462 Part 4 Public Speaking
author present information objectively? At any point in the speech, do you feel
as though the speaker is trying to persuade you to do or believe something? It’s
important to be a critical listener in order to catch the often subtle differences
between informing and persuading.- Locate a persuasive speech that you found particularly compelling. Print it out
and edit it, removing any and all of the material that you feel is persuasive in
nature (for example, the speaker’s opinions, any notably biased statements, any
evidence that you feel is subjective rather than objective). Does the remainder of
the speech hold up as an informative speech? How could you change it to make
it a purely informative presentation? - Think of a topic that you find excruciatingly dull (for example, balancing your
checkbook, studying for a required course you don’t like, or taking a summer
or part-time job doing something utterly mind-numbing). What would you do
if you had to give an informative presentation on such a subject? Based on the
information presented in this chapter, can you think of ways to build a presenta-
tion on the topic that is informative and interesting? As strange as this task may
sound, it is likely that you will have to do something like this at times in your
career. (Recall the example from this chapter on informing employees about a
new electronic reimbursement system.) - Imagine a process you do every day, such as driving a car. Think about how you
would explain the process to someone who’s never done it or even seen it done
before. Consider different ways you could make the level of the presentation
appropriate for different audiences. Talking to a child, for example, you might
simply say that pressing on the gas pedal makes the car go; you might offer more
detail when speaking to adults, explaining how the car works.