Speakers’ Training Workshop

TALK No. 1: COMMUNICATION AND PUBLIC SPEAKING

Speaker’s Outline

I. COMMUNICATION IS AN EXCHANGE OF MEANING.

A. Two people may talk and exchange ideas, opinions or words, but if they do not mean what they say or say what they
mean, the result is miscommunication.
B. The purpose of communication is to bring two or more hearts and minds together to become one.

II. IMPORTANT FACTS ABOUT PUBLIC SPEAKING

A. Reality: Good speakers are MADE, not BORN.

B. Elements for effective public speaking:
1. Use your own style.
 Do not copy someone else’s style.
2. Do not read your talk.
 Avoid “manuscript speaking” or being the newscaster type.
3. Do not memorize the whole talk.
a. Be personal and natural.
b. It is possible to memorize some important segments.
4. Speaking does not have to be formal or so serious.
a. Be conversational.
b. Be serious about the topic but not overly formal in delivery.
C. Stage fright is not unnatural.
1. It is normal for most people.
a. It always seems to be more serious to the speaker.
b. It seems to escalate the more you seek to escape it.
c. It can be used to your advantage.
2. How to handle stage fright.
a. Pray. Entrust everything to the Lord; this includes yourself and your assigned talk.
b. Use the “Aware-Accept-Act” approach.
c. Handle specific symptoms of stage fright as they appear in you.
III. FEAR VERSUS F.E.A.R.

A. Fear can be real or imagined. But it is a God-given emotion to be used to serve us.
1. There is a healthy kind of fear. “The beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord.” (Sirach 1:12). Fear of the Lord is
submission to God. It is true humility.
2. We can fight fear with “F.E.A.R.” itself.

B. “Fear” (or F.E.A.R.) for us should have a new meaning; this is as follows:
1. FAITH – Dependence on God. Dependence on elders. Being men and women who trust God amidst trials and
difficulties.
2. ENTHUSIASM – Much earnest and fervent feeling about the Lord. A strong conviction of what God is doing and what
God asks us to do. Zeal and passion to do God’s work in and through CFC Singles for Christ.
3. ANTICIPATION – Hoping for the best to come instead of being anxious. Realizing beforehand that God called us and
will use us as his instrument, and therefore expecting that something good will happen to our listeners and their lives.
4. RESPECT – God called us and therefore we need to respect him. We also need to respect our listeners and our elders
who have allowed us to serve in this ministry. We need to prepare for the talk, realizing the privilege of being invited to
preach his word.

IV. PLANNING YOUR TALK

A. Study the expanded outline of the talk.

1. Read the expanded outline a few times.
2. Understand the goal/objective (This usually is to inform and persuade the audience.).
3. Accept and internalize the talk content.

B. Seek input from your elders/leaders.

1. Learn from their wisdom and experience.
2. If any point is unclear, take it up with them.

C. Analyze who your audience is.

1. Inquire from the team leader about age, social status, academic level, cultural background.
2. Adopt your manner of presentation to the audience (i.e., expressions, examples, more or less of sharing than teaching,
etc.).

V. PREPARING THE TALK

A. Pray and offer your efforts to God.

B. Read and internalize the expanded outline of the talk.

1. The expanded outline is the talk itself. Resist the temptation to do extensive research and input more material into the
talk, no matter how interesting. This might just obscure the basic message of the talk or overlap with other talks.
2. Become comfortable with the contents and the flow of ideas.

C. Jot down and prioritize all the examples, stories and sharing for your talk.
1. Supporting points easy to comprehend. Add just enough, not too many.
2. Credible and interesting. Current and relevant.
3. Avoid controversies, arguments, and the criticism of others.

D. Write your introduction.

1. The opening of a talk should be:
a. Positive. Do not apologize. Be enthusiastic.
b. Concise. Be brief. Do not ramble or be long-winded.
c. Relevant to the main talk itself.
d. Be able to show continuity from the previous talk (if any).
2. Methods of Opening a Talk
a. As a question. One that can be answered by a “yes” or “no” or a show of hands.
b. State an impressive fact. Something unusual but interesting.
c. Tell a story. Current and relevant and easy to visualize.
d. Present the goal or objective.
e. Preview the topic. A bird’s eye view of what can be expected.
f. Make an emphatic statement.
g. Give a sharing.
h. Quote a Bible passage.

E. Flesh out the talk.

1. Insert examples, stories, statistics and/or sharings. This makes the talk more interesting.
2. Link points from one to the next.
3. Do not depart from the outline.

F. Mark the important points of your talk outline.

1. Use characters large enough to read.
2. Indicate key parts only; the exact words you will begin with.
3. Highlight the exact positions where you will insert sharings, examples, etc.

G. Write down your conclusion.

1. You can ruin a nice talk by having a weak conclusion.
a. Do not ramble on (E.g., “And another thing I failed to mention …). Have a decisive conclusion.
b. Do not just stop abruptly (E.g., … and that’s all I have to say.”).
2. You do not always have to end with a Bible passage, but may quote one if appropriate.
3. The conclusion should be challenging.
a. Create a desire to hear more and look forward to the next session.

VI. THE TALK ITSELF

A. If anything is unclear, consult your CFC-SFC elders. Do not just presume on what the appropriate meaning of
the text is.

B. Some tips in giving a good talk:

1. Be conversational in tone.
2. Use normal language, avoiding pious phrases, King James English (thees and thous), and churchy jargon (edified,
sanctification, etc.).
3. Make simple, not complex, points. Make them clearly stated, not hinted. Say what you are saying.
4. Don’t moralize or preach. Don’t talk down to your listeners.
5. Avoid arguments, controversies, and criticism of others.
6. Base the talk on the Bible. Quote the scriptures, paraphrasing them if necessary to make your point.
7. Use examples and stories from your own experience.

C. Keep the talk disciplined; that is, within the goals set for the session.

D. The talk should be for a duration of about 45 minutes. In any case, it should not be less than 30 minutes nor
more than one hour.