The State of the Union (SOTU) Address: Tips for You as a Public Speaker

Regardless of how you feel about the current political situation in the USA, the State of the Union (SOTU) address is a wonderful learning opportunity that shouldn't be missed. Think of it as an educational or political experience, as theater, or whatever- but think of it!

President Obama's speaking skills are widely regarded as excellent. What should you look for in tonight's address? If it follows the same pattern as previous ones, here's what to expect.

 1. Excellent body language: great posture, gestures that seem natural, and eye contact to all sides of the audience. His facial expressions will show sincerity, enthusiasm and caring about what he is saying.

2. Stories about real people: President Obama is a master at having real people and their stories illustrate his talks. The stories are short but powerful.

3. Metaphors and alliteration are usually included in his powerful presentations. Awesome alliterations and magnificent metaphors help make his speeches memorable.

4. Powerful wording: The speeches usually have some words that are powerful enough to make people take notice. The words are not necessarily long words, but rather are words that are not used often enough to be taken for granted. (Such words can often be found in synonym dictionaries online.)

5. Precise timing: President Obama knows how long to allow people to clap, to laugh, or to think about an idea he has just presented. The more complex the idea, the longer people need to consider it and its' implications. (Congressional representatives most likely consider the ideas in terms of their committee responsibilities and the impacts they will have on their constituencies. Ordinary citizens consider the ideas by how they will affect them.)

6. Expert knowledge of the speech so he does not need to look at notes.

Yes, there is probably a tele-prompter somewhere out of sight of the cameras, but President Obama does not seem to need to use it. He knows his speeches!

(We don't see the many, many hours of preparation that go into writing and practicing those speeches, to  make them so good.)

Tonight, as you settle on the couch to watch the State of the Union address, take this list and see how many of these techniques you can spot! Tomorrow, you can add them to your speech-giving strategies!