A quick and powerful way to design a speech, talk or workshop, so that your audience get maximum value from their time with you.
Think of your speech as taking your audience on a public speaking journey.
1) Pick which mountain you’d like to climb. The best speeches have one clear purpose.
2) Prepare your expedition. What do your audience need to know to start walking with you? What will you say to make them trust you?
3) Show them sights on the way. What are the viewing stations? What exciting activities will happen on the way to the summit?
4) Raise the stakes. As you get closer to the summit, keep the tension, the drama, the energy or the interest of the audience by creating contrasts between a problem (or difficulty or ‘evil’) and a solution (or ‘good’).
5) Reach a climax. It could be the information we’ve all been waiting for, a surprise conclusion or the punchline of a joke – the moment where everything comes together
6) Look at the view. Now assert your message – to make the change in the audience that you seek. Ask your audience to do something different as a result of what you’ve experienced together
7) Airlift them home. Finally, don’t leave your audience having to climb all the way back down the mountain – do that and you’ll lose momentum and reduce power from your impact. Get them a helicopter and transport them back home.
Enjoy the journey!
