Carnegie Language Breakthroughs and the Art of Communication

Chapter 31 The Challenge of Effective Speaking (3)
比如：数年前斯格利·霍华的报纸花费17. 6万美元做过一项调查，以期发现顾客们对零售商店的什么地方不喜欢。这是迄今对零售问题所做的最昂贵、最科学化，也是最彻底的调查。调查的问卷送往16个不同城市的45 047个家庭里。问题之一是：“你不喜欢本镇商店的什么地方？”这个问题的所有答案中，几乎有2/5是相同的：无礼的店员！

There are amazing words at the beginning of the speech, and the reason why it can establish communication with the audience is because it produces a shock of thought.This is a "shock technique" that uses the unexpected in order to have the effect of drawing the audience's attention to the subject matter of the speech.

In Washington, a student in our class used this method of provoking curiosity.Her maiden name was Meg Hill.Here's her opening statement:

For 10 years I was a prisoner.Not in an ordinary prison, but in a prison walled with fear of your own inferiority and fenced off with fear of criticism.

Wouldn't you like to know a little more about this true story?
One danger that should be avoided in startling openings is over-dramatization, over-the-top gimmicks.I also remember a guy who started his speech by shooting a gun into the air.He wanted to use this to attract people's attention, but it ended up shattering the audience's eardrums.

Opening remarks should be approachable, like a knee-to-knee conversation.A very effective way to know whether your opening remarks are really conversational is to try them at the dinner table.If you don't start your talk in a way that's easy enough to get to the dinner table, then you're probably not close enough to your audience.

But all too often, the opening that should capture the audience's interest is often the dullest part of the speech.For example, I recently heard a speaker start like this: "Trust in God and trust in your own abilities..." This opening is too didactic, like boiled cabbage!But listen to his second sentence, it gradually becomes interesting, and there is a force that makes the heart throb: "In 1918, my mother was newly widowed, had three children to raise, but was penniless... "Why didn't the speaker tell the story of a widowed mother leading three young children struggling to survive in the first sentence?
If you want to arouse the interest of your audience, don't start with ramblings, but jump to the heart of the story from the beginning.

Frank Bettega did just that.He is the author of "How I Raised to Succeed in Sales" and is a master of suspense, able to create suspense in the first sentence.I know him because, sponsored by the American Chamber of Commerce and Industry, he and I have been on a speaking tour across the United States, teaching the tricks of sales.He is very "enthusiastic" in his speeches, and the way he starts is even more sublime, which always makes me admire from the bottom of my heart.First, he doesn't preach, second, he doesn't lecture, third, he doesn't preach, and fourth, he doesn't make general remarks. He jumps into the core of the topic as soon as he opens his mouth.Hear how he started when he talked about "zealousness": "Shortly after I started playing professional baseball, one of the most shocking things of my life happened to me."

What effect does such a beginning have on the audience?I know, because I was there, and I saw their reaction firsthand—he had everyone's attention right away, and everyone was eager to hear why he was shocked and what he did about it.

Audiences especially enjoy listening to the speakers tell stories from their own lived experiences.Ruse Cornwell delivered his famous speech "The Diamond is in Your Backyard" more than 6 times, earning millions of dollars.How did his most famous speech begin?And listen:

In 1870, we traveled on the Tigris River.We hired a guide in Baghdad to show us the ancient sites of Persepolis, Nineveh and Babylon.

This is his opening statement—a story.This is the best way to grab the reader's attention.This kind of opening is almost foolproof and rarely fails.It pushes you to move forward with him, and we as the audience follow behind, wondering what's coming.

In a particular issue of the Saturday Evening Post, two pieces began with a story, excerpted below:
The sharp sound of a revolver pierced the dead silence.

During the first week of July, something happened at the Mountain View Inn in Denver.As far as the matter itself is concerned, it is only a small matter, but in terms of its possible consequences, it is not a big matter.The hotel manager Goebel was so intrigued by the incident that he told Mountain View Hotel owner Steve Farraley about it.A few days later, when Mr. Farare went to inspect several hotels under him, he told the staff of the other 6 hotels about the incident.

Note that both opening paragraphs have action.They have an effect right from the start, arousing your curiosity.You want to read it; you want to know more; you want to discover what these two works are trying to say.

Even an inexperienced novice can succeed in crafting a good opening if he can use this storytelling technique to arouse the audience's curiosity.

