LCI Speaker’s Club
Your first Speakers Club speech is about getting up and just doing it. Prepare what you want to
say, stand on stage and speak!
Purpose:
The aim of “The Introduction” speech is:
1) to get used to speaking in public, on a stage, in an unnatural environment so that we
can begin to get accustomed to the strange feelings of nerves and fear! Only practice
will help – that’s why you are here!
2) to get some initial feedback. Dirk Daenen once told you: “communication is all about
perception”, so let’s get some first feedback on what we do right and wrong. We all
start somewhere, maybe some of you are already pretty good but want to get better.
Maybe some of you have never done it before and just want to know where to start.
3) for people to get to know you better. This club is not just about getting better at public
speaking, but also about networking and enjoying each other’s company!
The Speech
To begin your path to excellence in public speaking you don’t want to concern yourself with
research, so your first speech is going to be about the thing you are most knowledgeable in:
yourself! While you know everything about yourself, you only have 5 to 7 minutes to talk so
choose what you are going to talk about wisely. Think about a few interesting things in your life that
make you the person you are. This might be your cultural upbringing; it might be your occupation
and how you have gotten to where you are; it could be your main interests, hobbies or obsessions.
Four common ways of addressing this speech are: a ‘chronological’ list of main points; talking
about ‘topics’ such as your family, your career, your hobbies; ‘red lines’ (a theme) around which you
talk, for example different times in your life that ice cream has played a role; the ‘life changing
event’ is also quite common.
After you have chosen the main points you will talk about consider how to tell them in the form of a
story, a narrative. Think about how you would tell the story if you were sitting in a bar with a group
of friends. Don’t be afraid of getting personal, sharing emotions. Audiences respond very well to
authenticity and genuineness.
The Structure
If you recall back to that day in language class when you were 12 years old and your teacher
looked at the class and said: “today we will write something called ‘an essay’ and in every essay
there are three parts: an introduction, a body and a conclusion.” Since those days, really nothing
Written by Dirk L. Daenen Page 1 of 2
LCI Speaker’s Club
has changed. Whether you are writing an essay or whether you are structuring your next speech
the fundamentals of “introduction, body and conclusion” remain solid.
In the speech think about an interesting, attention grabbing opener with which you will create an
immediate impact. The body of your speech will be your story, highlighted with carefully chosen
examples. The conclusion of your speech should reiterate the main points that you want people to
remember about you. Repetition is a good thing and the fundamental reason behind having an
introduction, a body and a conclusion. In theory, your key message points will be repeated three
times.
Nerves
Of course you will be nervous, that is to be expected. Public speaking will always induce
nervousness however it is the way you respond to that nervousness, your ability to get used to it
that will make you the exceptional speaker you will become. Expect your nerves to be most acute
just before you start talking. Your first couple of sentences will be the hardest ones. A trick of the
trade is to memorise the first sentences, have them circulating in your head while you walk onto
stage. If you consider it necessary, you may want to consider having some notecards. You may
refer to them whenever you need to, but ONLY when you need to. Reading from your cards will
destroy your ability to engage your audience. You cannot make eye contact with your audience if
you are reading.
Your Evaluation
Your audience will be given the following evaluation questions about your speech:
1) What three things does the presenter do very well?
2) Was there a clear introduction, body and conclusion in the speech?
3) Did the speaker have a clear voice?
4) What three things could be improved?
5) Generally speaking what is the thing you liked most about the presentation?
Tips and Tricks for The Introduction
1) You are not Martin Luther King Jr and nobody expects you to be. Give yourself a break
don’t expect too much of yourself in these initial stages.
2) You’ve heard it before and the cliché is right: “practice makes perfect“.
3) Speak louder and with more varying intonation then you are comfortable with.
4) If you plan to speak for five minutes you will probably end up speaking for six and a half.
Plan for the lower end of your timeframe.
5) Never apologise, never ever apologise. People will not remember why you apologised but
they will remember that you did. Nobody knows anything went wrong until you tell them!
And finally, never forget:
It’s all about Perception
Written by Dirk L. Daenen Page 2 of 2
