The choice of words can make the difference between an interesting speech that we soon forget and a lively speech we remember for the rest of our lives. Here are 5 tips to add life to your speeches.
1 - Involve the five senses
Make your audience live a sensorial experience by using words that involve the five senses.
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Sight: Instead of saying: "She was sad," you could say: "A tear glided slowly down her cheek."
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Touch: "He put his hand on her shoulder…" could become: "He wrapped his arm around her shoulder.…"
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Smell: Replace: "He entered in the bakery…" with: "He was greeted by the smell of warm bread when he entered…"
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Hearing: Don't just say: "She answered…." instead, say: "With a nasal voice she answered …"
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Taste: "He ate an apple." is less mouth watering than: "He savoured the sweetness of the apple."
2 - Use comparisons
Comparisons are useful to illustrate what you are saying: For example: That hockey player skates LIKE a rocket." is a stronger image than: "That hockey player skates really fast."
3 - Play with analogies.
"That hockey player IS a real rocket when he's on the ice." is an analogy.
You affirm that one thing IS something else, in other words, the hockey player IS a rocket.
4 - Go from abstract to concrete.
Use concrete verbs. They create images in our minds that are more powerful. "He pulled out his tooth." hurts more than: "He extracted his tooth". We can easily imagine ourselves in the dentist chair when you say, "He pulled out his tooth".
5 - Replace generic terms by specific terms.
By using specific terms, you make it so much easier for people to visualize what you are describing. "She saw a bird on a branch" is less evocative than: "She saw a sparrow on a branch". |
