There have been many important speeches from presidents of the United States throughout my career as an executive speech coach. But I’ve never watched one like tonight’s speech by President Bush.
It was one of the only presidential speeches that I would categorize as a speech which needed to educate us. Only by educating us, could the president PERSUADE us that his plan was the right one for these dire economic circumstances.
Our individual and collective financial futures are at stake and most of us couldn’t tell what a mortgage backed security was if it was Fed Ex-ed to our front door. But mortgage-backed securities, as well as other complex financial terms and issues, needed to be explained to us in simple terms.
Continue reading "Bush Needs Visual Aids to Sell Bailout Plan"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in Analyses of. Leave a Comment
Sarah Palin, the Republican Vice Presidential candidate, took the stage Wednesday night and wowed everyone in her audience, including many watching her on TV—like me. Her speech ranked up there with those of Joe Biden, Fred Thompson and Michele (yes, Michele, not Barack) Obama.
Just as Joe Biden set the stakes high for his “boss,” Barack Obama, to overwhelm the audience with substance and style, Palin has set the stakes high for John McCain to take the crowd on a trip into the future of our country. I don’t think Obama’s speech lived up to that. Will McCain’s?
Palin showed strength, warmth, and humor in a wonderfully worded speech. Her comments were naturally spoken, not shouted like way too many political speakers.
Continue reading "Another VP Candidate Hits a Home Run with Speech"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in General articles. Leave a Comment
Disclaimer: This is a NON-partisan blog. Its purpose is to point out the good, the bad and the ugly of giving speeches.
Day 1 of GOP convention
Best speaker: Fred Thompson. Worst speaker: Bill Gross
If you have any uncommitted time, google “Fred Thompson’s GOP Convention Speech” and watch it. He is a master, as you might expect from this senator-turned-actor-turned-presidential-candidate-turned-supporting-politician. He gets an A ++.
Here are the positives you need to think about in your speeches before large crowds. And some of these pointers might surprise you.
1. He used “but,” “uh,” and “and” throughout his speech. While there are speech coaches worldwide who will tell you to eliminate those words from your speech persona (and I do, too, if they’re an annoying habit) … his speech sounded so conversational with these 3 tiny words included. Reason: There are very few people who never use these words in every day conversation.
Continue reading "GOP Thompson Demonstrates 9 Speaking Tips"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in Analyses of, Good and Great Speeches. Leave a Comment
He was his usual confident, well-spoken, forceful self, but Barack Obama’s speech on tonight did not compare with others he has given before (2004 Democratic Convention), nor was it as memorable as this historic day required.
Barack Obama had the 84,000 people at Invesco Field and millions more watching TV or surfing the web in the palm of his hand. And although he is a great speaker, he didn’t do anything memorable or repeatable.
The first 15 minutes of Obama’s speech was delivered in the usual political style, a little too strident for my taste. He went on the attack right off the bat.
Continue reading "Obama’s Historic Speech Doesn’t Match MLK’s"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in General articles. Leave a Comment
Whether you like his politics or not, it’s hard to argue that Bill Clinton knows how to give a speech. While Ronald Reagan has been touted as the Great Communicator, Bill Clinton was his equal on stage and with a microphone. They’ve met their match!
Joe Biden brought the house down. In comparison, he even made Bill Clinton seem like an average speaker.
Joe did everything right:
• Opening that was real—not histrionic.
• Meaningful stories and quotes from his mother:
“Joey, God sends no cross you cannot bear.”
• A glimpse into his nightly ride home, thinking about the people whose homes he passed.
Continue reading "Biden’s Speech Outshines All—Even Bill’s"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in General articles. Leave a Comment
If you love Hillary, she gave a great speech and you’d give her an A +. If you really dislike Hillary, she gave a horrible speech and you’d give her an F. If you are an executive speech coach and can approach her dispassionately and ignore the content of her speech, you’d say she was an average politician.
This blog is non-political. It is based on my experiences with speakers from around the world. To keep this an assessment of style—not substance—I look at the overall stage presence, voice quality, variety of vocal pacing and projection, and techniques to make it memorable (such as humor, repetitive phrases, call backs, visuals, analogies, examples, stories.) So here’s my grade for her tonight: C.
Continue reading "Hillary Clinton Uses Typical Politician Style"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in General articles. Leave a Comment
After a magnificent example of great speaking last night (see yesterday’s blog about Michelle Obama), the presentations at the afternoon and early evening sessions of the Democratic National Convention leave much to be desired. Most were average at best. A few were a little better than average and had some good techniques I’ll talk about. But there were some ones that did nothing to add to their political cause.
I’ll grade the speakers below, but first here are some hints that you can use in your business presentations:
1. When the crowd is noisy, don’t shout. It won’t help them or you.
Continue reading "Day 2 Speakers Demonstrate How-NOT-to Speak"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in General articles. Leave a Comment
Michelle Obama Speech Expert Grade: A+
WOW! Warmth, brains, beauty, substance, storytelling, repetitive phrasing, good use of Teleprompters. You name it, Michelle Obama displayed it. None of the shouting, trying to get the crowd into a false frenzy, staring at the Prompter….or any of the common mistakes that will be shown over and over at these conventions. HINT: Notice how Michelle used details to make her stories come alive. She told of her dad using 2 canes to walk cross the room to kiss her mom. Can’t you just picture that? It’s the details that make you feel as if you are in the same place, living the experience.
Continue reading "Michelle Obama Shows Us How to Give a Speech"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in General articles. Leave a Comment
Business people can learn a lot about speaking in front of large crowds this week and next. The Democratic and Republican national conventions show the best…and the worst…techniques that speakers use.
As an executive speech coach, I will be analyzing the speeches from the perspective of WHAT BUSINESS PEOPLE CAN APPLY to their own presentations at work.
This is a non-political blog. There will be good and bad examples from each side of the political fence.
My purpose is to point out the mistakes that you won’t want to make when you get up to speak. I’ll also point out some of the techniques that are good to use in the business world.
Continue reading "Speaking to Large Crowds: Lessons Learned by Watching the Political Conventions"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in General articles. Leave a Comment
When the Democratic National Convention began, it got off to a good start–speech wise. In most years, the speakers that go on during the afternoon are usually the weaker ones–while the stars are on in prime time. But the good start was quickly shown to be a tease and the speakers for several hours reverted to speaking styles that tempt you to turn off the TV or walk out of the room.
Here are a few comments on things we can learn. I’ll try to attach the videos of these segments when they become available.
John Hickenlooper Mayor of Denver, Colorado Speech Expert Assessment: Grade: C
Like many people, he started off his speech like a racehorse, speaking quickly.
Continue reading "Rate the Speaker: Day 1 Dem convention"
Posted by Jean Palmer Heck in General articles. Leave a Comment
