PUBLIC SPEAKING= DALE DOROTHY CHAP 5

Summary 1. “The average man,” said the noted psychologist, Professor Carl Seashore, “does not use above ten percent of his actual inherited capacity for memory.Hewastes the ninety per cent by violating the natural lawsof remembering.” 2. These “natural laws of remembering” are three; impression, repetition, association. 3. Get a deep, vivid impression of the thing you wishto remember. To do that you must a. Concentrate. That was the secret of TheodoreRoosevelt’s memory. b. Observe closely. Get an accurate impression.Acamera won’t take pictures in b. Observe closely. Get an accurate impression.Acamera won’t take pictures in a fog; neither will yourmind retain foggy impressions. c. Get your impressions through as many of thesenses as possible. Lincoln read aloud whateverhewished to remember so that he would get both a visualand an auditory impresion. d. Above all else, be sure to get eye impressions.They stick. The nerves leading from the eye to thebrain are twenty-five times as large as those leadingfrom the ear to the brain. Mark Twain could notremember the outline of his speech when he used notes;but when he threw away his notes and used picturestorecall his various headings, all his troubles vanished. 4. The second law of memory is repetition. Thousandsof Mohammedan students memorize the Koran—a bookabout as long as the New Testament—and they do it verylargely through the power of repetition. We can largely through the power of repetition. We can memorize The Improvement of Memory 77anything within reason if we repeat it often enough. Butbear these facts in mind as you repeat: a. Do not sit down and repeat a thing over and overuntil you have it engraved on your memory. Gooverit once or twice, then drop it; come back later andgoover it again. Repeating at intervals, in that manner,will enable you to memorize a thing in about one-halfthe time required to do it at one sitting. b. After we memorize a thing, we forget as muchduring the first eight hours as we do during the nextthirty days; so go over your notes just a few minutesbefore you rise to make your talk. 5. The third law of memory is association. 5. The third law of memory is association. The onlyway anything can possibly be remembered at all is byassociating it with some other fact. “Whatever appearsinthe mind,” said Professor James, “must be introduced;and, when introduced, it is as the associate of somethingalready there. . . . The one who thinks over his experiencesmost, and weaves them into the most synthetic relationwith each other, will be the one with the best memory.”6. When you wish to associate one fact with othersalready in the mind, think over the new fact fromallangles. Ask about it such questions as these: “Why is thisso? How is this so? When is it so? Where is it so? Whosaid it is so?” 7. To remember a stranger’s name, ask questions aboutit—how is it spelled, and so on? Observe his looks sharply.Try to connect the name with his face. Find out hisbusiness and try to invent some nonsense phrase that willconnect his name with his business, such as was doneinthe Penn Athletic Club group. 8 . To remember dates, associate them 8 . To remember dates, associate them with prominentdates already in the mind. For example, the three hun- 78 HOW TO DEVELOP SELF-CONFIDENCEdredth anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth occurred duringthe Civil War. 9. To remember the points of your address, arrangethem in such logical order that one leads naturally to thenext. In addition, one can make a nonsense sentence outof the main points—for example, “The cow smokedacigar and hooked Napoleon, and die house burned downwith religion.” 10. If, in spite of all precautions, you suddenly forgetwhat you intended to say, you may be able to save yourselffrom complete defeat by using the last words of your lastsentence as the first words in a new one. This canbecontinued until you are able to think of your next point.

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Essential Elements in Successful Speaking The day these lines are written, January 5th, isthe anniversary of the death of Sir Ernest Shackleton.He died while steaming southward on the good ship“Quest” to explore the Antarctic. The first thing that at-tracted one’s eyes on going aboard the “Quest” were theselines engraved on a brass plate: If you can dream and not make dreams your master; If you can think and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with triumph and disaster; And treat those two impostors just the same, If you can force your heart, and nerve, and sinew To serve your turn long after they are gone; And so hold on when there is nothing in you Except the will which says to them, “Hold on,” If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run, Yours is the earth and everything that’s If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run, Yours is the earth and everything that’s in it, And, what is more, you’ll be a man, my son.

