If you are one of the many people whose worst fear is public speaking, you can relax. While the groom’s speech is important (traditionally given second, after the father of the bride’s speech), it does not have to be a source of nail biting anxiety and dread.

There are certain expected standards that should be helpful to you, but don’t buy into any pressure to be exceptionally witty, long-winded, or even flawlessly professional. The truth is, if your speech comes from your heart, it will be just fine.

It is a good idea, though, to be aware of the basics so you can organize your thoughts and deliver a speech that says what you intend, and not just some gibberish that happens to come out of your mouth at that particular moment. Preparation goes a long way in getting rid of anxiety related to public speaking.

Here are some fundamental rules of speech writing.


Fundamental Rules For Any Speech

You can break any speech down into three basic parts:

1. The Introduction
2. The Body
3. The Conclusion

Each part has an essential role in the development of the speech.

Introduction

The introduction should make up no more than one third of your overall speech. It is longer than the conclusion, but the body is the “meat.” You can begin your speech with an anecdote, quote or a simple “thank you for coming.” The introduction of a speech is a look at what is to come.

Body

Remember that you are not only speaking for yourself, but for your bride as well. First, thank your wife. If you two are the romantic sort, express your love for her, your admiration, how grateful you are to have her in your life. You can mark this with a gift to her. It can be as simple as a single rose, or something more elaborate. It is all about personal taste and your own comfort levels. Go on to thank the bride’s parents, your own family, your best man, the maid of honor and bridesmaids, the other helpers and the person who officiated the ceremony.

Conclusion

The conclusion just ties everything up and puts a punctuation mark on the end of your speech. Try ending with a quote or poem that relates to your wife, your marriage, your families coming together or the future.

Speech Length

There is a common misconception that the groom’s speech has to be a certain length. This simply is not true, and it certainly does not have to be a lengthy affair. Two to five minutes should be sufficient time for you to say everything that you want to say. A good rule of thumb is that 60 - 75 words equal approximately 30 seconds. This means that a three minute speech would contain somewhere in the neighborhood of 360 - 450 words.

Delivery

Delivery is just about as important as content. Writing your speech and reading it word for word is rather cumbersome and comes off as somewhat insincere. Reading your speech from a manuscript also keeps your eyes on the paper and off of your audience.

Eye contact is important in speech delivery, as it allows you to engage your audience and gives them a sense of sincerity and genuineness.

Your best bet is to outline your speech and remember the main points. Know your speech well enough that you can talk about each point without remembering the speech verbatim. If you absolutely must have cues, use note cards that contain only the main points.

Your groom speech need not be a major ordeal, or a source of anxiety and dread. It should be relaxed, simple, and brief. Stick with the basics, remember the format and, most importantly, follow your heart and you’ll do just fine.

Bookmark This
SubscribeBlinklistBloglinesBlogmarksDiggdel.icio.usFacebookFurlMa.gnoliaNewsVineRedditStumbleUponTechnorati

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

Filed under: Write Groom Wedding Speeches - Groom's Speech Delivery Secrets

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!