Delivering Best Mans Speeches
Most guys, when they get invited to serve as their friends best man in the wedding says ‘okay’ without a thought. Nothing wrong in there, after all, it’s always nice to hear that one of your friends is getting married. But then, reality quickly sets in. You remember that the best mans speeches come with this privilege. Unless you had some training in public speaking, you’ll find this part of the job a bit anxiety-provoking. Seconds after you realize this, you’ll get hit with the thought that you’ll not only need to prepare and deliver your speech but you actually have to deliver it front of guests whom you personally know. Hopefully, the pointers below can help prepare you for this daunting task.
Be natural and sincere. It’s not like you have to electrify the audience with your speech. In occasions like this and with an audience like your friends, being natural is the best tactic to capture and hold their attention. So try to deliver your speech as natural as you can. If you do it this way, ten to one, you’ll have an excellent delivery, if not a flawless one.
Although many are intimidated by the prospect of addressing people they know, it helps to know for many that this is their comfort zone where slight mistakes are easily forgiven. So forget your notion that you need to deliver an extravagant speech. Also, it would be a lot easier for the audience to hear a natural speaker than someone who treats a best man speech like a state of the nation address.
Should you read your notes or should you not read. You always have the choice of memorizing the entire speech or keeping point cards handy. Chances are, when you rely entirely on your memory you’ll forget some parts of your speech. If you can pull off a memorized speech, well and good, but in any case you should always have some adlibs ready. It’s perfectly okay to memorize your speech but try not to depend heavily on your memory as it sometimes slip. To ensure a good delivery, keep small idiot cards handy to help you keep track of your succeeding lines. On a side note, it is not obligatory to have a script for your opening lines.
Prepare in ahead of time. It’s not a good idea to prepare your speech the night or on the day of the wedding. Even if you are confident in your skills for delivering extemporaneously, it is still better to have something prepared. This allows you to sound more natural, making it easier for the audience and yourself to go through the speech without boring them.
Keep it brief but entertaining. A speech that is longer than 5 minutes, unless you have a knack for holding your audience’s attention, could be a little too boring. So try to keep your speech concise, entertaining and naturally funny.
Keep your head clear. Don’t allow yourself near the punch bowl until after you’ve delivered your speech. Usually, although alcohol can calm the nerves, it ruins the speech, letting you to be remembered for all the wrong reasons.
Follow these tips while writing and delivering your best mans speeches. Trust us, these could really help.
Tags: best man, best man speech, best man's speeches, best men, best men speech, best men speeches, best men's speeches