A pastor talks a lot. He or she has a multitude of opportunities to speak: sermons, Sunday school lessons, special meetings, and board meetings in just one week! These commitments don’t automatically make you a good public speaker because practice (or opportunity) doesn’t make you perfect; practice can create grooves where poor skills can settle. A minister may feel comfortable in front of an audience, but that comfort can translate into getting used to (unknowingly) boring people week after week.

Like any public speaker, his experience holds lessons if you’re paying attention. I’ve learned a few over the years:

1. IF YOU CAN’T SAY IT IN A SENTENCE, YOU HAVE NOTHING TO SAY. Crafting a sermon each week was difficult, often heady work. It was easy to get bogged down in the details of translation, culture, history, theology, and application, not to mention developing good structure. Early in my career, my sermons were 90% details and 10% good stuff (my point). I eventually discovered that studying and compiling the details was necessary for my preparation, it made me competent to speak on a given topic or scripture. But all that information wasn’t necessary to share an idea, he needed to get to the point sooner. As a result, I started paring down my messages to one sentence. I was going to say that phrase, if nothing else. By doing this, I clarified my ideas, got to the point faster, and left people with a clear idea or action that couldn’t be lost in the presentation. Reduce your next speech to a sentence before you deliver it.
2. USE YOUR SPOUSE (OR CLOSE FRIEND) AS A REFINERY. Preparing, practicing, and delivering a speech without any outside input is a bad idea. Why wait for feedback until the Toastmasters meeting? How often do we give that speech a second time to refine it? (This would be a good idea) So why not give that speech to your spouse or friend and let them help you improve your speech? As a result, my speeches have always improved dramatically. So call your mentor and get together to practice and perfect your next speech.
3. THE EARLIER YOU LOSE THE SCRIPT, THE SMOOTER YOUR DELIVERY WILL BE. I used to write my sermons word for word. This is a good thing. Crafting important word-for-word sentences begins on paper or on a computer. But ask yourself, “Do I want to make sure I say everything exactly as I wrote it OR do I want my delivery to be smooth and authentic?” I have criticized myself for missing elements in a speech, but I have never regretted not having a script and presenting it in a way that would please the audience. Having a really simple outline can be very helpful in keeping you on track, but don’t get stuck on the outline either.
4. PUSH BEYOND YOUR COMFORT. My comfort zone is different from yours; we are all connected differently. But each of us has limits with what we are comfortable with. Push beyond your limits. If waving your hand is a bit awkward, waving both hands is pushing further. Public speaking is very similar to theater: exaggeration is an advantage. You have people’s attention, so keep it. 75% of communication is body language, don’t forget to use it!
5. SUPPORT YOUR MESSAGE. We have more than one sense (hearing), why don’t we use more sense to communicate our message? Talking about recycling? Why not bring some cans, hand out plastic bags, put down some nice mulch for people to smell?

We all wish we had learned some of life’s lessons earlier in life. But that’s what life does: it teaches us lifelong lessons, not overnight. Everyone can benefit from joining a Toastmaster club to hone their presentation skills; I wish I would have discovered Toastmasters at a younger age, but I’m glad I discovered it when I did. Toastmasters gives me more opportunities to practice what I’ve already learned and continue to learn even more about leadership and presentation.