Bland lead the Bland

by Graham Davies

I am currently working with several clients on their Maiden speeches in the House of Commons. This type of speech is often a very bland affair, with the meat of it consisting of merely a few nice pleasantries about the Mp's own constituency.

Of course, this will not be their very first speech as MPs: they made their first ones immediately after their victory was announced by the returning officer on election night. Every single victory speech that I saw on television consisted of a boring sequnce of predictable pleasantries and thank yous. The perpetrators had the chance to say something striking and memorable in the spotlight, but they decided to follow convention instead.

No presentation will ever be memorable if it it merely follows convention at the expense of saying something new. Never allow yourself to say something just because your audience expects it. It is only the unexpected that will get you what you want.