Chapter 53 Making opening remarks based on the situation and catching people

I once asked Lin Harold Hu, the former president of Northwestern University, what was the most important thing in his long speaking experience.He pondered for a moment, then replied, "Come up with a catchy opening that grabs the audience's attention immediately." For impromptu speeches, a good opening statement will add a lot of color to you.I once asked Lin Harold Hu, the former president of Northwestern University, what was the most important thing in his long speaking experience.He pondered for a while, and then replied: "Come up with an attractive opening statement that can immediately grab the audience's attention." Before each speech, Mr. Lin Harold Hu made careful arrangements for the opening statement with plan.In addition, John Bright, Redstone, Webster, Lincoln and others did the same.

When President Wilson addressed the United States Congress on the big issue of the German submarine warfare ultimatum, he announced the subject in just a few dozen words and immediately focused the audience's attention on the issue. "Our diplomatic relations have produced a situation, and I have the duty to tell you frankly." When Schizweber delivered a speech to the Philadelphia Association of New York, the second sentence touched on the core issue of his speech. "The most important questions on the minds of Americans today are: What does the current recession mean? What does the future hold? Personally, I'm an optimist..." National Cash Register A sales manager, in the same way, addresses his salespeople.His introduction consists of only three sentences, which are easy to understand, full of vitality and impetus: "Everyone who won the order, that is, the contributors to the continuous smoking of our factory chimneys, during the past two months of this summer, , we don't have enough black smoke coming out of our chimneys to blacken much of the sky. Now that the heat is over and business is picking up, we have a short, urgent request to you all: we want more black smoke."

You will definitely ask, how can you make the audience attracted to you from the beginning?Here are some methods that, if used well, can make your opening statement eye-catching. It is thankless and difficult to get the average audience to endure an abstract speech for a long time.It's easy to get them to follow along with an example—much easier.That being the case, why not give an example at the beginning?However, I'm having a hard time convincing speakers to do this, and I've tried numerous times.They always feel that they have to make some general statement before they can win over their audience.But in fact, this is not the case. You can give an example at the beginning to arouse the interest of the audience, and then say your comment.

Lowell Tamas, a world-renowned news analyst, speaker and filmmaker, begins his talk on "Lawrence of Arabia" by saying: "One day, I was walking on Christ Street in Jerusalem, and suddenly I came across a man dressed in a gorgeous robe of an oriental monarch, with a golden scimitar worn by the successor of the Prophet Muhammad hanging by his side..." In this way, he started the journey of speaking with his own experience, which is the attention factor.In most cases, this opening method works very well, and the chance of failure is very small.Because the audience wants to know what's going to happen next, they will be interested in what you have to say.I don't know of any other way to make a speech so motivating from the start than by using a story.

I have also said this in countless opening remarks: "I was walking down Hulong Street in South Dakota one night right after college when I saw a guy standing on a box talking to the crowd. I was curious so I joined the crowd and listened. 'Have you ever Noticed,' the man said, 'You've never seen a bald Indian? Or a bald woman, have you? Now I'll tell you why...'" No stagnation, no words to "warm up" the situation.Therefore, you can easily grab the audience's attention by simply following the events directly. The speaker can be invincible if he starts with his own experience and story.Because there is no need to think hard, and there is no fear of deviations in ideas.What he tells is his own experience, his processing and reconstruction of his own life, and a part of his own veins.Therefore, his confident and relaxed demeanor can help him grab the audience's attention and establish a friendly relationship with the audience.

This is the method used by Mr. Powell Healy when he gave his speech at the Penn Athletic Club in Philadelphia: "Eighty-two years ago, around this season, a little book, a story, was published in London. Friends, meeting each other on Strand Street or Bowmore Street, would invariably ask each other, 'Have you read it?' The answer was always the same: 'Yes, God bless it, I have.' "It sold 1,000 copies the day it came out. Within two weeks it sold 15,000 copies. Since then it has been reprinted countless times and translated into various languages. JR Morgan bought the original for a very high price a few years ago. It is now resting with many priceless treasures in JR Morgan's stately and magnificent art gallery. What is this world-famous book?"

