A Lesson in Speech Delivery

A few weeks ago, this man, Ahmed Corbitt, held a forum on the BYU-Idaho campus. Students flooded in the building and squished next to one another on benches at least a half hour before the speech began. The whole student body was invited to attend.

Throughout the hour I spent listening to Ahmed's scriptural basis to the ethical and professional tactics he practices in the world of public relations, I also noted a few things about the delivery of his speech.

First of all, he was aware of his audience. He knew that at a church school, students might wonder whether it's possible to be professionally successful while remaining religiously grounded and ethically sound.

Secondly, he dressed the part. While in front of the forum group, he wore a nice black suit and complimentary tie. When he taught my public relations class the next day, he relaxed, according to the vibes he received from his audience. He took his suit coat off. It's important that people giving speeches read the publics whom they address.

Finally, Ahmed's speech was animated. The inflections in his voice helped to emphasize critical points of his speech. Voice involvement is a good way to engage an audience. If a speech sounds boring, people will expect it to be boring and will turn the speaker off.

To those observing, Ahmed Corbitt taught much more than his professional practices at forum that day.