He was his usual confident, well-spoken, forceful self, but Barack Obama’s speech on tonight did not compare with others he has given before (2004 Democratic Convention), nor was it as memorable as this historic day required.

Barack Obama had the 84,000 people at Invesco Field and millions more watching TV or surfing the web in the palm of his hand.  And although he is a great speaker, he didn’t do anything memorable or repeatable.

The first 15 minutes of Obama’s speech was delivered in the usual political style, a little too strident for my taste.  He went on the attack right off the bat.

After that long opening rally (tirade if you’re a Republican), he finally allowed the conversational Obama to emerge.  He lowered his voice and reminisced about his past and his interaction with people he’s met over 20 years.

Because in the faces of those young veterans who come back from Iraq and Afghanistan, I see my grandfather, who signed up after Pearl Harbor, marched in Patton’s Army, and was rewarded by a grateful nation with the chance to go to college on the GI Bill.

In the face of that young student who sleeps just three hours before working the night shift, I think about my mom, who raised my sister and me on her own while she worked and earned her degree; who once turned to food stamps but was still able to send us to the best schools in the country with the help of student loans and scholarships.

When I listen to another worker tell me that his factory has shut down, I remember all those men and women on the South Side of Chicago who I stood by and fought for two decades ago after the local steel plant closed.

And when I hear a woman talk about the difficulties of starting her own business, I think about my grandmother, who worked her way up from the secretarial pool to middle management, despite years of being passed over for promotions because she was a woman. She’s the one who taught me about hard work. She’s the one who put off buying a new car or a new dress for herself so that I could have a better life.

The best line of the night, from my executive speech coach’s viewpoint, was …

This election has never been about me. It’s been about you.

So, too, are all good speeches.  They are not about the speaker; they are about you, the audience.  It’s not about what the speaker says, it’s about what the audience takes away.

Obama finally mentioned Martin Luther King’s historic trip to the Mall in Washington, D.C. 45 years ago to the day, at the very end of his speech.  But the words about that day were so-so.  Nothing to remember.

And he ended with a Biblical quote, that he “swallowed” at the end.  I just heard it and I can’t remember it.  It was unlike him to blow his closing line.   HINT:  Practice your ending line.  It’s the last chance you have to make your speech a winner.

Although Martin Luther King, Jr., may have been up in heaven smiling, realizing that his dream is visible on earth, he won’t have to worry that his iconic speech will be toppled from the top of the list…at least for the time being.  Barack is still young.

Whether you like his politics or not, it’s hard to argue that Bill Clinton knows how to give a speech.  While Ronald Reagan has been touted as the Great Communicator, Bill Clinton was his equal on stage and with a microphone.   They’ve met their match!

Joe Biden brought the house down.  In comparison, he even made Bill Clinton seem like an average speaker.

Joe did everything right:
•    Opening that was real—not histrionic.
•    Meaningful stories and quotes from his mother:

“Joey, God sends no cross you cannot bear.”

•    A glimpse into his nightly ride home, thinking about the people whose homes he passed.

o Almost every night, I take the train home to Wilmington, sometimes very late. As I look  out the window at the homes we pass, I can almost hear what they’re talking about at the kitchen table after they put the kids to bed.

•    Instead of reciting a list of issues that they might be discussing, he used the words they might be saying around the kitchen table:

o    “Should mom move in with us now that dad is gone?”
o    “Fifty, sixty, seventy dollars to fill up the car?”
o    “Winter’s coming. How we gonna pay the heating bills?”
o    “Another year and no raise?”
o    “Did you hear the company may be cutting our health care?”
o    “Now, we owe more on the house than it’s worth. How are we going to send the kids to college?”
o    “How are we gonna be able to retire?”

•    Great variety in his voice—pacing, pitch and projection. When Joe raised his voice, it was done with real passion, not just a technique.  As a result, he did not sound not strident like so many other speakers.

It will be interesting to see if Obama, even the great speaker he is, can top his running mate’s example tomorrow night!

If you love Hillary, she gave a great speech and you’d give her an A +. If you really dislike Hillary, she gave a horrible speech and you’d give her an F. If you are an executive speech coach and can approach her dispassionately and ignore the content of her speech, you’d say she was an average politician.

This blog is non-political. It is based on my experiences with speakers from around the world. To keep this an assessment of style—not substance—I look at the overall stage presence, voice quality, variety of vocal pacing and projection, and techniques to make it memorable (such as humor, repetitive phrases, call backs, visuals, analogies, examples, stories.) So here’s my grade for her tonight: C.

Here are the notes on various style points that all speakers can learn from:

1. She started out by shouting her words. The pitch was the same. It is very difficult for a woman to pull that off. Hillary can’t.
2. When she did quit shouting and softened her voice, it was much more interesting to listen to, because it allowed her to use a variety of pitches and sound more natural.
3. She spoke too slowly. And the sentences were often the same length, making it often too patterned.
4. Great memories of the people she met along the campaign trail. Quick 1 or 2 sentences summaries that got to the heart of the story. “I remember….” is a great technique. It allowed her to list all the people she wanted to highlight and use them as a…..