Are you interested?Are you eager to know more?Do you feel that this opening sentence has captured your attention and heightened interest as his speech progressed?Did the speaker grab your attention powerfully?why?Because he piques your curiosity and holds you with an air of suspense. curious!Who can do without? Maybe you are just curious.You ask: who is the author?What book is mentioned above?To satisfy your curiosity, let me tell you the answer: the author is Charles Dickens, and the title of the book is A Christmas Carol. I once saw birds flying around me for nearly an hour in the woods, watching me constantly out of sheer curiosity.I know a hunter who, high in the Alps, surrounded himself with a sheet and crawled on the ground, thereby arousing the curiosity of the antelopes and drawing them to him.Puppies are curious, as are kittens, and all animals, including the famous primate.

Therefore, you need to arouse the audience's curiosity in the first sentence, and then they will be interested and pay attention to you. I always begin my accounts of Colonel Lawrence's adventures in Arabia in the following manner: "Lloyd George said he considered Colonel Lawrence one of the most romantic and colorful figures of modern times." This opening statement has two characteristics: First, it quotes a famous person who is often in the public eye.Second, it arouses the audience's curiosity: "Why is it the most romantic?" This question will naturally appear in the audience's mind.Also, "Why is it the most colorful?" "I've never heard of this guy before... what does he do?" etc.

A student also asked at the beginning of his speech: "Do you know? In today's world, there are still slaves in 17 countries." He not only aroused the audience's curiosity, but even surprised them. "Slaves? Today? 17 countries? Seems unbelievable. Which countries? Where?" We can use a fact to arouse people's curiosity and then make them eager to know why.For example, one student began by using this shocking fact: "Recently, one of our MPs, Mr., spoke in Parliament, and he demanded that a law be passed that would prohibit the turning of tadpoles within a kilometer of any school into become a frog." You will surely smile.Is the speaker telling a joke?Is there such a thing?

Yes.So the speaker went on to explain. There was an article in the Saturday Evening Post entitled: "On Gangsters."It begins by saying: "Are the gangsters organized? Judging from a certain rule, they are indeed organized. How to say it?..." Lo and behold, in just a few sentences the author nails his subject, reveals some of it to you, and piques your curiosity about how the gangsters are organized.This is an admirable approach.Everyone who is aspiring to give a speech should learn the author's technique of catching readers' interest immediately, and learn the opening remarks of the speech from it.It is more effective than if you study a large volume of speeches.

