.”
“Why is it raining?”
“Because water vapor in the air turns into clouds with tiny water drops that fall to the ground as rain.”
“Why do they fall?” [more questions, more exasperation! A relatable experience if you have been around small children, as most have]
“Because gravity pulls them down.”
“Why?”
“Because . . . I don’t know anymore. I don’t know any more answers.”
“Grandma, yes you do. Remember “Just Google it!” [Did my grand-daughter actually say this? No, but it would have been funny if she did! It’s OK to embellish stories, combine stories, or even eliminate some aspects of stories]
Thank God for Google! Google is great at giving answers, not so great at asking questions. [note the flow . . . the previous sentence mentions Google, which triggers my mind for this sentence. Then this sentence ends with “questions,” which triggers my mind for the next sentence. It helps your memory, and your audience’s comprehension to tie your sentences together]
Often the questions matter more than the answers, especially in shaping the future. [“shaping the future” triggers my mind for the next sentence]
You can shape the future, expand people’s thinking, with the power of “What if”
Just as the Wright brothers answered the question, What if humans could fly, with a 12 second flight in 1903, many innovations have started with the what if question. [This short example and the next one, give some historical credibility to the “What if” question]
In the mid-1940’s 3-year-old Jennifer was on vacation with her family. Her father took some pictures of her, which, like any child, she wanted to see. In those days, film had to be processed, and her father, as any adult knew this, but Jennifer asked, “Why do I have to wait for the picture?” Her father, Edwin Land, had no good answer for her, but thought “Why Not? What if a camera could develop a picture right away?” Thus was the beginning of the Polaroid Land Camera, with self-developing film. [It was important that I added “with self-developing film” as younger people might not know about the Polaroid camera, even though it is making a comeback!]
What if?
What if more people asked more and better questions?
[this may seem like a quick end to a speech, but it is actually the beginning of a longer keynote that I’m developing].
Maybe you noticed some helpful techniques I didn’t mention, or even have suggestions for improvement!