General Morrison’s Case Against Sexism

Last month, a colleague and I taught an online speechwriting course to 27 military folks. One of the speeches we analyzed was given by Lieutenant General David Morrison, Australian Chief of the Army, in 2013.  At that time, the Australian police and Army were investigating misconduct alleging that male service members had distributed material demeaning to women on the Army’s email network.

Each time I re-watch General Morrison’s remarks, I’m reminded -- and impressed -- by his candor in setting clear expectations. His message? The Australian Army won’t tolerate sexism. If you think it’s acceptable to degrade, exploit, or harass women in uniform, then, he says, “get out.” (Then he adds, best of luck finding an employer who’ll allow that kind of behavior!)

 Over time, the allegations in this investigation proved true and General Morrison issued disciplinary action. In the meantime, a YouTube video of his remarks went viral. Later the government named him “Australian of the Year” citing his commitment to “gender equality, diversity, and inclusion.”

 Here’s the 3-minute video of the General’s speech and below you’ll find an annotated transcript of his remarks. It highlights, among other things, an organizational technique for speaking that I’ve found useful whether giving a speech that’s 2 or 20 minutes long. It’s called Monroe’s Motivated Sequence and includes 5 simple steps:

1.  grabbing the audience’s attention;

2. stating the problem;

3. stating the solution;

4. helping the audience envision the solution; and

5. a call to action.

There’s plenty written about Monroe’s technique online. You can find detailed explanations here and here. (Or email me and I’m happy to discuss it.) Otherwise, read on for the most compelling case against sexism that I had ever heard in my 20+ years in the Air Force.

Transcript of General Morrison’s remarks on June 13, 3013. [My comments in bold.]

“Earlier today I addressed the media and through them and the Australian public about ongoing investigations in to a group of officers and NCO’s who’s conduct if proven, has not only brought the Australia Army into disrepute, but has let down every one of you, and all of those who’s past service has won them the respect of our nation. [The General’s stern presence on camera grabs our attention, along with this last sentence. He explains that the Army’s reputation has been tarnished without saying why just yet. I can almost envision myself back in uniform, standing at attention, listening to my commander. I can tell you: he’d certainly have my attention.]

There are limits to how much I can tell you because the investigations in to this network by both the NSW police and the ADF investigative service are ongoing. But evidence collected to date has identified a group of men, within our ranks, who have allegedly produced highly inappropriate material, demeaning women and distributed it on the internet and defences email networks. If this is true, then the actions of these members are in direct contravention to every value that the Australian Army stands for. [Monroe’s second step is to describe the problem. In this case, bad behavior in the ranks. He reveals enough while carefully withholding sensitive details of the investigation.]

By now I assume you know my attitude to this type of conduct. I have stated categorically, many times, that the Army has to be a[n] inclusive organisation, in which every soldier, man and woman, is able to reach their full potential and is encouraged to do so. Those who think that it is okay to behave in a way that demeans or exploits their colleagues, have no place in this army. Our service has been engaged in continuous operations since 1999, and in its longest war ever in Afghanistan. On all operations, female soldiers and officers have proven themselves worthy of the best traditions of the Australian Army. They are vital to us, maintaining our capability now, and in to the future. [The General makes the case against sexism not only on a moral level, but on a practical level as well. We need women in uniform and they’ve served with distinction.]

If that does not suit you, then get out. [The 3rd step of Monroe’s model is to offer a solution. If you can’t abide by the Army’s standards of conduct, then leave. In the sentence below, he basically says … and hey, on the way out, don’t let the door hit you on the behind.]

You may find another employer where your attitude and behaviour is acceptable, but I doubt it. The same goes to those who think toughness is built on humiliating others.

Every one of us is responsible for the culture and reputation of our army and the environment in which we work. If you become aware of any individual degrading another, then show moral courage and take a stand against it. [Powerful use of pathos, evoking emotion around the term “moral courage.” You can hear it particularly well in the video. Here he modulates his voice, evoking disgust for those incapable of showing moral courage.] No one has ever explained to me how the exploitation or degradation of others, enhances capability, or honours the traditions of the Australian Army. [This paragraph and the following one are excellent examples of step 4: helping the audience envision the future you, as a speaker, are proposing. He couldn’t be clearer in his expectations.]

