Want to be a Better Speaker?

The scene was the auditorium of Harding Academy, Memphis, Tennessee in the 1970s. As a matter of fact, that's me in that same auditorium, a few decades later. Chris Dahlberg had just delivered a speech for why he wanted to be student body president. It was my turn.

In a carefully practiced move, I stood at the podium, took my speech notes, crumpled them up and threw them on the floor of the stage. My plan was to say, "I was going to give this speech, but I think I'll just speak from the heart." At that point, I was going to deliver a dynamic, incredible, memorized speech. But at that particular moment, everything went blank. I stared desperately at that wad of paper. I looked forlornly at my fellow students. And I stuttered and stammered for about three minutes in one of the darkest days of school elections at the school. Oh yeah, one more thing. I lost.

I learned a lot from that day. Like the importance of speech notes. While you might not need them, what if you do? Better to have them than to have that young Stephen Williford look in your eyes. Notes are like a safety net. Folks would much rather you look down at your notes than to chase a rabbit. It might seem like a long time to you, but it takes very few seconds to see your next point.

Whether you are a rookie or a veteran speaker, you can always improve the way you prepare and deliver a speech.

Since that day, I have been a speech coach for heads of the largest businesses in the nation, sports stars and celebrities. But these days I mainly help others write books. I very seldom write a speech for anyone. So I wrote a book to encompass my philosophy about giving a speech. When someone asks for speech coaching, I ask them to buy the book.

My philosophy is a little different from some other speech coaches. For example, when you make a point, tell a story. Folks remember your own stories. Like the time I forgot my speech on that very stage...

Read the book. Show and Tell, Lessons from a Speech Coach If you need more help, we'll talk.

Stephen Douglas Williford has a B.A. in speech and an M.S. in Communication Psychology. His client book sales have surpassed $100,000,000.