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That’s why leaders seek out seasoned presentation coaches for this delicate mental, emotional and physical preparation. It involves your whole brain, your whole body. How much are you willing to invest in your success? It takes true dedication and involves many hours of lonely drafting, stumbling over words, pausing and rewriting. He then rehearsed passages, again and again, pacing up and down his room, repeating them aloud, learning whole speeches by heart.Īs we coach CEOs, start-up entrepreneurs, doctors and TEDx speakers, we are often asked: “How long will the preparation last? How many sessions will it take?” The answer: it all depends on how dedicated you are to the task and its success. Perhaps today he would use his iPhone to record himself and save some poor girl’s nerves. He drafted his speeches many times over, until the very last moment.
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Just like Steve Jobs, Churchill was not a “born speaker”. In this movie, we see once again how Churchill literally perspires over the writing of his speeches. Maybe not blood and tears, but certainly sweat. “Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.”-Winston Churchill 2. “Wendy from the UK told me…, Karl from Germany…, etc.” He truly connected with his audience and showed them he cared. In his talk, delivered before several hundred sales managers, he incorporated several personal stories that made the difference. So, during the Christmas holidays, he collected feedback and stories from his teams across Europe. “Why don’t you learn directly from your people?” I offered. He soon realized he had only the vaguest sense of his audience: what was their experience? What did they most want and need from him in his speech?
DARKEST HOUR STRATEGY GUIDE SERIES
As we explored the context of his annual strategy presentation, using Ideas on Stage methodologies like the ABCs (Audience, Burning Needs, Context), I gently guided him through a series of discovery questions. In fact, it resembles the coaching advice I recently gave to the Senior Manager of an international company during one of our first sessions. I loved this scene and frankly do not care whether it happened or not. He rushes to deliver what will become one of his most powerful speeches, taking into account these citizens’ words, quoting them and even crediting them by name. There and then, Churchill’s decision to refuse peace talks with Hitler is strengthened. He takes his first-ever ride on a London Underground train, and begins asking random citizens if they would fight the Nazis even if the odds were stacked against them? They reply in one clear, loud and vibrant voice: “Never surrender!” © Working Title Films- one scene, likely fictional according to the critics, Churchill decides to go and meet the people. Here are 3 takeaways from the movie, which you can immediately apply for your next keynote, sales meeting or investor pitch. You will enjoy some of the finest acting and also benefit from precious presentation lessons from the Master Orator.
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His outstanding performance may very soon win him an Oscar. Have you seen Gary Oldman in his interpretation of Churchill in the latest biopic by Joe Wright? If you have not, please go.