I will be ruthless in ridding the army of people who cannot live up to its values. And I need every one of you to support me in achieving this. The standard you walk past, is the standard you accept. [This became one of the most quoted lines of the speech. Nice use of anaphora or repetition at the start of each phase.] That goes for all of us, but especially those, who by their rank, have a leadership role.

If we are a great national institution, if we care about the legacy left to us by those who have served before us, if we care about the legacy we leave to those who, in turn will protect and secure Australia, then it is up to us to make a difference. If you’re not up to it, find something else to do with your life. [Anaphora – repetition of the word “if.] There is no place for you amongst this band of brothers and sisters.” [General Morrison ends his remarks with a clear call to action. You have two options: uphold the standards or get out. In addition, he offers a modern twist on phrase “band of brothers” from Shakespeare’s Henry V.  By adding “sisters,” he turns a gendered phrase into a more broader, inclusive one.  Ending the speech with this word also underscores his main point: the Australian Army includes brothers and sisters alike.]

Done reading or watching General Morrison’s speech? Share your thoughts with me at rose@rosespeechwriter.com. – Rose

Rhetoric in Action: What Senator Klobuchar Got Right

My spouse and I were in the car last week when we heard Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) on National Public Radio. She was half way through her opening statement during the confirmation hearing of Judge Amy Coney Barrett.

“This Committee is gathered today for what I consider one of its most solemn duties, and one that I take very seriously.” Senator Amy Klobuchar builds ethos or credibility by saying in effect, ‘yo, this isn’t just another Congressional meeting.’

It was about 8am, the start of morning rush hour on I-5 South. I was driving. Traffic was heavy.  I kept my eyes on the road, while tinkering with the volume button on the radio.

There was something in her speech – honestly, I wasn’t sure what – but she had captured my attention. I wanted to catch every single word and, as a professional speechwriter, I wanted to figure out why.

A few days later, I re-read Klobuchar’s remarks and jotted down my thoughts. I’ve included them below in bold. What did she get right? What could she have done better? And what made her words “stick” in the car that morning?

Of course, speeches are written for the ear, not the eye, so here’s the video. Scroll down for more and let me know what you found moving (or not).

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Transcript of Senator Klobuchar’s remarks to the Senate Judiciary Committee on October 12, 2020. (My comments in bold.)

Welcome, Judge Barrett.

This Committee is gathered today for what I consider one of its most solemn duties, and one that I take very seriously. [Builds ethos or credibility. This isn’t just another Senate Judiciary Committee meeting.]

Federal judges, Senators, the President of the United States, we all take an oath to uphold the Constitution. We make promises. To do justice. To tell the truth. At its core, that’s what judges do, right? Figure out the truth. Figure out justice. [Repetition, twice in fact (!), both with 3- or 4-word sentences. The punchy, short sentences catch our attention.]

My mom - a second grade teacher - spent her life teaching little kids what was right or wrong, what was true or false, I still believe it matters. And so do the American people. [Personal story that succinctly expands from a focus on ‘me’ to ‘we.’ (Click here for more on this idea from Harvard’s Prof. Marshall Ganz.)]

But we are dealing with a President who doesn’t think truth matters. And he has allies in Congress, who in the past, defended our democracy, but are now doing his bidding.  

Senators who clearly set out the precedent that the President in an election year should wait. That we should have an election and that then the people choose the President and the President chooses the nominee. That was your precedent.

It has been said that the wheels of justice turn slowly. Injustice, on the other hand, can move at lightning speed – as we are seeing here today.

We cannot, and you watching at home should not, separate this hearing from the moment we are in, and from the judge he is trying to rush through. To respond to Senator Cruz, this isn’t a rush to justice. This is a rush to put in a justice  — a justice whose views are known and who will have a profound impact on your life.

And yes, these policies that the court decides, they matter. Where you can go to school, who you can marry, decisions you can make about your own body. And yes, your health care. 

The President knows this. [Simple, clear pivot to her next topic.]

We have a President who has refused to commit to a peaceful transfer of power after an election. Every candidate does that. But not this guy.

We have a President who has fired or replaced five inspector generals, Senator Grassley. Who has fired an Attorney General, an FBI Director, and is now going after their replacements. 

