Starting the Spark of Change
By Robert Papa
What separates average speakers from great speakers is that great speakers do something well that is clearly cut above the others. What makes a speaker great might be knowing their audience better or having great mannerisms or conveying emotions in a context appropriate manner, but in the end the one qualifying test all great speakers have to pass is that they all make an impact in their audience’s lives. A speaker’s job, first and foremost, is to convey ideas to others successfully, but to one huge obstacle to conveying feelings or ideas is that a large amount of charisma is required to hold people’s attention, and even more so courage to get up to the podium to speak one’s thoughts and emotions. I think that courage and charisma are the two defining traits that make a speaker great because those that have great courage to speak publicly to others are risking their name, reputation and their audiences’ time to affect change. However, speaking up does not mean getting one’s message across — which is why charisma is needed to hold attention for the time required to complete a speech. Many average speakers lack the charisma for their topic which is why the art of persuasion is hard to master yet many still try.The difference between the average speaker and the greatest speaker is for whom they speak. An average speaker would speak for themselves and with a personal agenda. A sufficiently knowledgeable audience would understand an average speaker’s intents and unmask the selfish purpose of the speaker. This might ruin the effect of the speaker’s attempts at getting their message across. The greatest speakers speak about life, the human condition, and the change that is required to better our world. The greatest speakers do not have to worry about their message being taken the wrong way because it would not be selfish — a great speaker would connect to everyone because they speak for everyone. Key elements for being a great speaker is having the courage to speak up, the charisma to maintain an audience, and a universal message that points humanity towards self improvement. These elements are all required for making a speaker great because the lack of one element means that the execution and delivery fail in a particular manner. Without courage, one does not stand. Without charisma, others do not listen. Without humility, others will not care. Being a great speaker means having all of these qualities, and using them as tools to incite change for the better.
