Speaking easy

Speaking in public is most people's least favorite thing. The reason is that we're all afraid of making fools of ourselves. The more important the speech is, the more frightened we become.

But stop biting your finger-nails. Public speaking is easy. It's just plain talking, and you talk all the time. Although I'm basically shy(honest!), I've been making speeches and talking on radio and television for more than 30 years, and I can tell you that public speaking is not a "gift" like musical talent or being able to draw. Anybody who can talk can speak in public. Here are some of the lessons I have learned:

Keep it simple.

Your audience is going to come away with one or two of your main ideas. One or two. Not ten or 20. If you can't express in a sentence or two what you intend to get across, then your speech is not focused well enough. And if you don't have a clear idea of what you want to say, there's no way your audience will.

Get organized.

No matter how long or short your speech is, you've got to get your ducks in a row—how you're going to open, what major points you want to make and how you're going to close.

When I do a radio or TV piece, I often write the last sentence first. When you know where you're headed, you can choose any route to get there. A strong close is critical: the last thing you say is what your audience will most likely remember.

Keep it short.

The standard length of a vaudeville act was 12 minutes. If all those troupers singing and dancing their hearts out couldn't go on longer without boring the audience, what makes you think you can?

中文：

要简单明了

别人听你讲话，总会记住你的一两个要点。一两点，不是一二十点。如果一两句话不能把你想说的意思表达出来，那说明你说话的重点不够突出。如果连你都不知道自己想说什么，怎么能指望别人听明白呢？

要有条理

说话长也好，短也好，必须井井有条——开始说什么，主要想谈哪几点，最后怎么收尾。

我做广播电视节目的时候，常常先把最后一句话写好。一旦你知道了目标，路径就可以任你挑选了。关键是收尾要有力：最后说的话别人可能记得最清楚。

话不宜长

一个杂耍节目的标准长度是12分钟。如果这些演员尽情歌舞超过12分钟都会让观众厌倦的话，你说你还能怎么样呢？