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Keeping Your Old Speeches
Have you ever
struggled for an idea for your next speech?
Or better still, have
you ever had to do a speech on a topic which you have already talked about
to a different audience?
The only problem is
that you cannot remember a word of it! All that you remember was the topic
and that your audience liked it!
You look in every
room, every cupboard, every trash can, every little place where you think
you think you might have left it! You even check ridiculous places like your
glove box, when you know damn well that it is definitely not going to be
there!
Unfortunately, I have
had this problem occur a few times now. Whenever I complete a speech, my
notes and/or cue cards finish either in the rubbish bin or in some
ridiculous spot, only to be found years later when I don’t really need them!
Because of this, I
have made an effort to collect all of my completed speeches and put them all
in the one place – in a particular cupboard inside my desk.
So why should you
keep your old speeches?
Well, as I mentioned
beforehand, if you have to talk about a topic that you have already spoken
about to a different audience, then you can pull the old speech out, edit it
slightly for your new audience and away you go.
Trust me, there is
nothing more frustrating that writing a speech that you know you have
written before! You just cannot get out of your head the fact that, if you
were a little bit more organised, you would not be wasting your time at the
moment!
Also, if you are
keeping your speeches, especially your good ones, you can feel confident
delivering them again because you know that they are good. If one particular
audience felt that it was an excellent speech, don’t you think that an
audience of a similar age and demographic will feel the same? Nine times out
of ten the answer is yes.
If you have won an
award with your speech, then another suggestion would be to use that as a
bit of publicity i.e. come and see Chris deliver his award winning speech on
Public Liability Lawsuits. It might sound a little bit corny and desperate,
but if you use your imagination you can make it work!
You don’t even have
to redeliver your entire speech. You can use one-liners, jokes or sentences
that had a positive impact on your audience and incorporate them into your
new speech. I remember in my Valedictorian speech I used a conclusion which
I have never delivered before, and I wasn’t quite sure whether it was going
to work not.. Thankfully, not only did it work, it turned my speech from a
good one, to a speech which people couldn’t stop talking about for days!
Surely, I would be insane to not use a similar ending like that again if a
suitable occasion ever arose, wouldn’t I?
I don’t recommend
this, but you can also use your bad speeches as well for your next speech.
If your speech was bad on the first time because of a poor delivery, then it
would be fair to say that particular speech needs to be delivered again
before you dismiss it as a poor speech. However if it was a poor speech
because of the content, then find out what was wrong with the content and
improve on it! It is possible to turn an ugly ducking into a beautiful swan,
if you follow what I am saying! However, I do not recommend this as I am of
the impression that if it was bad the first time, it will be bad for the
next hundred times too!
Regardless of whether
it is a good speech or a poor one, you can learn so much from your previous
speeches. Discover what works and what doesn’t, and apply all of your
experience into your next speech.
So remember, keep all
your speeches as you never know when you might need them again – keep them
for a rainy day!
My Name Is Christopher
Carlin And I Want To
Give You Twenty Free Public
Speaking Tips
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