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Choosing a Speech Topic
by Gary Rodriguez
A trap many fall into when writing a speech is making their subject to broad. It is very important that you keep your speech focused; one single thought that after people get done listening they walk away with. This doesn’t mean that you can’t construct a speech on the importance of world peace, but you are going to need to decide on what element of world peace you want to talk about. Granted, the type of speech you are planning on giving will influence the topic and the content that you use, this doesn’t take away from the fact that an effective speech is one that keeps the listener engaged and stays on track. Remember that a speech is not a device that is meant to have many themes, it is to have one central theme or focus.
How does one make sure that they are writing a focused speech? There are a few steps that each and every speech writer should go through to make sure they are truly conveying their message. First, you need to know your audience, really understand who it is that is going to be listening to you. It is rare that you are going to have an audience that encompasses everyone, as the president does when he is giving a speech. If you are planning on giving a speech at graduation, you initial audience is your fellow graduates however you are also going to have family members of all ages in the audience as well. That must be taken into consideration when writing your speech.
After figuring out who your audience is, you will want to pick the theme/topic/ focus of the speech. Generally speaking most people start with a very broad topic such as animal rights, abortion, gun control and so on. You are not going to be able to adequately cover every aspect involved in any of these topics in a speech, you must decide what about that topic you want to cover. For example if you are very passionate about animal rights you have to decide what about animal rights you want to cover, is it the fact that animal mistreatment stems from the fact that they are looked at as property, could it be that you don’t feel animals should be used as food, perhaps you want to emphasize that animals feel pain and suffering… the possibilities are endless but it is important that you focus on one aspect in your speech.
Yes you may mention others, but make it brief, and only use another aspect to illustrate the main point you are trying to drive home. Avoid going off on a tangent about it. I highly recommend writing down the points you want to talk about and look at how they connect to the main theme you are trying to convey. Then number the points, you will want to make sure that as you write the speech you make sure that at the end of each point you are returning to your theme.
It is also important that your speech has a climax. This is the part of the speech that the audience has been waiting for. It is also the part of the speech that should leave every listener with something to think about. Generally speaking this is the last paragraph of your speech. Many people will opt to have their closing line be a famous quote, a quote that embodies the central theme of the speech. This quote or closing line should give the impression that there is nothing left to be said about your topic.
You should also remember that the length of your speech has nothing to do with the impact it is going to make. Typically the longer the speech the less likely people are actually listening to what it is you are saying. Focus speeches are poignant, engaging and straight to the point.
Remember, to keep your speech “short”, skip the formalities, make sure that your speech has a purpose, connect to your audience (grab them by the heart), connect your main point to the global point, use pointed illustrations, use famous quotes, end strong and don’t be afraid to revise, revise and revise again.
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