Introduction

Let's face it. Some people have the ability to hold an audience in the palm of their hand, while for others public speaking is a painful experience - for them and for their listeners.

     I was only a high school student when I noticed that every once in a while a student speaker would make a dynamite presentation. I watched one student introduce a candidate for class president from a prepared speech. Then he suddenly stopped in the middle of a sentence, folded up his prepared text and began to speak about the candidate from his heart. It was extremely effective; the audience loved the spontaneity of the presentation.

    In law school, I watched a few rising legal stars who not only knew the law but were able to convey their thoughts in a way that was distinctly more effective than other attorneys. I also saw excellent attorneys fail miserably in court as they attempted to work from a prepared script. It just didn't work. The truly great trial lawyers gave the impression that they were speaking from the soul, even if they knew their script word for word.

     Over the years I came to realize that these individuals had an innate ability to understand the importance of connecting with an audience. Knowing the facts or the law was vital, but often not enough to capture the hearts of an audience - or a jury. The effective communicators usually did the best job for their clients.

     As a young trial lawyer, I learned this lesson firsthand. I was representing a state agency as an assistant attorney general when I found myself up against a seasoned pro. I carefully studied the law and the facts of the case, but it wasn't enough. My opponent knew the case as well as I did, yet as he eloquently presented his position, I knew I was doomed. Although he was only arguing his case to an administrative judge, he still was able to persuade with tremendous power. I was no match for him. A jury would have loved him even more.

     The best trial attorneys know that juries are persuaded by connecting with the individual jurors. The details of the case are important but frequently not the overriding issue for jurors. Whether it is a jury or the Junior League, the rules are the same. People want more than words read from a piece of paper. They want to connect with the speaker.

     There's something else I learned. Just as written principles guide the legal profession, certain canons of communication, when followed, produce extraordinary results for all public speakers. That is why I have written Sherman's 21 Laws of Speaking.

SPEAKERS ARE LEADERS

     The moment you rise to speak, you assume a position of leadership. It doesn't matter if you are standing before two, 2,000, or 20,000 people. The very essence of any presentation is to move others to action - to inspire change.

     Great leaders are great communicators, yet not everyone can utter a phrase like Winston Churchill. Few of us can hold the attention of an audience like Colin Powell. And it's a rare person who can tell a story like Paul Harvey.

     As you will discover, you don't have to be a media star or reside in the pages of our history books to make presentations with power and confidence. You can learn from these power presenters by simply following their examples.

     Why should you be concerned about polishing your speaking abilities? Think about the individuals at the top of your profession and you'll no doubt find excellent presenters. Their success is tied to their ability to persuade. For example, a survey of engineering school faculty members found that 15 percent of an engineer's future success is dependent on his or her engineering skills, while 85 percent depends on communication skills.

     It's not only true of engineers, but of those in education, government, and business. Top leaders are also effective speakers.

     John Graham of Graham Communications summed up the value of speaking in these terms: "Speaking, like writing, is valuable in business because it reflects an ability to think, analyze ideas, make judgments, develop arguments that command attention and organize information in a way that moves people to action."

A LEARNED SKILL

     My experience in training executives to be effective presenters has reinforced the fact that many leaders who are not natural speakers have learned the techniques necessary to communicate forcefully. Their voices are not typical of the so-called "professional" speaker, yet they can captivate an audience. That's good news for those of us who do not have voices like Charlton Heston or James Earl Jones. What these leaders understand is that effective speaking is critical to their success at all levels.

     This book is designed to help you become a leadership speaker:

• One who understands the relationship between speaking and leadership.
• One who looks for opportunities to enhance his or her executive abilities through speaking to groups.
• One who knows that making presentations is a fast track to the top of the career ladder.

     Whether you are a teacher, salesperson, attorney, politician or CEO, I invite you put these 21 Laws of Speaking into practice. I believe they will significantly improve your ability to communicate and help you inspire others to action.

- Rob Sherman, JD