A lesson from the skyline of Chicago

Chicago
Old and new meet in Chicago

According to the Chicago Architecture Center, “Chicago has long been a laboratory for architectural innovation and experimentation.” I was recently in Chicago for a conference and got to experience that great city firsthand.

While in Chicago, my daughter Alexandra joined me and together we explored some of what the city has to offer. And yes, the architecture is magnificent.

A highlight was the Architecture River Tour. For 75 minutes, we cruised up and down the three arms of the Chicago River while our tour guide shared the history of, and stories behind, approximately 40 or so buildings.

Chicago Skyline
Dad and Daughter Day in Chicago

If you ever visit Chicago, I cannot recommend this tour enough. It’s a great way to see this fantastic city and its architecture. From Art Deco to Beaux Arts to Postmodernism to Spanish Colonial Revivalism and more, Chicago has it all.

What can we learn from these very different buildings? Well, it has to do with the one thing that they all have in common (apart from being in Chicago).

They all have structure

Without structure, none of these buildings would be stable and most, if not all, would fall. It’s the same with speeches and presentations. They need structure.

The essential elements of any speech are an opening, development of the theme or message, and a conclusion. The opening should grab your audience’s attention and let them know where you are going to take them. The conclusion should summarize the key points, include a call to action if any and, ideally, link back to the opening.

The structure of the main part, during which the speaker develops the theme or message, can differ from talk to talk just as the structure differs from building to building in Chicago.

Different stuctures

The following are examples of different speech structures:

  • Chronological: Present the key points in chronological order, beginning with the oldest event and proceeding to the present or, where applicable, the future. This structure is useful when discussing, for example, the history of a company or the evolution of a product.
  • Sequential: Present the key points in the order in which they must be accomplished. This structure is useful when discussing the different steps in a project or undertaking.
  • Pros and Cons: Present the arguments in favour of, or against, a proposition. This structure is useful when a decision has to be made and there are different options.
  • Climax: Present the key points in order from least important to most important. This structure is useful when trying to persuade the audience to do something. The speaker’s argument builds in intensity to the final point.
  • Headline: Present the key points in order from most important to least important. Like the Climax structure, the Headline structure is useful when trying to persuade the audience to do something. The difference is that the Headline structure is better when you have little time to present or are presenting to busy people with a short attention span. In such cases, you don’t want to bury the lede.

Whatever your speech or presentation, make sure that you structure your ideas in the most effective way possible given your subject, your audience and your objective. Throwing random ideas together in a haphazard manner is not an option.

Until next time, Chicago!

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mannerofspeaking

mannerofspeaking

  1. Great stuff, John. A talk’s structure’s a huge deal to make the content easy to digest, to recall, and to apply.

    One of my favourite structures is one I first heard of from Olivia Mitchell. That is, use 3 issues or questions (which are top-of-mind for the audience) as the 3 main points. (There’s a bit more about that here.)

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John delivered a keynote address about the importance of public speaking to 80 senior members of Gore’s Medical Device Europe team at an important sales event. He was informative, engaging and inspirational. Everyone was motivated to improve their public speaking skills. Following his keynote, John has led public speaking workshops for Gore in Barcelona and Munich. He is an outstanding speaker who thinks carefully about the needs of his audience well before he steps on stage.

Karsta Goetze

TA Leader, Gore and Associates

I first got in touch with John while preparing to speak at TED Global about my work on ProtonMail. John helped me to sharpen the presentation and get on point faster, making the talk more focused and impactful. My speech was very well received, has since reached almost 1.8 million people and was successful in explaining a complex subject (email encryption) to a general audience.

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CEO, Proton Technologies

John gave the opening keynote on the second day of our unit’s recent offsite in Geneva, addressing an audience of 100+ attendees with a wealth of tips and techniques to deliver powerful, memorable presentations. I applied some of these techniques the very next week in an internal presentation, and I’ve been asked to give that presentation again to senior management, which has NEVER happened before. John is one of the greatest speakers I know and I can recommend his services without reservation.

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Senior Data Scientist, Expedia Group

After a morning of team building activities using improvisation as the conduit, John came on stage to close the staff event which was organised in Chamonix, France. His energy and presence were immediately felt by all the members of staff. The work put into the preparation of his speech was evident and by sharing some his own stories, he was able to conduct a closing inspirational speech which was relevant, powerful and impactful for all at IRU. The whole team left feeling engaged and motivated to tackle the 2019 objectives ahead. Thank you, John.

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Secretary General, World Road Transport Organization

I was expecting a few speaking tips and tricks and a few fun exercises, but you went above and beyond – and sideways. You taught me to stand tall. You taught me to anchor myself. You taught me to breathe. You taught me to open up. You taught me to look people in the eye. You taught me to tell the truth. You taught me to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes. I got more than I bargained for in the best possible way.

Thuy Khoc-Bilon

World Cancer Day Campaign Manager, Union for International Cancer Control

John gave a brilliant presentation on public speaking during the UN EMERGE programme in Geneva (a two days workshop on leadership development for a group of female staff members working in the UN organizations in Geneva). His talk was inspirational and practical, thanks to the many techniques and tips he shared with the audience. His teaching can dramatically change our public speaking performance and enable us as presenters to have a real and powerful impact. Thank you, John, for your great contribution!

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HR Specialist, World Health Organization

John is a genuine communication innovator. His seminars on gamification of public speaking learning and his interactive Rhetoric game at our conference set the tone for change and improvement in our organisation. The quality of his input, the impact he made with his audience and his effortlessly engaging style made it easy to get on board with his core messages and won over some delegates who were extremely skeptical as to the efficacy of games for learning. I simply cannot recommend him highly enough.

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National Education Director, Association of Speakers Clubs UK

John joined our Global Sales Meeting in Segovia, Spain and we all participated in his "Improv(e) your Work!" session. I say “all” because it really was all interactive, participatory, learning and enjoyable. The session surprised everybody and was a fresh-air activity that brought a lot of self-reflection and insights to improve trust and confidence in each other inside our team. It´s all about communication and a good manner of speaking!"

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CFO European Dairy Supply Chain & Operations, Danone

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Senior Director and Talent Partner, ADP International