Photo by Bobafred
With apologies to Dr. Seuss … I do not like “green eggs & ham” speakers.
What exactly is a “green eggs & ham” speaker?
This 1991 video clip of Reverend Jesse Jackson will clear it up for you.
Jesse Jackson Reads Seuss – The best free videos are right here
On the surface, he or she is dynamic and has all the qualities to hold audience attention:
- a captivating voice
- charisma
- great gestures and body language
- comedic timing
- good eye contact
- a beautiful smile
People love listening to “green eggs & ham” speakers. In fact, they always get standing ovations and excellent evaluations.
There is, however, one problem … “green eggs & ham” speakers say a lot without ever saying anything of consequence. Their content sounds good, but it’s empty. As a result, the audience will feel inspired, but they walk away without any valuable “how-to” information that will help them improve at home or at work.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with working on your stage presence, but if your goal is to become a successful speaker and offer up more than “green eggs & ham”, work on what you say before working on how you say it.
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
I really, REALLY, like this post. People who are “into” presentation tend to think that delivery is key. I know for a fact that the management structure above me is MUCH more concerned with content. To them, delivery is a nice to have, content is a must have.
Hi Jeff,
I’m glad you enjoyed the post
I wish more people would put as much thought into their content as they put into their slides and delivery. It would make a BIG difference in the quality of presentations.
Nice post. Although I’m more of a “Cat in the Hat” speaker myself
Steve,
I’m wondering if that means you go into organizations, shake everything up and then efficiently clean up the mess before anyone knows what happened …
Ha. Maybe so.
Although to be honest, I’m not sure if it’s more important to shake things up or clean up the mess after. Sometimes it’s best to just shake things up and get outta there. Ideally, I’m hoping people will walk away with a different perspective (or at least be more open to the possibility of another perspective), and hoping they were entertained in the process.
I think I might need to read the book again. And maybe I’ll start wearing a striped hat.
Hi John
I’ve never heard of “green eggs” but with a title like – Are You a “Green Eggs & Ham” Speaker? – I just had to take a look.
I’m a bit wiser now and I agree totally.
It’s the “So What” type of speech… I’ve listened to your speech but “So What”.
Purpose is the thing that is missing, what is the purpose of the speech?
Whenever I write a speech I always put the purpose at the top to remind me when I lose my way and I lose my way a lot.
“The purpose of this speech is to persuade……..”
If you do that with every sppech, no way will you be a “Green Eggs & Ham” Speaker?
Hi,
When speaking, content is king, no doubt. However, if all you have is content and no delivery skills, do everyone a favor: Write up a report, hand it out and keep your seat.
Delivering a speech is a gestalt, worth more than the sum of it’s parts. Good content, well delivered is more powerful than the content alone, flat on the page.
You make a good point, Michael. Presentation skills without content doesn’t work well, but the same is true of the opposite. Content alone without presentation skills is also ineffective.
Thanks for your comment!
Hi Keith,
I think it’s good that you encourage speakers who are just starting out. Even experienced speakers could use encouragement every now and again. You also mentioned that you make suggestions for things they can do in future presentations. I think this is key. If we only hear positive comments, we really don’t know what we can improve on. “Criticism” may hurt, but it can also make us better presenters.
Couldn’t agree more John.
BTW many thanks for visiting and leaving a comment on my site.
Much appreciated.
Hello everyone,
I am studying a speech of Hillary Clinton at the moment,
it’s the speech women rights are human rights which she gave in 1995 in Beijing, China.
I got some problems with the rhetorical devices because I don’t really know how to find them. I got the anaphora of It is a violation of human rights when…
Also the ethos, pathos and logos is pretty hard for me.
So i was wondering if anyone could help me out,
this is the site of the speech:
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/hillaryclintonbeijingspeech.htm
I would appreciate it very much and be very thankful if anyone would help me.
Greetings