Creating suspense is sure to get the audience's attention.Here is another example, which is the method of setting up suspense when I talk about "The Advantages of Human Nature-How to Stop Worrying and Start Living".I began: "In the spring of 1871, William Osler, a physician destined to become world-renowned, picked up a book and read 21 words that had a profound effect on his future." What are these 21 words?How do these words affect his future?These are the questions the audience wants answered. Cliff R. Adams is Director of the Marriage Counseling Division at Penn State Schools.His Reader's Digest article, "How to Pick a Mate," unfolds with startling facts -- facts that take your breath away and grab your attention right away: "Our youth today have very little chance of being happy in marriage. The divorce rate is staggeringly high. In 1940, one in six marriages would fail; by 1946, we expect four. If this If it continues for a long time, it will be two to one in the 1950s." "A good journal article is a series of shocks," said McClure, founder of a major journal. These articles jolt us out of our dreams, they demand our attention, they grab our attention.Here are a few examples. Baltimore's Ballantine lectured on "The Wonders of Broadcasting." He began by saying: "Did you know that the tiny sound of a fly walking on a glass window in New York can be radioed to Central Africa and amplified to an astonishing sound like Niagara Falls?" Mr. Harry Jones, president of Harry Jones Company in New York, opened his speech on "Crime Situation" with the following words: "Former U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice Taft declared: 'Our administration of the criminal law is a disgrace to civilization.'" There are two great things about this: not only is this a startling opening statement, but it is a startling statement quoted from a judicial authority. Paul Gibbons, former president of the Optimist Club of Philadelphia, made this jaw-dropping statement in his speech on the subject of "sin": "Americans are the worst criminal nation in human civilization. Shocking as that statement is, it's even more shocking that it's true. Cleveland, Ohio has six times as many murders as London. Proportionate to population It has 170 times as many robbers as London. More people are murdered in St.Louis each year than England and Wales combined. New York City has more murders than all of France, and more than Germany, Italy, or England. Here's a sad fact: Criminals don't get punished. If you murder someone, there's less than a 1 in 100 chance you'll be put to death. All of you here are good citizens who seek peace, but you You're 10 times more likely to die of cancer than you are to be hanged for shooting a man." This opening speech is successful, because Gibbons's words reveal incomparable power and enthusiasm.His speech was full of energy, full of life.However, I have heard other students start their presentations on crime with similar examples.But their opening remarks seemed mundane.Why?Because what they say is nothing but empty words.Their structural skills are impeccable, but their spirit is equal to zero.Their attitude undermines and undercuts everything they say. Here are a few more examples, also beginning with "Amazing Events": "The War Department predicts that twenty million Americans will be killed on the first night of the atomic war." "Several years ago Scott Howard's newspaper spent $176,000 on a survey to find out what customers didn't like about retail stores. It was the most expensive, scientific, and thorough study of retailing issues ever done. Survey. The survey was sent to 54,047 households in 16 different cities. One of the questions was: 'What do you not like about the shops in this town?' "Almost two-fifths of all answers to this question are the same: disrespectful clerk!" The method of striking at the beginning of a speech establishes contact with the audience because it shakes the minds of the audience.This "shock technique" uses the unexpected to achieve the effect of getting the audience's attention to the subject matter of the speech. A student in Washington used this method of arousing curiosity.Her name is Meg Seale, and here is her opening statement: "I was a prisoner for a good ten years. Not in a normal prison, but in a prison built by worrying about my own merits and fear of criticism." Don't you want to know more about these real people? There is also the danger of a startling opening that should be avoided, that of being overly melodramatic, of being too gimmicky.I also remember a guy who started his speech with a shot in the air, which got the attention but also blew the audience's eardrums out. Opening remarks should be approachable, as if talking with someone.One effective way to find out if your opening is really conversational is to try it out at the dinner table.If your manner is not easy enough to get to the dinner table, then, I am afraid, you will not be kind enough to your audience. But all too often, the opening that should capture the interest of the audience turns out to be the dullest part of the presentation.For example, I recently heard a speaker start like this: "Trust in God and trust in your own ability..." How much does such an opening preaching mean, how much like boiled cabbage?Hearing his second sentence again, it gradually became interesting, "In 1981, my mother was newly widowed and had three children to raise, but she was penniless..." Why didn't the speaker describe in the first sentence that the widowed mother led three children? What about a young child struggling to survive? If you want to arouse the audience's interest, don't start with the introduction, you should enter the core of the story from the beginning. Frank Bigger did just that.He is the author of "How I Raised to Succeed in Sales" and is a master of suspense in his ability to create suspense in the first sentence.Under the auspices of the American Junior Chamber of Commerce, he and I have done a speaking tour across the United States talking about sales.His way of talking about "zealous" beginnings is far more sublime, and I always admire him from the bottom of my heart.First, no preaching, second, no lectures, third, no preaching, and fourth, no general remarks. Once you open your mouth, you will get into the core of the topic.He starts like this: "Shortly after I became a professional baseball player, one of the biggest shocks of my life happened to me." What effect does such a beginning have on the audience?I was there and I saw the reaction firsthand—he had immediate attention, everyone was eager to hear, why was he shocked, what did he do? Audiences especially enjoy listening to the speakers tell stories from their own lived experiences.Russell Cornwell delivered his famous speech "How to Find Opportunity" more than 6,000 times, earning millions of dollars.How did his most famous speech begin? "In 1870 we traveled on the Gris River. We hired a guide in Baghdad to show us Persepolis Nineveh and Babylon." This is his opening statement—a story.This is the best way to grab the reader's attention.This opening statement is almost foolproof.It moves forward, and we follow closely behind, wondering what's coming. In one issue of the Saturday Evening Post, two pieces began with a story, excerpted below: a.The sharp sound of a revolver pierced the dead silence. b.During the first week of July, something happened at the Mountain View Inn in Denver.In itself, this matter is only a small matter, but judging from its possible consequences, it is not too small.This incident aroused strong curiosity of the hotel manager Gobel, so he told the matter to Steve Farraley, the owner of the Mountain View Inn.A few days later, when Mr. Farare went to inspect several hotels under him, he told the staff of the other six hotels about the incident. Note that both openings have their action.They have an effect right from the start, arousing your curiosity.You want to read on, want to know more, want to discover what these two works are trying to say.Even an inexperienced novice can succeed in crafting a good opening, provided that this art of storytelling is used to arouse our curiosity. Asking the audience to raise their hand to answer a question is also a great way to generate interest and attention.For example, I started my talk on How to Avoid Fatigue with this question: "Let's show our hands, how many of you are tired before you think you should?" Remember this: When asking your audience to raise their hands, give them a little hint that you are going to do it.Don't start by saying, "How many people here believe that income taxes should be lowered? Let's show our hands." Instead, say, "I want you to raise your hands and answer a question that is very important to you. The question is this: 'How many of you believe that coupons are good for consumers?'" This prepares the audience to respond. The skill of asking the audience to raise their hands is an invaluable response known as "audience participation."When you use it, your presentation is no longer a one-sided affair, the audience is already involved.When you ask "How many of you are tired before you think you should be," everyone starts thinking about the subject that concerns him: himself, his pain, his weariness.He held up his hand, and probably looked around to see if anyone would do the same.He had forgotten that he was listening to a lecture, he smiled, he nodded to his friend sitting next to him, and the cold atmosphere was broken.And you, the speaker, suddenly relax, and so do the audience. Another nearly unbeatable way to keep your audience paying attention is to tell them that if they follow your advice, they can get what they want.Here are some examples: "I'm going to tell you how to prevent burnout and give yourself an extra hour of waking hours every day." "I'm going to tell you how to actually increase your income." "If you listen to me for ten minutes, I promise Be sure to tell everyone a way to make you more popular.” This kind of promised opening line is sure to gain attention because it directly touches the listener’s self-focus. Speakers often ignore the connection between their subject and the interests of their audience. Instead of opening the door to attention, they make uninteresting introductions, trace the origin of their subject matter, and babble about background, forgetting their own gist. I remember hearing a lecture a few years ago, the topic itself was quite important to the audience: the need for regular health checks.The speaker began by regurgitating a history of the Institute for Prolonging Life without salt and taste, without adding spontaneity and appeal to his subject with clever opening remarks.Then the audience became less interested in him and his subject.If you structure your opening statement according to the "commitment" technique, the effect will be greatly enhanced. "According to statistics, do you know how long you can live? According to the statistics of insurance companies, your average life expectancy is about two-thirds between your current age and the age of 80. For example, if you are 35 years old this year, you The difference between the current age and 80 is 45 years; then, you can live about two-thirds of that amount, that is, you can live at least 30 years... Is this enough? No, no, We all eagerly wish to live a few more years. However, these statistics are based on millions of records. Can we break this limit? Yes, with accurate prevention, we can do it Got it. But the first step is to do a thorough health check..." Isn't that an attractive start? If we explain in detail the need for periodic health checks, the audience will be interested in the companies that have been formed to provide this service.But to start off talking about the company in a nonchalant way is bad and sure to fail. Another example: I heard a student give a speech on "Protecting Forests, It's Urgent".He began by saying, "As an American, we should be proud of our national resources..." Then he pointed out to us that we were wasting a lot of our country's lumber.This introductory speech is terrible, too generic and vague to make