FRANCISCO SARAIVA

To have strong openings for a speech is to capture your audience’s attention right from the beginning. It is not always easy to get your audience to listen to you. You have to be prepared to get off to a good start. Here are tips to help you do that.

A good speech is said to be like a drag race. It has to be won at the starting line. You want to see your audiences’ energy right there and you have to work hard at it. If not, you will have a hard time catching up from behind.  As John Kinde puts it, being able to catch that much yearned for attention at the beginning of your presentation creates a mark in your audiences’ minds and keeps them tuned to what you’re going to say next.

Thinking about strong openings for a presentation, we usually refer to various methods to get the audience emotionally or physically involved with your presentation right from the beginning.  Lisa Braithwaite further discussed these on her blog site Speak Schmeak.

1. Tell a story (funny, heartwarming, horrifying — get some emotion flowing)
2. Ask a question (or a few — sometimes I like to give a quiz)
3. Use a quote that gets people thinking
4. Give a “shocking statistic”

An introduction could either make or break you as a speaker.  Dr. Gary S. Goodman mentions in one of his articles at Ezine that it would also be best if there is another person introducing you.  In particular, a well written introduction that you prepared beforehand should be given to the one introducing you. Brief him on how you want to be introduced. The idea is to have a control of the presentation. Remember, there are no second chances on first time impressions, so better make a good one.

As you start your speech, relax and try to breathe. Have direct eye contact with your audience, as much as possible don’t read from your copy. If there is a portion of the speech that you should know by heart, it should be the start. As you begin to say your first line, you should at least have a good connection with the audience.

Starting lines can be in a form of an anecdote or a really amusing story that could be very well related to the topic to be discussed. Or sometimes, you could also ask questions or a single one that will strike your audience. It is also good to tell a joke but you have to be very careful not to offend anyone. In other words, humor should be in good taste. Observational humor is also practiced by seasoned speakers. At other times, speakers make use of a statistic or a trivia.

There are indeed various ways of starting a speech. Plan it carefully in order for yours to be a winning piece.