Seven Selected Assumptions About Motivational Speakers

The reader is invited to enjoy the following seven assumptions regarding motivational speakers. These assumptions are provided for your amusement as well as your edification.

Assumption #1
Motivational speakers can, in fact, motivate. That is, they can: inspire, energize, rekindle, excite, engender, psych, move, challenge, influence, invigorate, enlighten, encourage and captivate.

Assumption #2
Motivational speakers can, in fact, speak. That is, they can: talk, break silence, open their mouths, emit, utter, articulate, communicate, pipe up, speak up, speak out, hold forth, orate, be eloquent, spell binding and silver-tongued.

Assumption #3
Motivational speakers are the medium and "the medium is the message." (Marshall McLuhan) That means the message is the sender. Motivational speakers, then, deliver themselves as content. It is their take on something, their spin, their observations, their hypotheses, their slant, their histories, their experiences, their insights, their stories, their challenges, their successes, their failures, their understandings, their sense making, their hopes, their fears, their adversities, their knowledge, their humor. In short, their lives.

Assumptions #4 & #5 & #6
Motivational speakers speak to an audience. (4) The audience is made up of people who want to be there. (5) However, even if the audience is made up of reluctant attendees who were required to participate, they will be won over by the speaker, who, by definition, motivates. (6) The point is there are people who are receiving your message. Some actively listening, some passively listening. Some resonating to your insights, some questioning, perhaps rethinking, long held patterns of thought and behavior. Some moved to laughter, some moved to tears. Some identifying, some examining, some weighing. Each making sense of the words, the message, the speaker in his/her own way.

Assumption #7
Motivational speakers are themselves motivated by the people they are motivating. That is to say that the response, both verbal and nonverbal, from people in the audience renews and refreshes the speaker who is sharing his/her message and therefore him or herself with the audience. This then forms the symbiotic relationship between speaker and listener.

The next time the reader has an opportunity to hear a motivational speaker, think about these assumptions and see if they bear out. And finally, a good writer, like a good speaker, should be clear, direct and concise. Thus, the end.

Jackie Pelletier built a successful career as a teacher, coach, recreation director, principal and interim superintendent. As a respected expert in the field of education, thousands of students and adults were inspired and challenged by her. She was honored as the State of Maine Physical Education Teacher of the Year, named to the Governors Council and recognized Statewide for her contributions in adaptive education and in the area of women's sports. Jackie is currently the Wine Training Coordinator at the most visited winery in the country at Biltmore Estate as well as an expert motivational speaker.