We have a President who divides our country each and every day. He has called our military suckers and losers, he has refused to condemn white supremacists. And he has the gall to hold up a Bible as a prop in front of a church instead of heeding its words: To act justly. [Anaphora - repetition with the start of these 3 paragraphs.]

And now he says this election will end up in court. 

Why, Senator Cruz, does President Trump matter? He is putting the Supreme Court in place, in his words, to “look at the ballots.”  

Well I won’t concede that this election is headed to the Court because you know at home exactly what the President is up to. That’s why you’re voting, that’s why you are voting in droves.  [Keeps the audience at the forefront, where it should be for ALL speeches.]

Why are you voting? Well you that know your rights, your health, your health care is on the line. You know that they are trying to push through a justice who has been critical of upholding the Affordable Care Act, and they are doing it in the middle of a pandemic. 

You can see here in this room the misplaced priorities of this Republican-run Senate. And it’s in your hands to change it. [Call to action.]

Are they working to pass a bill to help Americans to get the testing they need to save their lives? Are they working to help the moms trying to balance a toddler on their lap while balancing a laptop on their desk? Are they trying to help our seniors, isolated, missing graduations and birthdays? Are they passing the bill the House passed that would help our economy?  [Use of rhetorical questions. Sometimes these are piled up so high, one after another, they become overwhelming. I, for one, could never answer them all, so I give up. I stop listening. This is example is borderline but what saves the day for me is the concrete images of the 2nd and 3rd questions: the toddler on the lap, the isolated senior. I see them!]

That’s not the priority. Instead, they choose to do this.

So no, we cannot divorce this nominee and her views from the election we are in. We didn’t choose to do this now. To plop a Supreme Court nomination hearing in the middle of an election. They did.  

So the reason people aren’t going to fall for this, is because it is so personal. The over 210,000 people who have died. The school cancelled. The small business closed. The job you don’t have, the degree you couldn’t get. [Short punchy sentences, all with the same grammatical structure.]

It’s personal to me because my husband got COVID early on. He ended up in the hospital for a week on oxygen with severe pneumonia. And months after he got it, I find out the President knew it was airborne but he didn’t tell us. We were cleaning off every surface in our house and my husband got it anyway. We didn’t know.  [Powerful example and use of pathos, evoking all kinds of emotions from sympathy to anger. She also confirms that this issue is personal; she and her husband have first-hand experience with COVID.]

And my dad at 92, he got it in his assisted living. I stood there outside his window in a mask, and he looked so small and confused. He knew who our family was but he didn’t know what was going on. I thought it was going to be the last time that I saw him.  [Ditto to above!]

He miraculously survived, but Marny Xiong, she didn’t. Marny was a rising star, the Chairwoman of the St. Paul School Board and just 31 years when Covid took her life. Her dad felt sick, she went with him to the hospital because he was scared, and then she got sick. Never got off a ventilator and died. 

The daughter of Hmong refugees whose parents fled Laos to a refugee camp in Thailand before arriving in Minnesota, Marny and her seven siblings grew up in St. Paul.

Their family? The American dream.

This is who this virus has taken from us. Someone who has left behind a mother and father, and seven siblings who loved her. And someone who undoubtedly would have made the world a better place. [Constituent story – example of Wharton Professor Deborah Small’s work about the power of highlighting a single individual. In other words, saying over 221,000 Americans have passed away from COVID (as of now) is a daunting stat. That said, sharing one person’s story is often more effective at moving people to action than a list of statistics.]

The President could have saved so many lives. 

Instead he’s been reckless, packing people in without masks for your nomination party, Judge Barrett. Thirty-five people got sick. The President himself ends up in the hospital and when he leaves Walter Reed, still contagious, he defiantly takes off his mask and walks into the White House. And then he lies and says the virus will magically go away.

The truth matters.  

And the truth is America that this judicial nominee has made her views so clear and this President is trying to put her in a position of power to make decisions about your lives.  

The Affordable Care Act protects you from getting kicked off of your insurance. That’s on the line. The President has been trying to get rid of Obamacare since he got in power. John McCain went in and stopped it with that big thumbs down.  [Concrete language – “kicked off” … “thumbs down” – as well as short, clear sentences …. This is the opposite of slick, political jargon about complicated ACA health care policy.]

