After a recent seminar a fellow participant asked me what I thought makes a great speaker and whether great speakers are born or made. To answer the first question I suggested we consider three of the best – Martin Luther King, Winston Churchill and John Kennedy; in my view three of the greatest speakers of […]

After a recent seminar a fellow participant asked me what I thought makes a great speaker and whether great speakers are born or made. To answer the first question I suggested we consider three of the best – Martin Luther King, Winston Churchill and John Kennedy; in my view three of the greatest speakers of the 20th century. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzZZyJEiUgw What qualities do these three speakers have in common? What made speeches featuring – ‘I have a dream..’; ‘We will fight them on the beaches…’ and ‘We go to the moon not because it is easy…’, as astounding as they were? Then there is the other question I was asked – are great speakers born or made? It might well be argued that great speakers are born, at least to the extent that they have a voice that lends itself to motivating public speaking. It is certainly the case King, Churchill…