This document provides guidance for building an effective speech, including sections on: - Introducing the speech with the central thesis and previewing main points - Using a balanced structure with 3-5 main points of equal attention in the body - Concluding with a review and calling the audience to action without new information - Employing frequent transitions between sections to create a smooth flow - Incorporating varied evidence like examples, quotes, statistics, and visual aids - Rehearsing and being familiar with the presentation space and technology - Managing anxiety and mistakes, and fielding questions from the audience

7. There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics . Benjamin Disraeli

8. Statistics always remind me of the fellow who drowned in a river whose average depth was three feet. Woody Hayes Coach, Ohio State Football

9. Always provide people with a context to help them understand. Richard E. Moran

10. A talk is a voyage with a purpose, and it must be charted. The man who starts out going nowhere, generally gets there. Dale Carnegie

15. (Sometimes, “less” is “more”) Talk low, talk slow and don’t say too much. John Wayne

16. The right word may be effective, but no word was ever as effective as a rightly timed pause. Mark Twain

26. I’m glad this question came up, in a way, because there are so many ways to answer it that one if them is bound to be right. Robert Benchley I was gratified to be able to answer promptly. I said, “I don’t know.” Mark Twain

28. Source: Cohn, E. Public Speaking, University of Pittsburgh Center for Instructional Development & Distance Education, Fifth Edition, January 2001.