Then they went and brought a case to the U.S. Supreme Court and they’re now trying to stack the deck against you right now.

The last time this was before the Court in a big way was when Justice Roberts—not exactly a blazing liberal—voted the same as Justice Ginsburg to uphold the Affordable Care Act. And this nominee, she criticized him.  

America, this is about you. It’s about these two girls up here. Evelyn and Maraya. Identical twins from Cambridge, Minnesota. Honor roll students, star athletes. They play on the softball team — one’s a pitcher, one’s a catcher. They also play basketball.

One of them got severe diabetes when she was very young. Does it matter which one? The pitcher, the catcher. They both deserve good health care. [Excellent story with concrete details and a nod to King Solomon’s parable about a mother’s love for her child. (In this case too, no parent should face such a decision.)]

“One judge” … lovely use of repetition to underscore the impact of a single judge in Senator Klobuchar’s remarks. [Photo credit: Tingey Injury Law Firm, Unsplash]

They get that with one stroke of a pen, one judge can decide if millions of Americans, including their family, would lose their insurance.

One judge can decide if millions of Americans can lose their right to keep their kids on their  insurance until they’re 26 years old.  

One judge can decide that if seniors’ prescription drugs — which already are too high — could soar even higher. [Anaphora]

This is a judgeship that was held by an icon who voted to protect your healthcare. Ruth Bader Ginsburg. A woman who never took no for an answer. When they told her a girl shouldn’t go to law school, she graduated first in her class. And when they told her a man should argue landmark equal protection cases because maybe they’d have a better chance of winning, she did it herself and she won.  [Builds ethos with others who also view RBG as an icon.]

She never gave up. She had her own hashtag well into her 80s. The notorious RBG. And her last fervent wish was that a new president, the winner of this election, would pick her replacement.  

When you look at her opinions you realize, she wasn’t just writing for today, she was writing for tomorrow. 

To the women of America, we have come so far, and in the name of RBG we should not go backwards. 

As the rabbi said at Justice Ginsburg’s memorial in the Capitol, her dissents, her strong words when she would disagree with the Republican-appointed justices, her words were never cries of defeat, they were “blueprints for the future.” [A beautiful quote that Klobuchar echoes below.]

So to all Americans, this hearing, whatever these guys try to do, whatever you hear from me, it will not be a cry of defeat, it will instead be our blueprint for the future. 

Yes Judge, I think this hearing is a sham. I think it shows real messed up priorities from the Republican Party.  

But I am here to do my job. To tell the truth.  [Circling back to her opening words about truth telling.]

To all Americans, we don’t have some clever procedural way to stop this sham, to stop them from rushing through a nominee. But we have a secret weapon that they don’t have. We have Americans who are watching, who work hard every day, believe in our country and the rule of law, whether they are Democrats, Republicans or Independents. They know what this President and the Republican Party are doing right now is very wrong. In fact 74 percent of Americans think we should be working on a COVID relief package right now instead of this. [Touch of logos via this appeal to reason: nearly two-thirds of those surveyed think this confirmation hearing is a lower priority than a COVID-relief package.]

Let me tell you a political secret: I doubt that it will be a brilliant cross examination that’s going to change this judge’s trajectory this week. No. It is you. It is you calling Republican senators and telling them enough is enough. Telling them it is personal. Telling them they have their priorities wrong. So do it. [Call to action, use of anaphora, and something else. Using “secret weapon” and “political secret” builds a back-channel connection with the audience. We’re “in” on something special.]

And it is you voting even when they try to do everything to stop you. It is you making your own blueprint for the future instead of crying defeat. So do it.

This isn’t Donald Trump’s country. It is yours. [Call to action and a return to her focus on the audience.]

This shouldn’t be Donald Trump’s judge. It should be yours. [Epistrophe - repetition of the word at the end of a sentence.]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

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Done reading and watching Senator Klobuchar’s speech? Share your thoughts with me at rose@rosespeechwriter.com. – Rose

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Disclaimer: This blog is neither a criticism nor endorsement of the speaker. Rhetorical tools like these can, of course, be found in speeches by Republicans, Democrats, and Independents alike.  

