“Acres” of Topics for Public Speaking
Dr Russell Herman Conwell got it right when he said the greatest opportunities people have are usually right there, under their own two feet. Right in their own back yard, so to speak.
If you think about it the other way around, you will realize that very few people look for opportunities close to them, whether they are looking for public speaking topics or a business opportunity. Instead, they think they have to search in remote places to find some esoteric key to their success.
Dr Conwell, who was a lawyer, Baptist preacher and popular speaker in the early 20th century, told several stories about people who lost life-changing opportunities because they simply overlooked the “diamonds” on their own front doorstep. While they were looking far afield for some exotic or rare promise of fortune, they ignored the incredible opportunity that was right within their own reach. Conwell delivered this famous Acres of Diamonds speech probably thousands of times. It is said there is no definitive version of the speech, because each time he delivered it a little differently. And each time his audience was no less spellbound by his words.
But let’s get back to public speaking topics. Conwell hit the nail on the head when he said they key to success is to look at what you have, before you look further afield. If you focus on something you find interesting, particularly something you know and feel strongly about, you will find the task of speaking in public a whole lot easier. In fact, that was partly the secret to the phenomenal power of Conwell’s own speeches. The fact that he told the story differently each time means that its potency came not from carefully chosen words, but from passion and understanding about his topic!
If you are the master of your subject (especially if you are passionate about it) you will find it much easier to speak effectively and make a strong impression. It’s not the topic that will grab people so much as it is YOU that grabs them — your authority and your enthusiasm.
Remember your favorite teachers in high school or college? It was probably their total involvement in and mastery of their subject — and their enthusiasm to share it with you — that made you look forward to their class. Hands down, a passionate oratory by a stamp collecting enthusiast about his hobby will always make a more captivating speech than a mechanical presentation about a more “noble” subject, like prevention of global warming, or the need for world peace. Of course, those topics are great and worthy to speak about. But their potential remains unrealized if the speaker is not committed to them mentally and emotionally.
You see, conviction is the key.
As Dale Carnegie said, in one of his many books about public speaking, “Real preparation consists in digging something out of yourself, in assembling and arranging your own thoughts, in cherishing and nurturing your own convictions,” he wrote.
This makes perfect sense. So if you are at a loss for a public speaking topic, look deep within yourself and find whatever is very close to your heart. Search your own acres of knowledge and interest, and success in public speaking — or anything — is sure to follow.
