Hope, Heart, Help & Humor
Oct 31, 2016A few months ago, I was on stage speaking to 3,400 people at the International Maxwell Certification live event, and one of those people was Charlie Wetzel. Charlie has been John C. Maxwell’s writing partner for over 20 years and so, he probably understands John the Communicator better than anyone else in the world!
After I came off stage, I went back to the staff tables and sat with Susan. ‘Look what I got!’ she whispered in my ear as she waved a business card in my face.
‘What is it?’
‘It’s Charlie’s business card,’ she said.
‘I’ve already got his details’ I said a bit puzzled.
‘No, look at the other side!’ she smiled.
On the other side were four barely legible words scribbled in faint, black biro.
‘What does that say?’
‘Charlie thought you might find this useful,’ she said. ‘He told me that when he first started working for John, John wanted more stories in his books. So Charlie went off collecting stories that he thought were suitable. Then he’d sit down with John, and John would go through them .. and he’d throw practically all of them out as rubbish!
‘So Charlie would collect some more great stories, and show them to John. He’d go through the again and say .. rubbish .. no good .. too long .. too boring .. nope .. no .. no! Eventually Charlie got so fed up he said to John, "John, I think these are great stories .. if you don’t think they are any good, perhaps you could give me some guidance on what sort of stories you’re looking for!"
‘And John gave him those four words as a framework!’ Susan looked very pleased with herself as she handed me Charlie’s business card.
‘What does it say?’ I said staring blankly at the scrawl.
‘It says .. HOPE .. HEART .. HELP .. HUMOR ..
‘John only wanted Charlie to find stories that offer HOPE .. HEART .. HELP .. or HUMOR! If they didn’t have one of those four things, they were out.’
‘That’s fantastic!’ I said, ‘Thank you!’
I’ve shared that simple framework with many, many people over the last few months.
John is a fantastic communicator in every way - though his books, from the platform and in conversation. And over the years he’s worked out what works .. and works very, very well!
Many people new to speaking and communicating think that success as speaker comes from the information that they share. The better the information and the more of it they share, the ‘better’ they’ll be perceived by their audience.
But unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that! Human beings are emotional beings. An audience is much more likely to think of a presentation as a success, if there is some kind of emotional stimulation and connection.
It is more about creating an AUDIENCE EXPERIENCE than it is solely about trying to impress the audience with information alone.
A little over a year ago, Les Brown was my guest during the Speaker Training Workshop at the IMC in Orlando. He said something very powerful. He said ‘most speakers just do an information dump, but I’m gonna teach you to create an experience your audience will never forget!’
What a difference!
Of course information is important. But it’s YOU that brings it to life and makes it accessible to your audience by creating an enjoyable experience for them while they learn.
Just remembering those four words .. HOPE .. HEART .. HELP .. and HUMOR can really help you stay focused on what really works.
What a master John is, and what a privilege we can all continue to learn from him!
After I came off stage, I went back to the staff tables and sat with Susan. ‘Look what I got!’ she whispered in my ear as she waved a business card in my face.
‘What is it?’
‘It’s Charlie’s business card,’ she said.
‘I’ve already got his details’ I said a bit puzzled.
‘No, look at the other side!’ she smiled.
On the other side were four barely legible words scribbled in faint, black biro.
‘What does that say?’
‘Charlie thought you might find this useful,’ she said. ‘He told me that when he first started working for John, John wanted more stories in his books. So Charlie went off collecting stories that he thought were suitable. Then he’d sit down with John, and John would go through them .. and he’d throw practically all of them out as rubbish!
‘So Charlie would collect some more great stories, and show them to John. He’d go through the again and say .. rubbish .. no good .. too long .. too boring .. nope .. no .. no! Eventually Charlie got so fed up he said to John, "John, I think these are great stories .. if you don’t think they are any good, perhaps you could give me some guidance on what sort of stories you’re looking for!"
‘And John gave him those four words as a framework!’ Susan looked very pleased with herself as she handed me Charlie’s business card.
‘What does it say?’ I said staring blankly at the scrawl.
‘It says .. HOPE .. HEART .. HELP .. HUMOR ..
‘John only wanted Charlie to find stories that offer HOPE .. HEART .. HELP .. or HUMOR! If they didn’t have one of those four things, they were out.’
‘That’s fantastic!’ I said, ‘Thank you!’
I’ve shared that simple framework with many, many people over the last few months.
John is a fantastic communicator in every way - though his books, from the platform and in conversation. And over the years he’s worked out what works .. and works very, very well!
Many people new to speaking and communicating think that success as speaker comes from the information that they share. The better the information and the more of it they share, the ‘better’ they’ll be perceived by their audience.
But unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that! Human beings are emotional beings. An audience is much more likely to think of a presentation as a success, if there is some kind of emotional stimulation and connection.
It is more about creating an AUDIENCE EXPERIENCE than it is solely about trying to impress the audience with information alone.
A little over a year ago, Les Brown was my guest during the Speaker Training Workshop at the IMC in Orlando. He said something very powerful. He said ‘most speakers just do an information dump, but I’m gonna teach you to create an experience your audience will never forget!’
What a difference!
Of course information is important. But it’s YOU that brings it to life and makes it accessible to your audience by creating an enjoyable experience for them while they learn.
Just remembering those four words .. HOPE .. HEART .. HELP .. and HUMOR can really help you stay focused on what really works.
What a master John is, and what a privilege we can all continue to learn from him!
Until next time ..
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Communicating is not just about words. We need to think about our body language, tone, and pacing. How we feel impacts the way we speak. Struggling to find the right content makes us ineffective. Great speakers know that becoming an exceptional speaker isn't just an art - it's a process with many essential elements.
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