Preaching

Have soul. "I believe that one always does himself and his audience an injustice when he speaks merely for the sake of speaking. I do not believe that one should speak unless, deep down in his heart, he feels convinced that he has a message to deliver. When one feels, from the bottom of his feet to the top of his head, that he has something to say that is going to help some individual or some cause, then let him say it; and in delivering his message I do not believe that many of the artificial rules of elocution can, under such circumstances, help him very much. Although there are certain things, such as pauses, breathing, and pitch of voice, that are very important, none of these can take the place of soul in an address. When I have an address to deliver, I like to forget all about…

Mix and mingle. "If you are the type that gets frightened or intimidated by speaking to large groups, it doesn't hurt to speak to a couple people in the audience before you start your speech." - Kate White We may stand before crowds but we speak to individuals.  While it may not be possible to mix and mingle before every sermon or speech, it does help to strengthen the human connection between speaker and audience.  It creates warmth and removes the distance between seat and stage.

You're probably familiar with the 80/20 rule, also known as the Pareto Principle: 20% of your effort will produce 80% of your results and so on.  Along that line, I just read a great blog post about how the Pareto Principle applies to public speaking.  I pass it on for your perusal. Use the Pareto Principle for More Powerful Presentations The 80/20 Rule, also known as the Pareto Principle, helps explain the power of simplicity. The 80/20 Rule is pervasive in our world. For example: 80% of traffic jams occur on the 20% of roads 80% of beer is consumed by 20% of drinkers 80% of profits come from 20% of customers 80% of sales are generated by 20% of sales people In other words, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. Named after Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who observed in 1906 that…

Know why. "You shouldn't give a public speech unless you want to make something happen." - Tom Peter I first became acquainted with Peters when I read his book "In Search of Excellence" and then "Thriving on Chaos."  What makes for an effective business makes for an effective sermon or speech: knowing the purpose behind what you're doing or saying. When it comes to preaching, our goal is two-fold: 1) to faithfully communicate God's truth and 2) to see lives changed.  Knowing why you are preaching helps shape more than just the outline, it shapes the heart and passion you bring to the platform.

Stick with it. "All the great speakers were bad speakers at first." - Ralph Waldo Emerson The only way to get better at preaching (or public speaking) is to do it over and over and over again.  In business terms, it's called churning.  Develop the product and churn it. When it comes to preaching, it's a never-ending process of learning what worked and what didn't.  It's getting comfortable in front of a crowd.  It's sticking with it.