How I Started Speaking

In college, my friends and I would always get hyped up before big golf tournaments. We’d gather at someone’s dorm or apartment in the morning to “Hydrate” with some cold beverages and get the energy going! 

Towards the end, a couple of us would give pep talks to ensure our team was mentally ready for the big day. 

By the time senior year came around, the guys expected me to say something. So, I’d lie in bed the night before thinking about ways to get them “fired up.” 

In this speech (yes, you will laugh very hard if you watch), I was trying to come up with three powerful points to address a diverse range of challenges they could face throughout the day. 

My 3 points were…

1 - Commit to Excellence 

2 - Achieve Greatness 

3 - Never Give Up 

My vision for this talk was to state each point, then give an example or quick story to help them visualize how to apply it in a challenging situation during the 4-hour golf round.

What’s funny, looking back at this 10 years later, is that I still design speeches the same way.

Second, I tried to figure out how to boost the energy. I found out the importance of this from my mentor, Thom Plummer, when he said, “The great speakers aren’t speakers. They’re entertainers. That’s one thing I wish I had put a bigger emphasis on when teaching speakers.”

At that time, I didn’t know much about speaking, but I knew they wouldn’t connect with what I was saying if they weren’t involved.

Our local bar, “The Doghouse,” sponsored the team shirts. So, I decided to do a “Hu-Hu” or “Hoo-Hoo” (not sure how to spell that lol) between the main points in my speech to get them engaged and hyped.

Lastly, I knew hyping up was valuable. But I wanted them to understand why I was standing on a table, making a fool of myself!

Which is why, before, I got into my 3 points. I expressed to the team that the point of this talk was to tell them why we can and will win the cup!

Learning this early on in speaking had a significant influence on why I do a hands-on introduction drill for all speakers at the Speaker School Masterminds. Participants give the first minute of their speech, aka the introduction, then transition to the point of it, aka why people should listen, before going into the “body” of the speech.

They get immediate feedback to help ensure their closing keynote on Day 2 is set up for success.

Looking back on this speech, there’s a lot I would have changed, but FINDING 3-5 POINTS that align with the theme of the talk, focusing on ENTERTAINING OVER SPEAKING, and taking time to think about ensuring the listener KNOWS WHY TO LISTEN are all things people pay me to help them out with nowadays.

If you’re looking to level up your speaking, take time to think about those three things bolded in the paragraph above, and that will be a great start. If you want to accelerate the process, then I’d consider signing up for one of the upcoming Speaker School Masterminds.

Also, on Saturday, December 27th, I’ll be giving a rare toast speech at Good Vibes Night (Stamford, CT). It’s a free event from 6-8 PM, and you can RSVP here if you’d like to come!

This post was first published on LinkedIn on December 26, 2025.