his topic relevant to us.There happened to be a businessman in the audience, and the destruction of our forests would have a major impact on his career; and a banker, because it would affect our general sex economy; etc.So why not start it this way: "Mr. Burpee, and you, Mr. Sauer, I am going to speak today on a topic that will affect your career. In fact, it will affect our food business." Prices, as well as our rent, it affects the income and life of all of us." In this way, is it too exaggerated the importance of forest protection?No, I don't think so.This was done only in obedience to Mr. Hubbard's instructions: "Take things seriously, and say them in a way that attracts attention." Perhaps the easiest way to get people's attention is to hold something aloft for people to look at, even savages and fools, babies in cradles, monkeys in shop windows, and puppies in the street , can't help but pay attention to this stimulating behavior.This method can also be used sometimes, and it will work to great effect in front of the most serious audiences.For example, Mr. Ellis of Philadelphia began a speech by holding a coin between his thumb and forefinger and holding it high above his shoulders.Naturally, everyone present watched his move.At this time, he asked: "Has anyone picked up a coin like this on the sidewalk? It said that the lucky person who picked up this coin will get a lot of discounts on real estate development. He just needs to put this Just give the hosting company a coin..." Mr. Ellis went on to denounce this behavior as wrong and immoral. Mr. Ellis's opening remarks contain another powerful feature.He starts with a question for the audience to think with the speaker and collaborate with him.Note that the "On Gangsters" article in the Saturday Evening Post included two questions in the first three sentences: "Are gangsters really organized? . . . and how are they organized?" What about?" Using questions is one of the easiest and most effective ways to open your audience's minds to your point of view.You can use this technique anytime after other methods have proven ineffective. What great people say always grabs people's attention, so a good question from them is the best way to start a speech.See if you like the following paragraph as an opener to a discussion of "business success." "'The world rewards riches and glory for one thing at the same time,' said Albert Hubbard, 'and that is the spirit of enterprise. What is enterprise? I can tell you: it is that no one tells you Make the most accurate action under the circumstances of how to do it.'” As an opening statement, this passage contains several powerful features.The first sentence arouses the audience's curiosity, it leads us forward, and we want to know more.If the speaker pauses skillfully after mentioning the name "Albert Hubbard," it creates an air of suspense.We can't help but think, "Who is this world going to reward with riches and glory at the same time? Come on, tell us. We may disagree with you, but please tell us your opinion anyway... ..." The second sentence immediately brings us to the heart of the matter.The third sentence is a question, inviting the audience to engage in discussion, to think together, and to act.And the audience has always been the most like action.The fourth sentence gives the definition of "enterprising spirit"... After the opening remarks, the speaker went on to illustrate this "enterprising spirit" with a very interesting and humane story.As far as the structure of this lecture is concerned, it can undoubtedly be rated as a masterpiece. Do you like the opening sentence below? "Yesterday, as the train passed through a city not far from here, I was reminded of a marriage that took place there some years ago. As many marriages are now as hasty and unhappy as this one, I will begin today with a detailed account. All the details of this example. "On December 22, a 15-year-old high school girl in the city met for the first time a third-year boy of legal age at a nearby college. On December 25, just three days after they met, they Obtained a marriage certificate. They swore that the girl was 18 years old, so no parental consent was required. After obtaining the certificate, the young couple left the city hall and immediately asked a priest to marry them (the girl is Catholic) , but the priest of course refused to witness the marriage for them. Later, the priest may have revealed the news, and the girl's mother got the news of the attempted marriage. But before she got her daughter back, the young couple found a local The security guards married them. Then the groom took his bride to a hotel and stayed there for two days and two nights. On the third day, the groom abandoned the bride and has not been with her since then.” Do you like it?This was Mary Richmond's speech at the annual meeting of the League of Women Voters in New York, before Congress passed laws banning early marriage.I personally really like this opening sentence, it has a good first sentence.It foreshadows an interesting memory.We would like to know the details of this past event.We'll sit back with peace of mind and listen to an interesting story.Other than that, the opening line is very natural.It's not like a research report, it doesn't have a serious face, and it doesn't make people feel that the speaker has put a lot of effort into this matter... "Yesterday, when the train passed a city not far from here, I'm reminded of a marriage that happened there a few years ago." It sounded natural, unartificial, and human, almost like someone was telling another interesting story.Audiences just love it that way.But sometimes it is easy to get caught up in too detailed narratives, making the audience aware that you have put a lot of effort into it, and then the effect is counterproductive.What I need is art that makes people not see the traces of art. All methods are used at will according to the situation, either separately or combined.You have to know that how to develop a speech is very important to whether the audience is willing to accept your message.