“The Spirit of the Quest,” Shackleton called thoseverses; and truly, they are the proper spirit with whichaman should start out to reach the South Pole or to gainconiidence in public speaking. But that is not the spirit, I regret to add, in whichallpersons begin the study of public speaking. Years ago,when 1 first engaged in educational work, I was astoundedto learn how large a percentage of students who enrolledin night schools of all sorts grew weary and fainted bythe wayside before their goals were attained. The numberis both lamentable and amazing. It is a sad commentaryon human nature. This is nearing the middle of the book, and I knowfrom experience that some who are reading are alreadygrowing disheartened because they have not conqueredtheir fear of audiences and gained self-confidence. Whatapity, for “how poor are they that have not patience. Whatwound did ever heal but by degrees?The Necessity of Persistence When we start to learn any new thing, likeFrench, or golf, or public speaking, wc never advancesteadily. We do not improve gradually. We do it by suddenjerks, by abrupt starts. Then we remain stationary a time,or we may even slip back and lose some of the groundwehave previously gained. These periods of stagnation, orretrogression, are well known by ail psychologists; and theyhave been named “plateaus in the curve of learning.”Students of public speaking will sometimes be stalled forweeks on one of these plateaus. Work as hard as they may,they cannot get off it. The weak ones give up in despair.Those with grit persist, and they find that suddenly, overnight, without their knowing how or why it has happened,they have made great progress. They have lifted fromtheplateau like an aeroplane. Abruptly they have gotten theknack of the thing. Abruptly they have acquired natural-ness and force and confidence in their speaking. You may always, as we have noted elsewhere in pages, experience some fleeting fear, some shock, somenervous anxiety the first few moments you face an audience. But if you will but persevere, you will soon eradicateeverything but this initial fear; and that will be initial fear,and nothing more. After the first few sentences, youwillhave control of yourself. You will be speaking with positivepleasure. Keeping Everlastingly at It One time a young man who aspired to study law,wrote to Lincoln for advice, and Lincoln replied: “If youare resolutely determined to make a lawyer of yourself,the thing is more than half done already. . . . Always bearin mind that your own resolution to succeed is moreimportant than any other one thing.” Lincoln knew. He had gone through it all. He had never,in his entire life, had more than a total of one schooling. And books? Lincoln once said he had walkedto borrow every book within fifty miles of his home. Alogfire was usually kept going all night in the cabin. Sometimes he read by the light of that fire. There were cracksbetween the logs, and Lincoln often kept a book stickingin a crack. As soon as it was light enough to read in themorning, he rolled over on his bed of leaves, rubbedhiseyes, pulled out the book and began devouring it. He walked twenty and thirty miles to hear a speakerand, returning home, he practiced his talks everywhere—inthe fields, in the woods, before the crowds gatheredatJones’ grocery at Gentryville. He joined literary anddebating societies in New Salem and Springfield, and practiced speaking on the topics of the day much as youaredoing now. A sense of inferiority always troubled him. In the pres-ence of women he was shy and dumb. When he courtedMary Todd he used to sit in the parlor, bashful and silent,unable to find words, listening while she did the talking.Yet that was the man who, by practice and home study,made himself into the speaker who debated with the accomplishcd orator, Senator Douglas. That was the manwho, at Gettysburg, and again in his second inauguraladdress, rose to heights of eloquence that have rarely beenattained in all the annals of mankind. Small wonder that in view of his own terrific handicapsand pitiful struggle, he wrote: “If you are resolutely determined to make a lawyer of yourself, the thing is morethan half done already.” There was an excellent picture of Abraham Lincolninthe President’s office. “Often when I had some mattertodecide,” said Theodore Roosevelt, “something involvedand difficult to dispose of, something where there wereconflicting rights and interests, I would look up at Lincoln,try to imagine him in my place, try to figure out whathewould do in the same circumstances. It may sound oddtoyou, but, frankly, it seemed to make my troubles easierof solution.” Why not try Roosevelt’s plan? Why not, if you arediscouraged and feeling like giving up the fight to makeaspeaker of yourself, why not pull out of your pocket oneof the ftve-dollar bills that bear a likeness of Lincoln, andask yourself what he would do under the circumstances.You know what he would do. You know what he did do.After he had been beaten by Stephen A. Douglas in therace for the U.S. Senate, he admonished his followers race for the U.S. Senate, he admonished his followers notto “give up after one nor one hundred defeats.” The Certainty of Reward How I wish I could get you to prop this bookopen on your breakfast table every morning for a weekuntil you had memorized these words from ProfessorWilliam James, the famous Harvard psychologist: Let no youth have any anxiety about the upshotofhis education, whatever the line of it may be. If he keepsfaithfully busy each hour of the working day, he maysafely leave the final result to itself. He can, with perfectcertainty, count on waking up some fine morning to himself one of the competent ones of his generation,inwhatever pursuit he may have singled out. And now, with the renowned Professor James to fallback upon, I shall go so far as to say that if you pursuethis seif-study in speech faithfully and with enthusiasm,and keep right on practicing intelligently, you may confidently hope to wake up one fine morning and find yourselfone of the competent speakers of your city or community.Regardless of how fantastic that may sound to you now,it is true as a general principle. Exceptions, of course,there are. A man with an inferior mentality and personality, and with nothing to talk about, is not goingtodevelop into a local Daniel Webster; but, within reason,the assertion is correct Let me illustrate by a concrete example: Former Governor Stokes of New Jersey attended theclosing banquet of a public speaking class at Trenton. Heremarked that the talks he had heard the students makethat evening were as good as the speeches he had heardin the House of Representatives and Senate at Washington.Those Trenton speeches were made by business menwhohad been tongue-tied with audience-fear a few monthspreviously. They were not incipient Ciceros, had been tongue-tied with audience-fear a few monthspreviously. They were not incipient Ciceros, those NewJerseybusiness men; they were typical of the business menonefinds in any American city. Yet they woke up one finemorning to find themselves among the able speakersoftheir city. The entire question of your success as a speaker hingesupon only two things—your native ability, and the depthand strength of your desires. “In almost any subject,” saidProfessor James, “your passion for the subject will saveyou. If you only care enough for a result, you will mostcertainly attain it. If you wish to be rich, you will be rich;if you wish to be learned, you will be learned; if you wishto be good, you will be good. Only you must, then, reallywish these filings and wish them with exclusiveness, andnot wish at the same time a hundred other incompatiblethings just as strongly.” And Professor James might haveadded, with equal truth, “If you want to be a lic. Those who succeeded were, in onlya few instances, people of unusual brilliancy. For the mostpart, they were the ordinary run of citizens that youwillfind in your own home town. But they kept on. Smartermen sometimes got discouraged or too deeply immersedin money making, and they did not get very far; but theordinary individual with grit and singleness of purpose—atthe end of the chapter, he was at the top. That is only human and natural. Don’t you see the samething occurring all the time in commerce and the professions? The eider Rockefeller said that the first essentialfor success in business was patience. It is likewise oneofthe first essentials for success here. Marshal Foch led to victory one of the greatest armiesthe world has ever seen, and he declared that he had onlyone virtue; never despairing. When the French had retreated to the Marne in 1914,General J offre instructed the generals under him in chargeof two million men to stop retreating and begin an offensive. This new battle, one of the most decisive in theworld’s history, had raged for two days when GeneralFoch, in command of Joffre’s center, sent him one Foch, in command of Joffre’s center, sent him one of themost impressive messages in military records: “My centergives way. My right recedes. The situation is excellent.I shall attack.” That attack saved Paris. So, when the fight seems hardest and most hopeless,when your center gives way and your right recedes, “thesituation is excellent.” Attack! Attack! Attack, and youwill save the best part of your self—your courage andfaithClimbing the "Wild Kaiser” A number of summers ago, I started out to scalea peak in the Austrian Alps called the Wilder Kaiser.Baedeker said that the ascent was difficult, and a guidewas essential for amateur climbers. We, a friend andI,had none, and we were certainly amateurs; so a thirdparty asked us if we thought we were going to succeed.“Of course,” we replied. “What makes you think so?” he inquired. “Others have done it without guides,” I said, “soIknow it is within reason, and I never undertake anythingthinking defeat ” As an Alpinist, I am the merest, bungling novice; butthat is the proper psychology for anything from essayingpublic speaking to an assault on Mount Everest. Think success. See yourself in your imagination talkingin public with perfect self-control. It is easily in your power to do this. Believe that youwill succeed. Believe it firmly and you will then do whatis necessary to bring success about. Admiral Dupont gave half a dozen excellent reasonswhy he had not taken his gunboats into Charleston harbor.Admiral Farragut listened intently to the recital. “But Admiral Farragut listened intently to the recital. “But therewas another reason that you have not mentioned,”hereplied. “What is that?” questioned Admiral Dupont. The answer came: “You did not believe you coulddo it.” The most valuable thing that most members acquirefrom training in public speaking is an increased confidencein themselves, an additional faith in their ability to achieve.And than that, what is more important for one’s successinalmost any undertaking?

