SUGGESTIONS FOR AN EFFECTIVE SPEECH

Prepared for AFHE Speech Contest for Graduation Ceremony

1. Preliminary Information:

You are writing a 3-5 minute speech about your experiences being homeschooled through high school and how this has affected your life. You will be speaking before well over 1,500 people, most of whom are relatives and friends of a fellow graduate. In addition, you may be given an opportunity to give your speech at the AFHE annual convention before another 1,000 people. So here is your chance to do something significant! Being chosen to give this speech would certainly be something you could proudly add to your resume and will show potential colleges, scholarship committees, and employers that you are someone who stands out from the rest. Giving a commencement speech is a highly sought after honor because competitive students know how it helps them in their chosen future endeavors.

2. Content I:

What you choose to write about will be the most important decision because it will affect every aspect of your speech. Consider first your audience. There are parents out there who have sacrificed greatly to reach this point with their child. A mother who spent countless hours in research, teaching, driving to activities, instilling good habits, negotiating arguments and modeling her faith because she loved her children and wanted to give them the best education she could obtain for them. A father who supported his wife as her sole relief from a 24/7 job and provided for a household on one income in an age where two incomes is standard to maintain a middle-class lifestyle. In some way, recognize their efforts and thank them on behalf of all the graduates.

3. Content II:

Have something original to say. This is a reflective point in your life and in others lives listening to you. What have you learned about life? How will you make your mark on the world? Who are people from the past or present who inspire you? Is there an historical event that helps you put life in perspective? Feel free to share something about the centrality of your faith to your future goals and direction. But avoid truisms or trite phrases that reduce the complex world to simple black and white choices. Good people can differ on their views of the world so respect that there is some room for liberty of conscience. Also avoid mentioning specific branches of faith and/or present specific political figures or parties.

4. Content III:

Be humorous! Find a way to lighten the moment with a funny observation or a transparent moment. This doesn’t mean you have to search joke books but as you have others read your speech, ask them where you could add some light hearted words to put others at ease (and yourself at the same time!)

5. Delivery I:

Videotape your speech in good light, standing up facing the camera, and looking at the camera. This means that you will have to memorize the speech except for a few note cards that you will prepare to glance down at in order to remember your outline and next points. Merely reading your speech does not give the judges any way to determine whether you will have any stage presence or be interesting to hear.

6. Delivery II:

Use gestures where they are natural to do so. Consider coming from behind the podium in a natural way to emphasize a certain point. Look around the room as though you’re talking to people. If necessary, cut out some cardboard faces and place them at 10:00 and 2:00 so that you remember to look around. A speech delivered to one point looks so wooden and stiff. You are trying to convey a sense of intimacy in a very public setting. Think of good speakers you have heard. Don’t they manage to make you think that they are speaking directly to you? And don’t forget to smile occasionally!

7. Style:

There are some people who are naturally dramatic, others are more serious, and others are the clown of the bunch. It doesn’t matter what type of style you have as long as it authentically reflects who you are and not someone else. You may have to think a bit about this one because this might be one of the first occasions when you have had to present your “style” to an audience. Just think hard about the particular gifts and talents that you have discovered God has given to you. Do you love the arts? Then you may be able to pull off a more creative and daring style? When the topics turn to something like current events and politics are you all pistons firing? Then you may have a more serious nature and a speech with grand ideas would fit your style. Can you find humor in almost anything and “get” every comic strip? Then you may have the gift of turning tragedy into the sublime and giving hope to others through a reminder that we’re all human. Ask your parents, your friends, and pray for revelation and you’ll get some clues into your style.

8. Conclusion:

It gets harder and harder to choose from among the great entries for the speech contest, so be prepared that this exercise might be just that, an exercise rather than being chosen to be the speaker. However, this experience may set you up for future speaking opportunities and you’ll be a better candidate because you tried in this instance. Effective speakers are made, not born. Good luck and get to work!