5. Callback. Callbacks take you back to something that was earlier said. At the end she asked “Are you in it for me? Or are you in it for….” It allowed her to make her point: she wanted her followers to look at the big picture, rather than only her.

6. She is a pro at using a Teleprompter. It felt like the speech wasn’t even being read.

7. The crowd loved the reference to the Sisterhood of Traveling Pantsuits. Clever. Natural humor is always a crowd pleaser. No need to tell jokes.

Overall, the techniques she used with the writing were good. But her shouting makes her sound like the typical politician, which is often equated with used car salesmen!

If you’d like an expert assessment of your speaking style, drop me an email at Jean@Real-Impact.com.

After a magnificent example of great speaking last night (see yesterday’s blog about Michelle Obama), the presentations at the afternoon and early evening sessions of the Democratic National Convention leave much to be desired. Most were average at best. A few were a little better than average and had some good techniques I’ll talk about. But there were some ones that did nothing to add to their political cause.

I’ll grade the speakers below, but first here are some hints that you can use in your business presentations:

1. When the crowd is noisy, don’t shout. It won’t help them or you. Use your normal voice and let the microphone do the work. Shrill voices turn people off.
2. Watch what you wear. You don’t have to wear designer clothes, but you should make sure your clothes aren’t wrinkled. And small flowers are not flattering when you’re up in front of a crowd.
3. Tell stories. They grab the attention of everyone, especially if they’re well written. Write them out and edit them. Then practice so you are comfortable.
4. Use pauses. Your listeners need a break. It helps recapture their attention if your voice or words (or their pressing needs) have made them drift away.
5. Blink. It’s unnerving to watch someone stare at a TelePrompTer without blinking. It’s the deer in the headlights look. Creepy and very unnatural.

Here are a few critiques:

The announcer needs to learn how to pronounce “commemorative.” When she asked people to turn around and face the camera platform, it took 3 tries before she got the word correct! Oops. At least you can pronounce “Obama” right, unlike Congressman Joe Baca (see yesterday’s blog).

Chris Van Hollen US House, Maryland Speech Expert Assessment C
+ Story telling
- Eyes looked shifty as he bounced between TelePrompTers
- Voice pattern too predictable

Barbara Mikulski Senator, Maryland Speech Expert Assessment D
- Major shouting. Ouch! My ears hurt!

Mary Landrieu Senator, Louisiana Speech Expert Assessment B –
+ Varied her pacing throughout
+ Blinked enough to make her reading very natural

Blanche Lambert Lincoln Senator, Arizona Speech Expert Assessment C –
- Needs work on TelePrompTer
- Pitch not comfortable to listen to
- Voice was patterned

Debbie Stabenow Senator, Michigan Speech Expert Assessment C –
- Used hands to point/chop the air on every word. I felt chastised. HINT: Watch your body language. Audiences react to your gestures and facial expressions.

Amy Klobuchar Senator, Minnesota Speech Expert Assessment C –
- Too much shouting!
- No vocal variety
+ Story of coal miners
+ Good use of TelePrompTers

Ed Rendell Governor of Pennsylvania Speech Expert Assessment C –
- Another speaker who points on each word. Why?
- Another shouter
- Changed too quickly between prompters
- The crowd was not interested. Listen to the noise.

Tammy Baldwin House of Representatives, Wisconsin Speech Expert Assessment C +
+ Thank goodness a change in volume. She did NOT shout.
+ Had lots of expression on her face. HINT: Your voice follows your face. If you have a lot of facial expression, it will add variety to your voice. Result—you’re easier to look at and to listen to.

John Sweeney President of the AFL-CIO Speech Expert Assessment F
Worst speaker of the day.
- His opening idea was of a 6th grade boy dreaming of a job and his future family. I don’t know any 6th grade boys who think about things like that. Do you?
- His voice pattern was tedious. He took a breath after every 3 words. I’m exaggerating. Sometimes he said 5 words before taking another breath.

The Average Citizens:
Robin Golden Autoworker from Michigan
The people who allowed him to go on stage without adequate preparation deserve a D. He looked like a deer in the headlights. His shirt was wrinkled and his doom and gloom appearance and words did nothing to invoke sympathy or promote the political cause. I couldn’t wait for him to get off stage and take away his pain. It was not fair for him to be put in front of a crowd.

Katherine Marcano Cedar Rapids, Iowa flood victim
She was in sharp contrast to Golden. Although she had a sad story to tell, she was sincere and did not look scared. I liked her ending phrase: see him (Obama) with my eyes, feel with my heart and support Obama for President.