age advice from the late ElbertHubbard that I cannot refrain from quoting. If the averageman or woman would only apply and live the wisdomcontained in it, he or she would be happier, more prosperous: Whenever you go out of doors, draw the chin in, carrythe crown of the head high and fill the lungs to theutmost; drink in the sunshine; greet your friends witha smile and put soul into every handclasp. Do not fearbeing misunderstood and do not waste a minute thinkingabout your enemies. Try to fix firmly in your mind whatyou would like to do, and then, without veering ofdirection, you will move straight to the goal. Keep yourmind on the great and splendid things you would like todo, and then, as the days go gliding by, you will findyourself unconsciously seizing upon the opportunitiesthat are required for the fulfilment of your desire, justas the coral insect takes from the running tide the ele-ments it needs. Picture in your mind the able, earnest,useful person you desire to be, and the thought you holdis hourly transforming you into that particular individual. . . . Thought is supreme. Preserve a Thought is supreme. Preserve a right mentalattitude—the attitude of courage, frankness and goodcheer. To think rightly is to create. AH things comethrough desire and every sincere prayer is answered.We become like that on which our hearts are fixed. Carryyour chin in and the crown of your head high. Wearegods in the chrysalis, Napoleon, Wellington, Lee, Grant, Foch—all great mili-tary leaders have recognized that an army’s will to winand its confidence in its ability to win, do more than anyother one thing to determine its success. “Ninety thousand conquered men,” said Marshall Foch,“retire before ninety thousand conquering men only cause they have had enough, because they no longerbelieve in victory, because they are demoralized—at theend of their moral resistance.” In other words, the ninety thousand retiring menarenot really whipped physically; but they are conqueredbecause they are whipped mentally, because they havelosttheir courage and confidence. There is no hope for an armylike that. There is no hope for a man like that. Chaplain Frazier, a former ranking chaplain of the U.S.Navy, interviewed those who wished to enlist for thechaplaincy service during the First World War. Whenasked what qualities were essential for the success ofanavy chaplain, he replied with four G's: “Grace, gumption,grit, and guts ” Those are also the requisites for success in speaking.Take them as your motto. Take this Robert Service poemas your battle song; When you’re lost in the wild, and you’re scared as a child,And death looks you bang in the eye. And you’re sore as a boil, it’s according to Hoy