What the Governors Get Right

They Aren’t Great Communicators

Yet We Keep Watching Anyway

As we hunker down during the pandemic, Governors across the country have taken to the airwaves. Much has been written about who has – and who hasn’t – delivered in the battle against covid-19. As a speechwriter, I began to track the appearances of our more effective Governors: Andrew Cuomo, Jay Inslee, Gavin Newsom, Gretchen Whitmer, Mike DeWine and the like. I was intrigued.

How had some of them, I asked myself, risen to national prominence through the press conference, a comms platform that – let’s be honest – is far from riveting.

What had caused one writer to declare her love for Cuomo and another to label him the “Control Freak We Need Right Now?” How did Inslee, Newsom, and Whitmer (aka “that woman from Michigan”) leave their state peers in the dust? Why had Ohioans created a popular drinking game called “Wine with DeWine?”

What on earth were these leaders doing right?

Lipstick on a Pig

I worked in the Pentagon years ago writing for the Secretary of Defense. I had a colleague in the public affairs office, around the corner and a few doors down. He often said, “you can’t put lipstick on a pig.”

The speeches I wrote could be eloquent and stirring as, no doubt, I prayed they would be. But his refrain about the pig always reminded me of two things. Language, however beautiful, could never cover up bad news. (What comes immediately to mind … the haunting pictures of Abu Ghraib. I remember cringing at them under florescent lights in the bowels of the Pentagon.)

Second, the image of a pig with lipstick was a vivid reminder that big speeches – not retirements, not ribbon cuttings – had to have weight or substance. They had to be newsworthy to accomplish DoD’s goal: that is, influence our primary audience.

As I watched various press conferences on covid, my baseline for effective Governors was simple: results. They had to have made an impact. Flattened the curve or built overflow hospitals. Rolled out testing or rounded up ventilators. Otherwise, they were just putting lipstick on a pig.

Command of the Details

Governor Newsom was one of the first in the nation to issue a stay-at-home order. Decisive action like this helped flatten the curve and save lives in California.

Here’s what else I learned … Cuomo, Inslee, Newsom, Whitmer, DeWine and others have a handle on the details. And that’s an understatement.

They know exactly how the Defense Production Act can and cannot help their state. They know the status of ICU beds: how many are in use today and how many will be needed tomorrow. They know the status of covid clusters in their state as well as intakes and discharges on any given day. They have proven to be capable administrators, pulling whatever levers of power they can reach, tapping whatever resources they have on hand with one goal: getting results.

Their mastery of detail confirms their competence. But it also shows how well they perform under pressure. For example, Newsom was the first to put a widespread stay-at-home order in place. Many have credited his foresight with flattening the curve and avoiding over-crowding at hospitals. How did he do when the feds shipped broken ventilators to California? Newsom snapped into action, quickly calling on Silicon Valley to fix them. Over time, he built enough capability to ship 500 ventilators to seven different states.

When Governors dive into the deets, it gives us a window into their ability to lead. We get to watch relentless problem solvers in action. Like a covid reality show, they tackle obstacles head-on in real time, week after week.

They don’t always win the day of course.  Newsom faced a backlog of test results in which some 65,000 people had no idea if they were infected or not. He admitted it was unacceptable and owned it, saying, “I have a responsibility as your governor to do better and to do more testing in the state of California.” Newsom’s next step? Appoint a task force and manage the hell out of the problem.

Press conferences let us watch from the peanut gallery as our Governors battle away. They wrestle the surly details to the ground and try to pin them fast. All amid a lack of national coordination and petty distractions from the White House.

And you know what? We cheer them on. We applaud each victory, however small. We celebrate with them, knowing that in the end, they are fighting for all of us.

We’re Adults (Tell us the Truth)

The Governors that people follow in a crisis respect us enough to tell us the truth, even when – especially when – things don’t look good. (And let’s be honest: that’s not easy for any politician, election year or not.)

Inslee out of Washington state has been clear-eyed about the scope of the pandemic from day one. Less than 4 days after the first covid-19 death in the country, he was out and about, visiting remote quarantine sites across the state. Early on, he shared the grim numbers on lack of ICU beds and sky-high projections for ventilators. He grounded his assessments in facts and science, never shielding Washingtonians from problems. These included the dire need for more testing kits and the time required to find a vaccination (estimated at 12-18 months, if we’re lucky). Lately he’s been talking about the importance of building “an army of contract tracers.”

