Speak-A-Min Contest

Ever since man has learned to communicate, we have considered the people who could speak well to be the people who could speak... non-stop. The glib talking salesman was once looked up to. Hence, we have associated good speaking to long speaking. 

Unfortunately, times have changed. A second is now too long for some operations. A nano second is now the new minute. Long, boring speeches... now put people to sleep...or they get back to their Blackberries or I-Phones. Attention spans have shortened, and people who cannot  deliver their message in a minute will soon become Dinosaurs... and Fossils. 

The ART of the ONE MINUTE SPEECH is here... and

It will change ....

The way we communicate! 

Time is precious.. and we do not have enough of it... 

We need to MASTER this new art form of communication, and I guarantee you... LIFE will be so much better. Here are some apparent advantages of the ONE MINUTE MESSAGE.

1. Don't say I have to discuss something with you. Say I need a minute of your time to share... a concern of mine. Then complete your message in ONE MINUTE. 

2. Rather than shut someone out because you don't have time to talk to them... wouldn't it be nicer to say.... I'll  give you a minute to state your point... and your time starts NOW! 

3. Before you attend a meeting, prepare your key point in a way that you can deliver it in just a minute. People will be happy to attend meetings as others follow suit. Meetings will last just minutes... instead of taking hours. 

4. Imagine using the Elevator Pitch as a daily practice, not just as a prepared sales methodology !

The SPEAK-A-MIN contest will prove that: 

• We have within us the ability to SPEAK SUCCINCTLY and EFFECTIVELY 
• We can SHARPEN our SPEAKING SKILLS
• We can HONE our abilities and use words SPARINGLY
• ANY Message can be delivered effectively in A MINUTE 

If you want to know more about this... follow this blog... or even better... watch videos of classic prize winning speeches. (which will be on Youtube soon) 

If you have the guts... Take part in the contest! 

The first of these contests will be in Bangalore, India. Next we will hit the other major cities... and by the end of the year.. we will conduct an ALL INDIA Speak-a-min contest. 

For starters... 

Here are some of the categories that you can compete in... as a participant in

 SPEAK-A-MIN 

The World's First one minute speech contest. 

INFO-MIN

To share information of value in a very interesting manner. Listeners should be drawn into the speech and hooked to the information like we get hooked to breaking news on a subject that we are interested in. 

FUN-MIN 

To entertain/create humour. The objective here is to increase the Fun/Happiness Factor. After the narration, the listener should feel a sense of lightness of heart. 

JOSH-MIN 

To motivate and inspire. Quite simply to get people to take action or change/improve their thinking. Persuasion, Inspiration, Motivation.. this is what this section is about. It is for speakers who can INFLUENCE through WORDS and ACTIONS. 

EMOTI-MIN 

This is to bring out emotions through sharing of a story/incident. The emotion could be any Joy, Sorrow, Pain, Pleasure, Relief, Elation... just make the listeners feel what you are 

expressing. 

AD-MIN 

This is an impromptu round of speaking. We look at it as Impromptu Selling. The objective of the session is to build a desire in the audience that the object being advertised, is worth acquiring. Only 10 seconds grace will be given at the start. The idea is to create a desire of ownership in the audience. This is selling at its best. 

The participant can also add value to the object... or new attributes (which even the original might not have had) So creativity is allowed, and of course, it should be logically backed up... and finally, the credibility of the speaker should be built up, and not eroded. 

SPEAK-A-MIN will be in three categories:  

1. Open Speak-a-min. Here candidates should be 18 years of age
2. Inter-corporate Speak-a-min. Open only to Companies with more than 100 employees.
3. Inter College Speak-a-min. Open only to the leading colleges in Bangalore. 

More details will appear here. 

Queries are welcome. 

Let the Battle Begin! 

Ian Faria.