It's Time to Speak.....

I have never been much of a movie guy, but this week my wife and I went to the            theater to view a powerful story, "The King's Speech." For me, it was more than a story

about King George VI and his tormented difficulty with stammering speech. Earlier in the week I had listened to a radio program discussing the book "White House-Ghosts",

Presidents and their speech writers.

Both of these encounters highlighted a specific topic which reinforced, for me, one of the most important practices for Organizational/Personal/Professional success there is i.e. the ability to SPEAK.


When you read most Leadership Books, or attend Leadership Seminars you will hear about integrity, vision, mission and a host of topics which are basically the same, just warmed over differently. Seldom will you hear anything about the importance of public speaking. You'll hear about "communication", but little emphasis is given to the art, science and skill of standing before people with oratory mastery. It is not enough to have the gift of gab, and I'm not talking about motiviation speakers who deliver flowery words. You must have substance with words. The great leaders of history were not men or women of superior intellect, rather they were eloquent in transferring their ideas, passion and vision from their head and hearts to the masses.

> England would have fallen had it not been for the radio talks Winston Churchill gave to the people admonishing them to "Never Give Up!" Had it not been for his ability to speak, we might all be speaking German today.

>Martin Luther King did not say anything different than thousands of black men before him, but he is credited with changing race relations in America when he described, with brilliance, in his speech that "I have a dream!"

>Adolf Hitler stirred his country into World War II with his fiery rhetoric.

>John the Baptizer was described as a VOICE in the wilderness.

>John Kennedy gives credit to his speech writers (who he called his intellectual life blood) in the evolving phrases like "Ask NOT..." speeches and his ability to deliver with imagination and passion.

>If we still had LP's we could have FDR's greatest hits from his fire side chats which are often quoted today.

>And on his 100th birthday celebration, the "Great Communicator" Ronald Reagan is revered for his captivating challenge to communism "Tear Down This Wall!"

How important is the issue of public speaking ability?
It is still rated as one of the most important abilities employers are looking for in leadership/management candidates.

It is still rated a #1 on the most feared thing among adults in America. (Death is 3rd).
Many of the companies I work with have great managers who are terrible at speaking before those they are required to lead. If I had my way, every business student in college would be required to go through public speaking classes before they could graduate. ( It was my most dreaded class in college, and the most important I ever took.) If I had my way, every manager would be required to attend Dale Carnegie or a public speaking course at the community college before being promoted. It's that important...it's that rare.

I often quote the following...(author unknown)

"The man who knows how will always have a job and will always make a living.

But the man who knows WHY, and can communicate it effectively will always be his boss and will always be his leader."

You can manage with out being a good speaker, but you will never accomplish the highest level of leadership until you can inspire, motivate, paint pictures in the heads of those following you through linguistic articulation.

Think about it...and then SPEAK!