He’s been forthright about the data. As of April 19th, the state had over 12,000 confirmed cases and over 650 deaths (an 8.6% positive testing rate). These numbers may not be as bad as hard-hit areas like New York and New Jersey. But they are still gut wrenching (especially the fatalities at nursing homes). Even so, Governors like Inslee share what they know because they believe we deserve to be told the truth, straight up.

Similarly, Inslee and others consistently cite the hard steps needed now to avoid a rebound of new infections later. This past week, Inslee has repeatedly discussed the specific thresholds needed to trigger a gradual back-to-work plan. “We need two things to move forward to the next phase,” he said on Apr 16th, “One, we have to have fewer numbers of infections and two, we need a much more robust testing and contact tracing organization.”

In a crisis, we want clear, no-nonsense language. We want cause and effect linked, no daylight between them. As highlighted in a recent NYT’s interview, “Leaders who trust people with the truth are trusted more in return.” We’re adults. Be honest. That’s what Inslee and others have given us and we’re grateful to hear it.

Remind Us Who We Are

We all know an effective press conference is more than just informational. It’s persuasive. People should shelter in place, stay 6’ apart, stay home when sick.

The more effective Governors are persuasive because they offer just the right dose of empathy among the facts and charts. They provide an emotional, personal touch at a time when many viewers are anxious and upset. In doing so, they remind us of who we are and what we value.

During a press conference on April 15th, DeWine showed a video of a husband-wife team. One was a principle research scientist. The other, a family physician. Over dinner one night, the wife mentioned the lack of N95 masks at the hospital where she works. Together, the couple came up with the idea to clean them – a process now being scaled up across the country.

But the video wasn’t just about the shortage of PPE. It was also a love story. The couple intertwined two narratives: how they brainstormed ways to sanitize masks and how they met, fell in love, and got married 18 years ago. (They were blushing and – I’m not exaggerating – giggling all the while.)

DeWine called it a story “typical of Ohio,” highlighting good, old fashioned mid-western values: solving problems, fixing what’s broke, and getting ‘er done. The video underscored the good of his community and I, for one, came away heartened by the easy, light moment DeWine had created.

Some people may see these digressions as corny or contrived. That might be true. But I also believe they add an emotional, heart-felt touch in a time when we’re thirsty for good news stories and real human connection.

There’s more to these leaders of course. Much more.

They ground their assessments in facts and science. (So sad, isn’t it, that we need to acknowledge this?) They dish out praise to others who make sacrifices for the greater good. They are humble, asking epidemiologists, doctors, and scientists to re-explain complicated terminology. They admit they don’t have all the answers but nor will they quit on us. They will live to fight another day. Tomorrow or the next day or the next. They’ll hold another press briefing, take another bite of the apple.

Let’s Keep it Real

Many of our Governors have, indeed, risen to the occasion. No doubt about that. But as communicators, I want to keep it real. They aren’t strong or compelling speakers. We’ve all watched DeWine and Inslee stumble out of the gate, cameras rolling. Others have garbled names and medical terms. Across the board, delivery is generally monotone.

My point is this. Our nation’s finest, our more capable leaders in this dark hour, aren’t charismatic. Not a Churchill or Obama in sight.

And the format our Governors have chosen to reach us? The press conference. On a good day, it is plodding and methodical. This is, after all, the information age. In an era of technological explosion with dozens of viable options, yet they’ve all fallen back on the sturdy, well-worn platform of yesteryear. 

And yet.

Day after day, I dvr Cuomo. I youtube Whitmer and the others. Millions of people – myself included – sit there as the clock ticks by 30 minutes, 45 minutes, over an hour. And many folks (again, including me) live far from the state they represent!

The king of nonsense. Governor Cuomo issues warnings (we don’t want to hear) and shares the numbers (even when they’re grim).

So Why Do We Keep Tuning In?

The press conference I belittled earlier?  Turns out, it’s just what we need. Calm and comforting. Slow and predictable. Perfect at a time when things are moving too fast, including the number of confirmed cases in the US, now pushing 800,000 as I write this.

