Page 260 - Essentials of Human Communication

Step 7: Word Your Speech 239

persOnal style Communication
Audiences favor speakers who use a personal rather than an impersonal style—who Choice point
speak with them rather than at them. A personal style makes the audience feel more Offensive language
involved with the speaker and the speech topic. You want to illustrate the
negative effects of racist language. If you
● Use personal pronouns. Choose I, me, he, she, and you. rather than expressions were addressing your class, what options
such as the impersonal one (as in, “One is led to believe that . . . ”), this speaker, would you have for making this point and
and you, the listeners. These expressions are overly formal and distance the audi- yet not offending anyone?
ence, creating barriers rather than bridges.
● Direct questions to the audience. Involve the audience by asking them questions. With a
small audience, you might even take brief responses. With larger audiences, you might
ask the question, pause to allow the audience time to consider their responses, and then
move on. When you direct questions to your listeners, you make them feel they are part
of the experience.
● Create immediacy. Create immediacy (a closeness with your audience) by referring
directly to your listeners, using you; say, “You’ll enjoy reading . . .” instead of “Everyone
will enjoy reading . . .” Refer to commonalities between you and the audience and to
shared experiences and goals: for example, “We all need a more responsive PTA.”

pOwer Communication
Public speaking, perhaps even more than interpersonal or small group communica- Choice point
tion, often requires a powerful style—a style that is certain, definite, and persuasive. slang
The first step toward achieving a powerful style of speech is to eliminate the power- You’re preparing to speak to
less forms that you may use now. The following weaknesses characterize powerless an audience of high school sophomores
speech (Molloy, 1981; Kleinke, 1986; Johnson, 1987; Dillard & Marshall, 2003; about going to Regional Community Col-
Lakoff, 1975; Timmerman, 2002). lege. You wonder how you can use lan-
guage to help relate to these students. For
● Hesitations make you sound unprepared and uncertain: “I, er, want to say that, example, you wonder if you should break
ah, this one is, er, the best, you know?” the general rule against using slang, think-
● Too many intensifiers make your speech monotonous and don’t allow you to ing that slang is the language of the stu-
stress what you do want to emphasize: “Really, this was the greatest; it was truly dents and imagine that they’d be more
likely to identify with you if you spoke their
awesome, phenomenal.” language. What options do you have in
● Disqualifiers signal a lack of competence and a feeling of uncertainty: “I didn’t choosing an appropriate style? How would
read the entire article, but . . .” “I didn’t actually see the accident, but . . .” you describe the style you would use?
● Self-critical statements signal a lack of confidence and may make public your
own inadequacies: “I’m not very good at this,” “This is my first public speech.”
● Slang and vulgar language signal low social class and hence little power:
“No problem!” “@*+#?$!!”

sentenCe COnstruCtiOn

Effective public speaking style also requires careful attention to the construction of sentences.
Here are some guidelines that will help you achieve a clear, vivid, appropriate, personal, and
powerful speaking style.
● Use short rather than long sentences. Short sentences are more forceful and economical.
They are easier to understand and to remember. Listeners don’t have the time or inclina-
tion to unravel long and complex sentences. Help them to listen more efficiently by using
short rather than long sentences.
● Use direct rather than indirect sentences. Direct sentences are easier to understand. They
are also more forceful. Instead of saying, “I want to tell you the three main reasons why
we should not adopt the Bennett proposal,” say, “We should not adopt the Bennett pro-
posal. Let me give you three good reasons.”