Wedding Speeches Long

We deplore long wedding ceremony speeches, eulogies (unless they’re great), and Oscar acceptance speeches and toasts. Most wedding speeches I have seen, including ones I’ve carried out as groom and greatest man, are under three min’s. These speeches need to become warm, light, funny if possible, and contain that unique emotional quality that distinguishes the occasion. Most of all, they need to end up being short. That’s about a page and a half double spaced. Wedding Speeches Long

Writing a business speech could be different. So much depends on the quantity of ground that has to become covered. One way I prefer to determine length is as follows. I’ll write the draft of the speech, read it over as well as make corrections. Then I’ll print away a revised version as well as set it aside for some time. I’ll then come to it with one goal. Cut it by 25%. That is a really interesting exercise. Can you reduce exactly what you’ve written without losing the content or the substance? When you force yourself to be concise, it is amazing just how much you can cut. So a 22 minute speech may come down to 17 min’s. Ed McMahon would end up being pleased.

Much depends on the actual audience. What can they manage? What can they endure? If you cannot listen to a pin drop throughout a presentation, it means that the actual speaker has captured their own attention. Coughs, shuffling chairs, glancing around, all indicate that interest is wavering. A great speech, full of interesting info and intriguing stories can hold an audience for 30 minutes or more. A speech that doesn’t spark attention is too much time at eight minutes. What is your qualifying criterion?

I suggest that in crafting a company speech you aim with regard to 15 to 17 min’s. If you’ve done your own homework, and the speaker offers played around with it to his / her satisfaction, and assuming that the actual speaker knows the target audience, there’s no reason why it can’t be done within that time period. Under reasonable conditions it’s not too long or too short, contains valuable information, and the audience does not have time to get bored stiff or restless.