Public Speaking

“YOU RARELY GET a second chance to make a positive first impression.” This

cultural saying is true about speechmaking. When you begin poorly, you have

trouble regaining the audience’s attention and confidence. On the other hand,

when you start strong, you’re more likely to be forgiven for minor slips later. Also,

an otherwise good speech that trails off or loses focus at the end prevents you

from memorably driving home your point. Consequently, to be effective, carefully

research, plan, and practice both your introductions and conclusions. Principles

in this chapter will guide you in drawing your listeners into your subject and,

at the end, concluding in a way that summarizes your thoughts and leaves a

memorable impression.

Introductions and Conclusions

Chapter

10

This ChapTer Will

help You

• Develop an introduc-
tion that gains atten-
tion, motivates the
audience to listen,
establishes your cred-
ibility, and previews
your speech

• Develop a conclusion
that signals the end,
summarizes, provides
psychological closure,
and ends with impact

Review the

chapter

Learning

Objectives

and Start

with a quick

warm-up

activity.

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