William Herbert "Skip" Boyer, 32°
6201 N. 24th Parkway, Phoenix, Arizona 85022
skip.boyer@bestwestern.com

Brother Winston Churchill offers tips on effective speaking.

All babies, some wit once pointed out, look like Winston Churchill. Parental pride aside, it's true. The blessing is that they outgrow the look. At least, most do. James C. Humes didn't. He still looks like Brother Churchill. Humes is a remarkable individual who combines being a lawyer with being able to write clear, compelling English. This is not your average combination. A leading communications consultant, he has been a popular public speaker and speech writer to nine American Presidents, as well as an award-winning author.

Combining that and his Winstonian looks, he has written a little volume on public speaking, The Sir Winston Method, The Five Secrets of Speaking the Language of Leadership. Published in 1991 by William Morrow & Company, The Sir Winston Method is a delightful guide to the commonsense secrets that apply to anyone who must stand up in front of a group and move their mouth at the same time—whether that be in Lodge or at the local Rotary lunch.

Humes begins with the basic truth that everyone is scared to death to speak publicly. Even Churchill was so terrified that he fainted the first time he had to speak in public. This was the man who rallied a nation with his speeches in the darkest hours of World War II. Here are the five secrets of the book's title. And if they sound like commonsense, that's exactly what they are.

1. Begin strongly. Impress your audience with an opening zinger. That decidedly does not mean begin with a joke. Jokes sound tacked on, whether at the beginning or ending of your remarks, and that's tacky.

2. Focus on one theme. A speech is like a symphony. It can have three movements, but it must have one dominant melody. If not, then it's not really a speech at all, just a report that you are reading out loud.

3. Use simple language. Toss out the beat-around-the-bush jargon of bureaucrats and pick up your pace with personal, colorful language.

4. Draw a picture in the listener's mind. Transform dry abstractions like "private enterprise" into a powerful picture like "the sturdy horse pulling along the cart of democracy," as Sir Winston did. 

5. End with an emotion. Express feelings from the heart when you cap your speech.

As a bonus, The Sir Winston Method also brings a bright sense of history and Churchill's own lively sense of humor to the discussion. On the matter of simple word choice, for example, the prime minister was at a reception where cold fried chicken was being served. The grand old man said, "I think I'd like a breast."

His hostess admonished him. "Mr. Churchill, nice people don't use that word for that part of the anatomy. We say 'white meat.'" The next day, he sent her flowers, a very nice corsage. Attached was his official card, to which he had added, "I would be most obliged if you would pin this corsage on your white meat."

Rim shot and a standing ovation for the speaker, please.

William H. Boyer is the Director, Executive Communications, Best Western International, Inc. He is a member of Paradise Valley–Silver Trowel Lodge No. 29, Phoenix, Arizona, and serves as editor of the Lodge's Trestle Board. Brother Boyer is a member of the Philalethes Society and writes a regular column in the Society's popular magazine. A Chevalier of the Order of DeMolay, a member of the Brotherhood of the Blue Forget-Me-Not and of the Scottish Rite Bodies of Phoenix, Arizona, he is a native of Omaha, Nebraska, and holds the prestigious Accredited Business Communicator (ABC) designation from the International Association of Business Communicators. Brother Boyer has earned more than 70 regional and national awards for his writing and editorial work.