Table of contents :

C O N T E N T S
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS  ix
INTRODUCTION xiii

 

CHAPTER 1
THE SPEECH THAT STARTED IT ALL1
2004 Democratic National ConventionKeynote Address 2

Effective Use of Body Language and Voice 14
Establishing Common Ground 15
Speaking to Audience Concerns:
Winning Hearts and Minds 16
Conveying Vision through Personification and
Words that Resonate 17
Driving Points Home 17
Excellent Persuasion Techniques 18
Building to a Crescendo and Leaving a
Strong Last Impression 18

 

CHAPTER 2
EARNING TRUST AND CONFIDENCE21
Charisma of a Leader 22
Creating Strong First Impressions—
Image and Body Language 23
Leveraging Second Impressions—
Voice and Intonation 25
Using Effective Gestures 28
Maximizing Props 29
Beginning Strong 33
Conveying Admirable Ethics—
Developing Teflon 36
What We’ve Learned—
Practices for Earning Trust and Confidence 39

CHAPTER 3
BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS41
Achieving Transcendence 42
Acknowledging the Elephant in the Room 43
Stressing Common Dreams and Values 44
Drawing Attention to Shared History 48
Illuminating Shared Experiences 52
Employing Words that Resonate:
The Historical and Political Lexicon 54

Using Words that Resonate—Biblical Truths 57
Leveraging Other People’s Words 58
What We’ve Learned—
Practices for Breaking Down Barriers 62

CHAPTER 4
WINNING HEARTS AND MINDS     65
Knowing Your Audience 66
Knowing When Not to Enumerate 68
Employing Details Effectively 72
Personalizing the Message:  “I” and Experience 74
Connecting One to One:  “You” and “I” 76
Personalizing the Message:  The “We” Connection 78
What We’ve Learned—
Practices for Winning Hearts and Minds 80

CHAPTER 5
CONVEYING VISION     81
Referencing History and the Familiar 82
Using Descriptive Words as Visual Aids 85
Drawing on Symbolism 87

Leveraging Corollaries    87
Personifying Ideas and Conferring Physicality 89
Providing Just-Enough Detail 91
Creating Dynamic Images 92
Leveraging a Backward Loop 93
Illustrating with Anecdotes 95
What We’ve Learned—
Practices for Conveying Vision 101

CHAPTER 6
DRIVING POINTS HOME     105
Prioritizing and Focusing on Themes 106
Using Rhetorical Questions 106
Employing Effective Repetition 107
Leveraging Pace and Tone 115
Communicating with Slogans and Refrains 124
What We’ve Learned—
Practices for Driving Points Home 127

CHAPTER 7
PERSUADING   129
Eliciting a Nod 130
Sequencing Ideas 131
Addressing Nonrhetorical Questions 132

Addressing Objections 134
Using Juxtaposition and Antithesis—
Comparing and Contrasting 136
What We’ve Learned—
Practices for Persuading 152

CHAPTER 8
FACING AND OVERCOMING CONTROVERSY  155
Knowing Your Goals: Rejecting and Denouncing 156
Recasting the Tone: Humility and
Gracious Beginnings 159
Resetting Your Image: Leveraging Props 160
Recasting the Dialogue: Language Choice 161
Addressing Error Head-On:
Accepting Responsibility 162
What We’ve Learned—
Practices for Facing and Overcoming Obstacles 170

CHAPTER 9
MOTIVATING OTHERS TO ACTION AND
LEAVING STRONG LAST IMPRESSIONS 173
Inspiring Others to Great Achievements 174
Creating a Sense of Momentum and Urgency 177
Building to a Crescendo 181

Repeating Takeaways and Slogans 185
Directing to Low-Hanging Fruit 187
Putting It All Together to End Strong 189
What We’ve Learned—
Practices for Motivating Others to Action and
Leaving Strong Last Impressions 192

CHAPTER 10
THE SPEECHES THATMADE HISTORY
2008 Democratic National Convention
Presidential Nomination Acceptance Address193
Election Night Victory Speech 219
Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address 225
Address to Ghana’s Parliament 234
Joint Session of Congress
on Health Care 247
ENDNOTES267