“Hello, my name is Sister Jones*, and last week the bishop
texted me (called me, cornered me, etc…) to ask me to speak on faith. I really
didn’t want to at first, but…” And so the intro goes. It’s an interesting
phenomenon, the seemingly requisite sacrament meeting introduction. Yet I’ve
never seen precedent for this unusual manner of speaking in any other forum, be
it a professional presentation, a general conference sermon, or a university
lecture. Despite this, it seems that a Sunday cannot pass without this
perfunctory prologue.
Last month, as I sat in a church meeting, the opening
speaker began her talk in this manner. That alone isn’t enough to stop me from
trying to understand the message she was trying to convey, but once she threw
in a smattering of “likes” and “ums” I started to check out. Try as I might, I
couldn’t help but wonder if her husband would struggle with the same
mannerisms.
Once she had finished speaking, her husband confidently
stood up. He smiled and began straight into a story. It was one I had heard
previously in general conference. And yet, he told the story in his own words, not reading from the page with
his head down, as some are wont to do. There was not a hesitant or apologetic
nature to his sermon, and he spoke with conviction and inflection. Perhaps it
was the contrast between husband and wife, but that day I saw the importance of
confidence and directness in effective speaking.
*names have been changed
It is definitely more difficult to listen to a speaker when they began their talk by discounting themselves. I especially dislike when someone goes up to speak and compares themselves to their parent, sibling, etc. saying "While I'm not as great of a speaker as my Dad, I'll try to say something good today." It is crucial to have confidence as a speaker in order to make a difference for someone who may really need it.
ReplyDeleteIt amazing what a difference it can make for a speaker when they are humble and confident in themselves. This allows them to be calm, have good pacing, and deliver their talk in a great form. Preparedness and confidence are really the keys for a speaker to effectively deliver their message to their audience.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree!! It is so much more enjoyable and effective to listen to confident speakers (even if they are just pretending to be confident). I try to sympathize and still give full attention to those who discount themselves, but it does make it much harder to listen, and I think for the Spirit to be present as well. If we prepare well, the Spirit will be with us and strengthen us.
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