Our most effective Governors communicate in a way that matches the moment. They are steady at a time when we seek reassurance. Caring as we seek comfort. They stand at the podium and read their remarks as the kind of deliberate, rationale leaders we crave right now.

Along the way, they remind us of our better selves and the values that drive us. As they step through the pie charts, call on medical authorities, and share the corny videos, they somehow give us a little glimpse of their humanity – by extension, ours.

Cuomo is masterful in this regard.

We all know he has a tough-guy image. And you don’t want to get on his bad side, as this article points out. Some have called Cuomo a bully in his pre-covid life, quite capable of elbowing out opposition. Others have liked his briefings to dinner with an Italian patriarch sitting at the head of the table. 

And just there, off in the distance, is Cuomo’s magic. Because of the tough shell he wears on the outside, we value each of his small, personal revelations. He doles them out just infrequently enough to leave us wanting more.

Last Friday, Cuomo said, “Now, my daughter is a young woman. She’s not one of the vulnerable categories. So, I have to talk myself through the facts, right? You’re talking about my child, right? You want to talk about emotion. Just, just goes up in you. So, I had to talk myself through the reality of the situation and the facts of the situation to calm myself. So, I understand fully the anxiety that people feel.”

We’ve been there. Gone through the same machinations. Is this allergies or something else? Was that a dry cough? Does my daughter have a fever? Is my son losing his sense of smell? Especially in the early days of covid, many of us scrutinized our health and the health of our loved ones more than normal.

And guess what? So did Cuomo. This little window into his own anxiety reflects our own humanity back at us.

So turn on the next press conference. Either one that’s he’s leading or any of the real leaders in this crisis.  It’s time to lean in.

We are desperate to know, yet again, that someone will protect the heroic doctors and nurses on the front-lines. That someone is monitoring the curve, watching the precious leading edge for a plateau or, even better, a downward tilt. That someone is consulting the experts on the new normal: what will it look like and how can we get there together. And above all, that someone loves us enough to show up, again and again, and do the hard work as elected leaders, fighting to keep us all safe.

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Want more on this topic? I’d recommend this rundown of best and worst governors from Politico as well as this most excellent piece called, “We Need Great Leadership Now and Here’s What it Looks Like.” The New Yorker offers another terrific read, “Seattle’s Leaders Let Scientists Take the Lead. New York Did Not.”

Looking ahead, I have a number of webinars lined up to include Speechwriting School Online (starting May 6) and Military Speechwriting Training Online (Aug 4-7, 2020). Looking for a speechwriter, speech coach, or speaker? Let’s talk. Please email me at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

Image A Year From Now

As we head into Super Tuesday, it’s too early to predict which presidential candidate will ultimately become the Democratic nominee. But there’s one candidate using a rhetorical tool worth noting. 

Whether on the debate stage or in a town hall, Pete Buttigieg encourages people to think about a specific day in time – whether in 2020 or 2024 – when we’ll elect a new president. Here’s what Mayor Pete said to a packed house at an Iowa rally: “Imagine a year from now when the sun rises over Cedar Rapids and Donald Trump is not president.” It was one of his biggest applause lines of the night. 

Mayor Pete often follows up this line by asking audiences to really visualize it: “Think about it. The sun’s coming up that day over a country that’ll be even more divided than we are today, even more torn up over politics, even more exhausted from fighting than we are right now.” 

If you offer your audience a future they genuinely want, they’ll help turn your vision into a reality.

MSNBC reporter Katy Tur asked Mayor Pete directly about this rhetorical technique. He explained, “Part of why I ask people to visualize that day is not only that it’s a day we’ve got to work hard to bring about, but also to realize that a lot of our problems will be with us on that day too. This isn’t just about the nominee who can defeat Donald Trump. It’s about the president who can lead us through the era that’s got to come next … it is our chance to set a different course ….”

Now, giving folks a glimpse of the future isn’t a new rhetorical strategy by any means. As my fellow speechwriting colleagues have rightly pointed out, President Lincoln used it in the Gettysburg Address calling for “a new birth of freedom.” Many presidents since then – notably Reagan and Obama – have used it masterfully as well to describe a bright future ahead. 

