THE SECRET TO GIVING A GREAT SPEECH?

Trevor Ambrose
Feb 9, 2023
2 min read

Updated: Jun 3

What makes great speeches, pitches and presentations stand out?

Have you ever heard about the rule of three? Do you know why great speeches, pitches and presentations normally contain the rule of three? When I started off with public speaking, I always wanted to know what makes a great speech. So I’ve done a ton of research and I’ve looked into some of the best speeches that have ever been written, and there’s always this rule of three.

I actually wrote a book on public speaking and on page 61 it says, “The rule of three has a certain magic ring to it. Members of the audience remember the rule of three long after the speech has been given. Use the same elements in a sentence or series of sentences.”

Here are some examples of rules of three.

“I came, I saw, I conquered.” – Julius Caesar

“That’s what Abraham Lincoln understood. He had his doubts, he had his defeats, he had his setbacks.” – Barack Obama.

“Is there anyone out there who still doubts that America is the place where all things are possible? Who still wonders if the dreams of our founders is alive in our time? Who still questions the power of our democracy? Tonight is your answer.” – Barack Obama.

“The government of the people, by the people, for the people.” – Abraham Lincoln

“The good, the bad, the ugly.” – Sergio Leone

So once I realised that great presenters use the rule of three all the time, I started looking into howI can create my own? I designed this simple technique that you can use to create your own rules of three. What you need to do is write the little slogan that ends in ‘…’ and then brainstorm a minimum of ten words to follow it. Pick the best three and then write the final slogan.

My favourites that I use are, “Would you like to speak with confidence, clarity, conviction?” (the three C’s) And, “We are going to help you with tools, tips and techniques.” You see the rhythm and rhyme? It helps your audience remember what you say. Take note, not every word needs to start with the same letter, however it helps if it does. The brain loves to work in threes. If you go to four, five, six, seven people forget about the other four, five, six and seven, eight, nine, ten are the point. People always remember the first three.