2. Ask the audience to show their hands in response
Asking the audience to raise their hand to answer a question is also a great way to get their interest and attention.For example, when I talk about "How to Avoid Fatigue," I start my talk with this question: "Let's show our hands, how many of you are tired before you think you should be?"

Remember this: Before asking your audience to raise their hands, give them a little warning that you are going to do it.Don't start by saying, "How many people here believe that income taxes should be lower? Let's show our hands." Say, "I'm going to ask you to raise your hands and answer a very important question for you. The question is this. : "How many of you believe that product coupons are good for consumers? "So that the audience has some preparation when answering.

Proper use of the skill of asking the audience to raise their hands can obtain invaluable responses, which is called "audience participation".When you use it, your presentation is no longer a one-sided affair, the audience is already involved.When you ask, "How many of you are tired long before you think you should?" everyone starts thinking about his favorite subject: himself, his pain, his weariness .He held up his hand, and probably looked around to see who else was doing the same.He had forgotten that he was listening to a speech, he smiled, he nodded to his friend sitting next to him, and the cold atmosphere was broken.And you, as the speaker, suddenly relax, and so do the audience.

Promise your audience to tell them how to get what they want—An almost invincible way to get your audience to pay close attention to your presentation is to tell them that if they follow your advice, they will get what they want. need.Here are some examples:
I'm going to tell you how to prevent fatigue—I'm going to tell you how to get an extra hour of wakefulness every day.

I'm going to tell you how to actually increase your income.

If you listen to me for 10 minutes, I promise to tell you a way to make you more popular.

This promise-and-guaranteed opening is bound to get the speaker's attention because it directly touches on the audience's self-concerns.Speakers often ignore the interrelationships that exist between their topic and the important interests of their audience. Instead of opening the door to the audience's attention, they make uninteresting opening remarks, trace the origin of the subject matter, and babble Talk about the background of the topic, and this will strictly close the door of attention.

I remember hearing a speech a few years ago, the topic itself was quite important to the audience: the need for regular health checks.But how do speakers get started?Did he add to the spontaneity and appeal of his subject by a clever opening?No.He began by reciting a dry history of the Institute for Prolonging Life, which immediately disenchanted the audience with him and his subject.If you structure the opening statement according to the "promise" technique, the effect will be greatly enhanced.Please see the following example:
According to statistics, do you know how long you can live?According to insurance company statistics, your average life expectancy is about 80/2 of the time between your current age and the age of 3.For example, if you are 35 years old this year, and the gap between your current age and 80 years old is 45 years old, then you can live about 2/3 of this number, that is to say, you can live at least 30 years old... Is this enough?No, no, we're all eager to live a few more years.However, these statistics are based on millions of records.So, can you and I break through this limitation?Yes, we can do it with the right precautions.But the first step is to perform a thorough health check. ...

Then, if we explain in detail the need for periodic health checks, the audience might be interested in the companies formed to provide this service.But talking about the company in a nonchalant way at the outset is bad and sure to fail.

Another example: I heard a student give a speech on "Protecting Forests, It's Urgent".He started by saying, "As an American, we should be proud of our country's resources..." Then he pointed out to us that we were wasting a lot of our country's lumber.However, his opening speech is very bad, too common, too vague.It does not bring his lectures into any affinity with us.Come to think of it, there might just happen to be a businessman in the audience.The destruction of our forests could have a major impact on his career.There is another one who is a banker, and this matter affects him too, because it affects our general economic climate... So, why not start this way: "The subject of my speech today will be It affects your business, Mr. Bobby; and your future, Mr. Sauer. In fact, in some ways, it affects the price of the food we eat and the rent we pay. It affects the income and livelihood of all of us."

In this way, is it too exaggerated the importance of forest protection?No, I don't think so.This was done only in obedience to Mr. Hubbard's instructions: "Take things seriously, and say them in a way that attracts attention."

3. Use of exhibits

Perhaps the easiest way in this world to get people's attention is to hold something up high and let people look at it.Even natives and fools, babes in cradles, monkeys in shop windows, and puppies in the street, cannot help heeding such a provocative gesture.This method can sometimes be used, and it can be used to great effect even with the most serious audience.For example, Mr. Ellis of Philadelphia began a speech by holding a coin between his thumb and forefinger and holding it high above his shoulders.Everyone present naturally looked towards his move.Then he asked: "Has anyone picked up a coin like this on the sidewalk? This coin is not an ordinary coin. It says that whoever is lucky enough to find this coin will be able to Get a lot of discounts and discounts on various real estate developments. You just give this coin to the hosting company..." Mr. Ellis then began to condemn this absurd and immoral behavior.

