Your Public Speaking List is a Top Speaker’s Tip

There's no denying that we all like a good list. Lists of things to do, birthday lists and shopping lists. They all feature. Yes, the medium might change since so many people now have their lists on their smart phones. But somehow politicians haven't changed. Because their love of a good list is ever present. And that's a positive signal for your public speaking list. Lists work, and they're effective.

Preparing for an election in the UK, Sir Keir Starmer unveiled his six-part list. Now the list might well have been torn apart for its lack of detail or precision. Perhaps. But, it's still a list and it served him well on the campaign trail.

As some day it may happen that a victim must be found
I've got a little list — I've got a little list

KoKo (Gilbert and Sullivan)

And it must be habit forming because only last year, in 2023, he announced a 5-point list. And in 2020 he unveiled a 20-point list. Habits, once formed, don't go away. Certainly not if they're working hard.

Politicians Love a Public Speaking List

Of course he's not the only one. Rishi Sunak also had an affection for lists in his conference speeches. That's probably an affection that won't last any longer now he's out of office. But who knows where he'll pop up next?

Indeed a previous Labour party leader, Ed Miliband, also loved a good list in his speeches. Occasionally his lists formed the entire speech or the lists became totally dominant. Because we certainly can't forget his 6-part list that became the infamous 'Ed Stone' during the 2015 General election.

Perhaps on that occasion your public speaking list went too far, Ed?

Theresa May used a list in her Mansion House negotiation speech, albeit the list items were disguised as "tests". And, on the subject of tests and testing, this Michael Gove speech used a list of seven to make the lengthy case for testing in schools. It's a proven technique and well worth replicating.

You can discover plenty of public speaking tips with Time to Market. In fact, we've listed more than 100 top tips for speakers and presenters. And when you're ready to push your own skills that bit further, then you can always enroll on the online course, How to Master the Public Speaking Basics.