Verbal Communication: Principle For A Lifetime

Everyone, everywhere, at any time is communicating in some way. Verbal communication is the most widely recognized form, but an individual can speak volumes without ever opening their mouth, through nonverbal communication. In the textbook Communication: Principle for a Lifetime, Steven Beebe, Susan Beebe, and Diana Ivy give tips on how to deliver a memorable speech that utilizes effective communication. I will also analyze my classmates’ speeches to exemplify devices that make a speech entertaining and engaging. An effective communicator thinks about how to engage the audience both verbally and nonverbally. A strong communicator considers how to maintain the audience focus during the speech, along with how to make the audience feel included. …show more content…
An attention getter is really important in engaging the audience, it is what makes someone want to listen to the rest of the presentation. Ben had a really good attention getter, he did a roller coaster impression. His attention getter was a little strange at first but once he started talking about the history of roller coaster, I got it. His attention getter definitely got the audience attention and set the mood for the speech which was, thrilling and energetic. I remember what his speech was about just from the attention getter and it definitely made a lasting impression on the whole class. Another type of attention device is to ask a rhetorical question. A rhetorical question is a figure of speech in the form of a question that is asked in order to make a point, instead of generating answers. Chloe used this type of attention device in her speech about types of learners. She started out by asking if at any point we were overwhelmed studying for a UW Chemistry or UW Calculus test. Everyone in the class was able to relate to it and made me more intrigued to how she thought I could avoid this unwanted stress. Along with an attention grabbing introduction a speech also needs to maintain a focused