(You will understand why I use this picture for this post later… so read on)

One of the common headaches that speakers face is not knowing what to say. They know that their speech has to have solid content and high speech value. They know that their speech has to be engaging and entertaining. But HOW exactly do you come up with killer content without having to break any sweat?

The solution is in the article below, written by Patricia Fripp, a highly well respected executive speech coach in USA, and also a contributor to The FAQ Book on Public Speaking’s fast action bonus gift.

The three strategies that she shared - (I) building a list (II) market “research” and (III) “once upon a time”-technique are extremely simple to employ yet very powerful. Not only will they help you to generate solid content on the fly, you will be regarded as a highly engaging speaker. Too good to be true?

Well, go on… you will find out soon enough.

Cheers,
Eric Feng
Your Public Speaking Coach
……………………………………………………………………………………

The secret of developing good content is simply this - you have to live an interesting life and converse with interesting people.

Make a list of all the people who have influenced you in your life. Lists are a great way to trigger your memory of what you
could talk about.

Make a list of every manager and boss you’ve ever worked for. Write down what you learned, even if they were a bad boss. They can serve at least as a pitiful example.

For example, when I was a 15-year-old shampoo girl, my first boss was Mr. Paul. I saw him treat every woman who came into our salon, for the time she was there, like she was the only one in the world. He treated the woman who worked as a waitress at the Carlton Hotel as well as the rich little lady who lived in the penthouse at the Carlton Hotel.

When I was young, I thought that was good service. It was nice to treat people well. Now that I’m older, sophisticated, and in
business, I reflect back and realize lessons learned that I wasn’t sophisticated enough to understand.

Now that I’m in business, promoting myself, and teaching other people, I realize that the waitress in the Carlton Hotel, who
talks to a somewhat affluent clientele of 150-200 people a day, has a sphere of influence a lot greater than the rich little lady who plays bridge every day with the same half dozen friends.

That’s a lesson.

I guarantee your lists will provide lessons learned. As you look at who influenced you and who were your bosses, ask yourself what they taught you and then how that plays out in your life now.

You might also want to remember and record all the turning points: the different jobs; the different schools; the different
colleges; the different seminars; who you met; when you fell in love in an idea, a profession, or a cause, etc. Look at the best advice that you’ve been given.

As a hairstylist I spent 24 years behind a hairstyling chair. When I was 15 we had many rich, glamorous women as customers. As soon as I got to know them, I used to say, “What were you doing when you were my age? How did you make your money? Did you make it yourself or did you marry it? If you made it yourself, how did you do it? If you married it, where did you meet him?”

Good market research.

My brother internationally acclaimed guitarist Robert Fripp is always saying, “Sister, you ask people such personal questions!”
During my over lapping careers with 24 years behind a hairstyling chair and 25 years of going to conferences and speaking asking questions, nobody has ever said, “That’s none of your damn business,” because people love talking about themselves. This is a great way to develop material.

Think about the advice. Think about the lessons learned. The best way to pull out these milestones is to sit down with a friend or a group of your pals who are also interested in developing their public speaking skills and do what I call the “Once upon a time - ” technique.

“Once upon a time - ” technique.

Tell a fairy story of your life as if it was about someone else, and don’t go into too much detail.

For example: “Once upon a time there was a little girl born in England. She had a brother who was one year, one month, two days, 12-1/2 hours younger than she was. He was always a very smart kid, top of the class. She worked hard and was about 15th in a class of 30. Her dad sold houses for a living and became a very successful businessperson.

When she was 12 she decided she was probably more artistic than academic, so she decided to become a hairstylist. When she was 15, she left school and served a 3-year apprenticeship and really learned about customer service, as well as hairstyling, from her boss.

When she used to go to work on the bus, all her little friends were talking about marrying millionaires, and at 15 she realized it’s much better to become a millionaire than to marry one. When she was 18 she left home and went to live on an island off France called Jersey. She worked with sophisticated gentlemen from the west end of London who could do hairstyles she’d never seen before.

However, she thought lunch hours were for squeezing in three extra customers, whereas the other guys thought that lunch hours were for eating lunch.

One day her boss told her she actually produced 30% more income for the salon, not by being better, just working much harder. She realized that perhaps tenacity and the willingness to work hard were more valuable than great talent.

But where to promote it? Obviously the colonies.”

I’ve just gone through my life as if I was talking about someone else, almost as if it were a fairy story. Go through your timeline using the “Once upon a time - ” technique.

Then get your friends to ask you the questions that are stimulated from your timeline: the high points; what your friends
are interested in hearing about; what people ask you about at a cocktail party when they know what you do for a living; what your interests are. These are the type of things that an audience would want to know.

Your lists and life timeline are ways that you can develop content and material for your presentations. Every single day carry around a notepad, and reflect at the end of the day. Ask yourself, “What happened to me today that could one day be in a speech?” If you had good customer service or bad customer service, it’s still a story and example. Search your life for the stories that have a message.

Now use what you’ve learned to develop good, original content.

Related Entries
Speech Basics: Fripp Style
The Different Ways You Learn To Be A More Effective Speaker
How To Give A Great Speech

P.S: The X’mas Special is still on till end of Jan 2008. Click here to get a copy of The FAQ Book on Public Speaking (e-book) at 50% off.

Share This