Reading and analysing other people’s speeches is a great way to get better at speaking yourself.
Michelle is a Queen, and she is intelligent and eloquent.
Do you remember her US election speech of 2016?
I gladly analyse a small part of that speech for you, extracting some great tips.
Guiding the attention
“Let’s be very clear.
-> With this sentence, she guides our attention and announces she will say something important.
Delivering a strong statement
Strong men, strong men, men who are truly role models, don’t need to put down women to make themselves feel powerful.
-> This is her strong statement. Her truth. She puts it out loud and clear. She pauses and goes on to further elaborate and clarify.
Taking it further
People who are truly strong, lift others up.
People who are truly powerful bring others together and that is what we need in our next president.
-> She makes us think even further in the same line of thought.
Using the power of repetition
We need someone who is a uniting force in this country
We need someone who will heal the wounds that divide us.
Someone who truly cares about us and our children.
Someone with strength and compassion to lead this country forward.”
-> She uses the power of repetition to bring home her next point.
There’s no need for more details, because the context is known to the audience. We can easily picture in our heads what she means.
The meaningful words, such as care, strength and compassion, speak for themselves and shape a desirable future.
Is Michelle Obama an amazing speaker? Yes.
Was she born like this? No.
She worked for it.
Confidence is a muscle and speaking is a skill.
Great speakers are made, not born.