Mr. Ellis's opening remarks contain another salient feature.He begins by asking a question, allowing the audience to think with the speaker and collaborate with him.Note that the Saturday Evening Post article "On Gangsters" contains two questions in the first three sentences: "Are gangsters really organized? . . . and how are they?" Organized?" Using question marks is really the easiest and most effective way to open the audience's mind to your point of view.You can use this technique anytime after other methods have proven ineffective.

Start with a question from someone famous—something big people say always grabs attention.Therefore, an appropriate question they ask is the best way to start the speech.Do you like the following paragraph that opens an article discussing "business success"?

"There is only one thing that the world rewards riches and glory with," said Albert Hubbard, "and that is enterprise. What is enterprise, I can tell you: it is when no one tells you that you should How to act in the situation, can make the most correct action.”

As an opening statement, this passage contains several salient features.The very first sentence arouses the audience's curiosity; it leads us forward in order to tempt us to want to know more.If the speaker pauses skillfully after mentioning the name "Albert Hubbard," it will create an air of suspense.We can't help but ask: To whom is this world going to reward both wealth and glory?Speak up quickly.Hurry up and tell us.We may disagree with you, but give us your opinion anyway... The second sentence brings us right into the heart of the matter.The third sentence is a question, inviting the audience to engage in discussion, think together, and take some action.And the audience has always been the most like action.They love it so much.The fourth sentence gives the definition of "enterprising spirit"... After this opening statement, the speaker went on to illustrate this "enterprising spirit" with a very interesting and very humane story.As far as the structure of this lecture is concerned, it can undoubtedly be rated as a masterpiece.

Seems like a natural opening - do you like the following opening?Why?Here is Mary Richmond's speech to the annual meeting of the League of Women Voters of New York, before Congress passed a law banning early marriage:
Yesterday, as the train passed through a town not far from here, I was reminded of a marriage that took place there some years ago.Since many marriages of the present day are as hasty and unhappy as this one, I am going to go into all the details of this example today.

On December 12, a 12-year-old high school girl in that city met a third-year boy from a nearby college for the first time.The boy had just reached legal age. On December 15, just three days after they met, they received their marriage certificate.They swore the girl was 12 and therefore did not need parental consent.After the young couple obtained the certificate, they left the city hall and immediately asked a priest to witness their marriage (the girl was a Catholic), but the priest of course refused to marry them.Later, by some means, probably revealed by the priest, the girl's mother got the news of the attempted marriage.But before she could get her daughter back, the young couple had a local security officer marry them.The groom then took his bride to a hotel where he stayed for two days and two nights.On the third day, the groom abandoned the bride and has not been reunited with her since.

I personally really like this opening line.The first sentence is pretty good.It foreshadows an interesting memory.We wish to know the details of this past event.We sat down with peace of mind, wanting to hear a very interesting story.In addition, this opening statement also seems very natural.It's not like a research report, it's not overly serious, and it doesn't give the impression that the speaker has put a lot of thought into it. "Yesterday, when the train passed by a city not far from here, I remembered a marriage event that happened there a few years ago." It sounded natural, unpretentious, and humane.It sounds a lot like someone is narrating a good story to another person, and the audience just likes that.But in doing so, it's easy to get bogged down in too much detail, making the audience aware that you've put in a lot of effort, which backfires.What we need is art so that you can't see the traces of art.

All the aforementioned methods can be used according to the situation, either separately or in combination.You need to understand that how you deliver your speech is closely related to whether your audience will accept you and your message.

4. Avoid unfavorable attention

I ask you very, very much to remember that not only the attention of the audience must be captured, but their profitable attention must be captured.Note that I said "favorable" note.A rational person will never insult the audience at the first opening, or say something that makes people hate and hate, so that the audience has to rally against him and refute his remarks.However, speakers often use the following two ways to attract the attention of the audience, which is very unwise.

A. Do not start with a so-called humorous story

For some deplorable reason, the novice speaker often feels that he is only a speaker if he is funny.His nature might have been encyclopedic and humorless, yet when he stood up to speak he fancied the spirit of Mark Twain descending upon him.So, he's likely to start with a humorous story, especially on an after-dinner occasion.What will happen as a result?The stories he tells, the sudden changes in his attitude, can create a dictionary-like dullness in the scene.And there's a 20:1 chance that it will, his joke probably won't "work."As Hamlet's immortal quote put it, it proves that such jokes are "stale, trite, flat and unprofitable."

(End of this chapter)