As a keynote speaker, I consider it my job not just to entertain and fill an hour with engaging thoughts, ideas and stories, but also to be a catalyst for change. I believe my role as a speaker is to give people the tools and impetus they need to make changes for the better in their life, work, business or whatever area they see change is needed.
I see two clear ways to do this through speaking:
- Providing the language and models to help people to understand the complexities of life.
- Providing options and frameworks to take actions to affect the desired change.
Some keynote speakers I’ve heard unpack ideas and help people see the world in a different way, but don’t give them any help to take those ideas and apply them to improve their lot in life.
Some speeches are all about action and getting things done, but fail to underpin the actions with real context to create motivation and reason to change.
A keynote speaker that does both, moves us. Speakers that do both excite us, challenge us and inspire us to do better, to BE better. They give us tools to make changes and the inclination to do the work required. We need both to create long term change – models to understand the complexity of the world and why changes is need and also the tools and processes to be able to take action that makes change possible.
A great keynote speech should do both.
Here are some great speeches:
- Winston Churchill “…We shall fight them on the beaches…”
- John F. Kennedy “..Ask not what your country can do for you…”
- Elizabeth I “…I have the heart and stomach of a king…”
- Martin Luther King “…I have a dream…”
Get help writing your speech from Benjamin Drury, The Culture Guy.
