| Start a career in public speaking and earn money while having fun. Learn how to make $5500 or more for each speaking presentation you do.  You can get all the latest public speaking tips and tricks for FREE by signing up for Tom's Great Speaking Ezine. How to Make a Point with Humor I know an old time professional public speaker who said that you should 'Tell em what you're gonna tell 'em. Tell 'em. Then tell 'em what you told 'em.' You can use this same concept during presentations throughout your career in public speaking, when you want to make a key point. You tell 'em the point, illustrate the point, then tell 'em the point again. Giving out information this way, however, can sometimes be boring and redundant if you don't spice it up a little. One way to do that is to add humor. Here's the formula I use in my career in public speaking. 1. Make your point. 2. Illustrate your point (by using regulare props, humorous props, funny stories, serious stories, case studies, one-liners etc.) 3. Restate your point. Here's an example where the point you are trying to make is 'The Importance of Communication.' First make your point. For example, accuracy and clear communication is an important part of our everyday lives. Then illustrate this point. In this case use a humorous two-liner. It's like the student pilot who was asked over the radio to state his altitude and location. He said, 'I'm five feet nine and I'm in the left seat.' Then restate your point. State it again in a slightly different manner by saying, You can see how clear communication could be interpreted incorrectly especially when people are under pressure. Knowing what to say and when to say it is a vital skill to learn for your career in public speaking to be successful. When you use humor in a professional public setting . . . especially when you are speaking to a business audience, or any audience who is not specifically there for humor, make the humor reinforce your point and you will get a much better response. Home Article Index |