Pauline Beck Homecare worker
Another D for the organizers of the convention. She should have been interviewed and had the best sound bites used in a video. She was clearly too uncomfortable up front.

Gloria Craven Laid-off North Carolina textile worker
Very good and natural. Her NC dialect was so real, she was a good choice to make the political point she did.

If you’d like an expert assessment of your speaking style, drop me an email at Jean@Real-Impact.com.

Michelle Obama Speech Expert Grade: A+

WOW! Warmth, brains, beauty, substance, storytelling, repetitive phrasing, good use of Teleprompters. You name it, Michelle Obama displayed it. None of the shouting, trying to get the crowd into a false frenzy, staring at the Prompter….or any of the common mistakes that will be shown over and over at these conventions. HINT: Notice how Michelle used details to make her stories come alive. She told of her dad using 2 canes to walk cross the room to kiss her mom. Can’t you just picture that? It’s the details that make you feel as if you are in the same place, living the experience.

My Dad was our rock. Although he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in his early thirties, he was our provider, our champion, our hero. As he got sicker, it got harder for him to walk, it took him longer to get dressed in the morning. But if he was in pain, he never let on. He never stopped smiling and laughing – even while struggling to button his shirt, even while using two canes to get himself across the room to give my Mom a kiss. He just woke up a little earlier, and worked a little harder.

HINT: Notice how she subtly closed her eyes at one point, as if to think and imagine what she was going to say. This was a technique, because it was already written out. But she used this so naturally, I almost thought she was adlibbing!

Watch tonight and compare Michelle’s warm approach to Hillary’s usual strident approach. Hillary has shown she can tone it down, even cry on cue. We’ll see if she learned from Michelle and exhibits that style or if she plans to use the Teddy Kennedy/typical political speaking approach. I wonder which Hillary will show up tonight.

If you’d like an expert assessment of your speaking style, drop me an email at Jean@Real-Impact.com.

Business people can learn a lot about speaking in front of large crowds this week and next. The Democratic and Republican national conventions show the best…and the worst…techniques that speakers use.

As an executive speech coach, I will be analyzing the speeches from the perspective of WHAT BUSINESS PEOPLE CAN APPLY to their own presentations at work.

This is a non-political blog. There will be good and bad examples from each side of the political fence.

My purpose is to point out the mistakes that you won’t want to make when you get up to speak. I’ll also point out some of the techniques that are good to use in the business world.

Please feel free to comment.

If you’d like an expert assessment of your speaking style, drop me an email at Jean@Real-Impact.com.

When the Democratic National Convention began, it got off to a good start–speech wise. In most years, the speakers that go on during the afternoon are usually the weaker ones–while the stars are on in prime time. But the good start was quickly shown to be a tease and the speakers for several hours reverted to speaking styles that tempt you to turn off the TV or walk out of the room.

Here are a few comments on things we can learn. I’ll try to attach the videos of these segments when they become available.

John Hickenlooper Mayor of Denver, Colorado Speech Expert Assessment: Grade: C
Like many people, he started off his speech like a racehorse, speaking quickly. The result–he got tongue tied several times and flubbed his lines. It happens to us all. HINT: To overcome messing up your words, slow down your pace. When he did slow down, he had no problems. HINT: To ensure you don’t start your speech like a racehorse, write “S_L_O_W” at the top of your 1st page…and later, if this is an issue for you.

Joe Baca, Member of US House of Representatives, California Speech Expert Assessment: Grade: D -
Anyone who gets this big a stage needs to learn to pronounce the words—especially the candidate’s name. 3 times he called him Barack Barama. He also became very patterned in his delivery. Say 5 words and pause. Say 5 words and pause. Say 5 words and pause. HINT: To ensure you are not speaking in a pattern that bores your audience, record yourself and see if you save each sentence the same way. The ideal–a variety of pitch, pacing and projection.

Reg Weaver President, National Education Association Speech Expert Assessment: Grade: B
Used lots of vocal variety. He used a technique that will be used many times in these conventions & at business keynote speeches (that are good and memorable)–repeating a phrase to emphasize a point. Weaver used, “I know a man…” to introduce 5 or 6 sentences. It captures attention.

Maya Soetoro-Ng Half-sister of Barack Obama & Teacher Speech Expert Assessment: Grade: B
Stopped and took in the crowd before speaking. + Switched Teleprompters at the end of paragraphs. + Didn’t shout. Let the microphone do the work. – Got a bit patterned after a while, + Allowed for audience applause at right times.

Mike Fisher & Cheryl Fisher – Beech Grove, Indiana Speech Expert Assessment: Grade: A-
+ They were REAL. For this Amtrak worker to be put in front of such a huge crowd was an honor. But it must have been scary. You would never know it. He looked relaxed and sounded conversational. Bravo!

If you’d like an expert assessment of your speaking style, drop me an email at Jean@Real-Impact.com.