To cock your revolver and . . . die. But the code of a man, says: “Fight all you can,” And self-dissolution is barred. In hunger and woe, oh, it’s easy to blow . . . It’s the hell-served-for-breakfast that’s hard. You’re sick of the game! “Well, now, that’s a shame.”You’re young and you’re brave and you’re bright. “You’ve had a raw deal!” I know—but don’t squeal. Buck up, do your damnedest, and fight. It’s the plugging away that will win you the day, So don’t be a piker, old pard! Just draw on your grit; it’s so easy to quit: It’s the keeping-your-chin-up that’s hard. It’s easy to cry that you’re beaten—and die. It’s easy to crawfish and crawl; But to fight and to fight when hope’s out of sight. Why, that’s the best game of them allAnd though you come out of each gruelling bout All broken and beaten and scarred, Just have one more try—it’s dead easy to die. It’s the keeping-on-living that’s hard.

Summary 1. We never learn anything—be it golf, French,or public speaking—by means of gradual improvement.We advance by sudden jerks and abrupt starts. Thenwemay remain stationary for a few weeks, or even lose someof the proficiency we have gained. Psychologists call theseperiods of stagnation “plateaus in the curve of learning.1 ’ We may strive hard for a long time and not be able to getoff one of these “plateaus” and onto an upward ascentagain. Some people, not realizing this curious fact aboutthe way we progress, get discouraged on these plateausand abandon all effort. That is extremely regrettable, forif they were to persist, if they were to keep on practicing,they would suddenly find that they had lifted like anaeroplane and made tremendous progress again overnight.

2. You may never be able to speak without somenervous anxiety just before you begin. But, if you willpersevere, you will soon eradicate everything but thisinitial fear; and, after you have spoken for a few seconds,that too will disappear. 3. Professor James has pointed out that one need haveno anxiety about the upshot of his education, that if hekeeps faithfully busy, “he can, with perfect certainty, counton waking up some fine morning to find himself oneofthe competent ones of his generation, in whatever pursuithe may have singled out.” This psychological truth thatthe famous sage of Harvard has enunciated, applies to youand your efforts in learning to speak. There can benoquestion about that. The men who have succeeded in thishave not been, as a general rule, men of extraordinaryability. But they were endowed with persistence anddogged determination. They kept on. They arrived.

4. Think success in your public speaking work. Youwill then do the things necessary to bring success about. go HOW TO DEVELOP SELF-CONFIDENCE5. If you get discouraged, try Teddy Roosevelt’s planoflooking at Lincoln’s picture and asking yourself whathewould have done under similar circumstances, 6. The ranking chaplain of the U.S. Navy during theFirst World War said that the qualities essential for thesuccess of a chaplain in the service could be enumeratedwith four words commencing with G. What are they?