How to Give a Speech and Make an Impact

Whenever you give a speech it goes without saying that you want to make an impact to achieve a result. And, of course, that's quite right because you always need a purpose for any speech that you give. But make an impact? That requires a serious level of audience participation and certainly incredible levels of audience engagement.

Vice President J.D. Vance Makes an Impact with His Speech

We ponder this because of the impact of the Vice President J. D. Vance speech at the Munich Security Conference (with the theme of Peace through Strength) last week. let's note in passing that conference themes are typically effective.

And how did he make an impact with his speech? Well, it certainly wasn't with a lively dynamic stage presence or because of rhetorical flights of fancy. No, it was the message, albeit he's also an enthusiastic speaker.

Now, we often hear business leaders or politicians saying they intend to deliver a message. Well, this Vice President certainly did that because the reaction of his audience was clear astonishment. Perhaps they hadn't expected such content, but they heard it at any rate.

We know that a section of his audience was astonished because their subsequent remarks made that very clear. Job done.

What Impact Do You Want From Your Speech?

Should you aim to leave your audience astonished? Maybe. If your speech introduces a new discovery or development, then that would be a marvellous reaction. Or if someone with a known achievement sets out their thoughts, perhaps. Certainly a Sydney, Australia audience was more than delighted with a very rare Neil Armstrong speech about the Moon. So, yes, you can do this.

Perhaps we should clarify the term "your audience" with the Munich J.D. Vance speech. Because his audience was very much greater in number than the conference delegates in the Munich conference hall. So his impact was not just the conference room but much further afield. And was that larger audience astonished? No, every sense suggests that the  Vice President's larger audience was delighted to hear such words.

When you need some inspiration or advice for your next speech, then you'll discover plenty of public speaking tips at Time to Market. Because with more than 100 top tips for speakers and presenters, there's something for every public speaking event, in Munich and elsewhere. Plus, when you want to make an impact with your speech, why not consider some online public speaking training. It's accessible and simple to undertake. Because, when you get it right, you hardly need to give your speech to make an impact on your audience.