by admin on August 9, 2010
There’s plenty of advice out there about writing eulogies. Most writers focus on what we ought of do, and why we should get it done. While that is nice and correct, needed, it is not always enough. Every now and then we also need to know just what to avoid. We need to understand what to prevent, and why avoid it.
This article can help you with the way to write a proper eulogy. It helps not by telling you what you should do. It may help by instructing you on five things you’ll want to avoid if you want to write a eulogy.
Having said that, here are the 5 things you should avoid:
1. Don’t make the eulogy too somber. The reason you ought not do that is that a eulogy is a celebration of life. Don’t be afraid of using a little bit of humor. Instead, it would actually be better should you want to celebrate the deceased.
2. Don’t deliver a boring chronology of the person’s life. The main reason you will want to do this is because you don’t want to bore the audience. Instead, it would be better if you simply added a little bit of color by telling a few interesting stories. However, you don’t need to go through the person’s life in order.
3. Don’t use too many cliche expressions. Clearly this is to avoid sounding like you are using “canned” material. And what you want to be doing instead is add originality to your speech.
4. Don’t just deliver facts about the deceased. The reason is clearly that you are trying to show that you knew the person. And so you need to observations and anecdotes that many people in the audience won’t know.
5. Don’t speak forever. It will always be a temptation to do this but you will bore the audience and a long eulogy will take away from your central message. Instead, you should invariably remember that a eulogy should be delivered in under ten minutes.
For those who carefully avoid these 5 common errors and accept the suggestions offered for alternatives instead, your chances of success and your rewards received are going to be much better than they otherwise would.
by admin on July 23, 2010
Wedding Anniversary Speeches are most commonly delivered by a close friend or family member of the happy couple.
In this article, I’m going to outline how to brainstorm topics for a wedding anniversary speech that is touching and entertaining.
- Highlight the milestone in their life. For example, if the wedding anniversary speech is for a twenty five year anniversary you certainly want to emphasize the milestone.
- How did the couple meet? There is almost always a comical or interesting story behind the first meeting. Was your friend nervous? What was his first impression of her? What did she think of him? You can also talk about the thoughts that went through your mind when you first saw the couple together.
- Another wedding anniversary speech idea is talk about the person who was critical in bringing the couple together. This does not have to be a story about a “set-up” per se, but there is usually one friend or family member who helped spark the romance.
- You can always add a little humor to your speech. For some ideas on wedding anniversary speech humor, you can refer to our wedding speech humor ideas.
- Congratulate the couple on projects that they have completed together. No, I don’t mean assembling IKEA furniture! Often couples have big projects that they are especially proud of. Try to think of charity projects, long trips they have taken together, or any other big projects that they audience might be interested in.
- In a wedding anniversary speech you want to express gratitude to the person who organized the celebration. Thank any helpers who were especially important.
- Did the couple have a cottage or favorite vacation destination? Can you think of any funny stories centered around their travels?
- In a wedding anniversary speech you can also talk about their family. The children they have raised and how important their grandchildren are. You can also mention how they care for their elderly parents if applicable.
- Make sure that you adequately prepare for the speech. I recommend at least one hour of practice time.
- Raise a toast to the happy couple. Stand and deliver.
The information that you brainstorm above will create a great sketch for a wedding anniversary speech.
by admin on July 13, 2010
One of the most difficult speeches to write is the eulogy. Writing a eulogy for your father makes an already difficult task feel impossible.
Here are my top five recommendations for father eulogies.
- Focus on one or two characteristics of your father. Of course you remember him as loving, funny, generous, etc. However, you want to focus your eulogy on only one or two characteristics that best define your father. What was he known for in the family? What personality trait was he famous for in the community? One mistake that I often read in father eulogies is that the author wants to fully describe their father’s life and personality. You can’t sum up the life of a man in a few minutes. You have to focus on a handful of characteristics to keep the eulogy well structured. The structure of a eulogy like any speech will have a beginning, middle and end that is clear to the audience.
- Read a sample eulogy or famous eulogies in order to get a feel for the eulogy structure
- Don’t try to organize your thoughts in the first draft of your eulogy. Let your feelings flow naturally. At first, your eulogy will sound scattered but that is normal because of the rush of emotions. Don’t constrain your creativity or emotion when you write the first draft. You should also accept that your first draft is most likely to be incomprehensible. Don’t be discouraged. You most likely have little experience writing eulogies.
- Focus on the most powerful memory of your father in the eulogy. Perhaps it was a vacation to Disneyworld, driving to the summer cabin or him watching your ballet practice. Describe this memory in great detail using vivid imagery.
- The end of your father’s eulogy should end with a positive note. If you have some humor that you want to add, the conclusion is a great time to use it. It is similar to a movie in that you want the audience to leave the theater on a high note. Of course, with a eulogy, you are not trying to entertain anybody but you don’t want to end the eulogy on a depressing note.
by admin on March 7, 2010
One of the most irritating things to any audience is the use of clichés. I constantly come across cliches particularly in wedding speeches. You Must Avoid Clichés In Your Wedding Speech!
Yes, this involves effort because clichés are often the first thing that pops into our minds when we write speeches.
Here are a few clichés that I hear over and over again:
Wedding Speeches
- Marriage of two minds
- Old ball and chain
- Tie the knot
- Describe someone as having a great sense of humor
Birthday Toast
- Fine as aged wine
- Like father, like son
Eulogies
- He who laughs last, laughs best
- Cash in your chips
Be specific when you use adjectives – instead of saying beautiful say ravishing. Secondly, give examples after you list a characteristic. Often I hear speeches where the speaker lists ten characteristics without a single example. For example, someone will talk about how determined someone is without giving any real life examples to show that the person is strong willed.
If you are in doubt about whether or not you are using a cliche – you almost certainly are. Nonetheless, just run your idea past this cliche search engine. If it shows up on a cliche site – you cannot use it in your speech.
by admin on March 5, 2010
For your Father of the Bride toast, try to focus on at most two things that make your daughter unique.
Commonly, men will recall the way they felt when their daughter was born. How did you feel when you first saw her?
You can then fill in an anecdote or two from her childhood.
Here are some questions that will help you brainstorm for your Father of the Bride speech:
- Has your daughter ever volunteered to help other people?
- Does she stand out as a very generous person?
- What skill does she have that is above average?
- What do you think her closest friends love most about her?
The core of your speech will revolve around the following question: Is the world a better place because your daughter is in it?