Nor is this technique just for politicians. It can be used in any persuasive talk on just about any topic and any length of speech.  It is, in fact, the fourth step of Monroe’s Motivated Sequence, a framework developed by Professor Alan Monroe of Purdue University in the1930s: 

• Step one - grab the audience’s attention. 

• Step two - describe a problem. 

• Step three - offer a solution. 

• Step four - help the audience visualize the future. 

• Step five - call to action. 

(You can learn much more about Monroe’s Motivated Sequence here.) 

The fourth step is vital. If you can help your audience “see” or imagine your solution, you’ll have a better chance of them getting up from their chair and actually doing your call to action. Opening their checkbooks. Calling their Senator. Signing your petition. Offer them a future they genuinely want and they’ll help turn your vision into a reality.

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For more examples of helping your audience visualize the future, watch President Reagan’s famous “Morning in America” ad. In it, he paints an optimistic portrait of life in America (i.e., low unemployment, low inflation). He then assures voters things will stay that way, if he’s elected. Another example is President Obama’s aspirational refrain that we’re not made up of red states or blue states … we’re the united states.

Reach out if you’d like to talk more about persuasive speaking or if your organization is looking for a public speaking trainer. Looking ahead, I’m heading to Washington, D.C., in March to offer speechwriting training to a large federal agency. I’d love to come to your organization as well. You can reach me at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.

[PS – In case you’re wondering … no, I’m not necessarily backing Mayor Pete. I just appreciate his steady use of this time-tested rhetorical tool.]

What We Can Learn from Brad Pitt: Three Tips for Telling Jokes

Welcome to 2020! This year, I’m changing my monthly blog to include speech critiques as well as tips for public speaking. Let’s dive in with Brad Pitt’s remarks at the Golden Globes. Here’s what worked … and what could have gone better.

At the Golden Globes, Brad Pitt won Best Supporting Actor for his role in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.” He spoke for two and a half minutes without notes. He seemed sincerely grateful for the honor and paid tribute to iconic actors who’d come before him: Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, and Tom Hanks. 

After this great start, Pitt rambled a bit, listing “thank you-s.” Then at the end, he shared two jokes back to back. 

The first involved a nod to Leonardo DiCaprio. Pitt described LDC saying, “He’s an all-star, he’s a gent and I wouldn’t be here without you, man. I thank you. Still, I would have shared the raft.” 

This was a bit of inside baseball from the movie Titanic. Unfortunately, Pitt’s timing was off. He rushed too quickly from acknowledging DiCaprio one moment, then launching his punch line the next. As a result, the audience was slow to pick up on the joke, if they got it at all. (The joke is explained more here). 

Three tips for telling jokes – and that’s no laughing matter.

Pitt’s second joke was a bigger hit. He set it up by saying, “I want to say ‘hi’ to my folks because … hey.” Pitt paused again, then added that he’d hoped to bring his parents to the Golden Globes, but ultimately decided against it. It’s awkward to invite my mother, he explained, because (drum roll) the press assumes he’s dating anyone he’s standing next to. 

This joke worked for two reasons. First (and I love this part), it showed his humanity. Even the rich and famous like to show off for mom and dad on tv. 

Pitt’s body language made the joke a success. Watch his delivery at 2 minutes in. After he said, “hey,” he just stood there—arms open wide, shoulders square to the camera. He smiled and smiled. After rushing the first joke, Pitt looked relaxed, confident, and fully in command of the room. And he was!  

The audience applauded loudly and clapped him off the stage as he shared a final, sincere request for people to be kind to one another. This was a nice, albeit brief, capstone to his speech.

Tips on Humor

Jokes can fall flat for any number of reasons. Here are a few tips I’ve learned after 15-plus years as a speechwriter.  

1) Timing is everything. One of the main reasons jokes fail is not enough set up. In other words, the audience needs more time to visualize the scene. A penguin and priest walk into a bar, order shots of whisky and down them. Great! Now let it sink in. The scene is funny in and of itself and, heck, you just might get some mileage out of the set up alone – a chortle, a snort, a smile here or there. My point is to take your time. A pause goes a long way. Make sure folks are with you, before launching into that big punch line.

2) Play it safe.  It’s not worth offending someone or alienating an audience member just for a laugh. Never use racist, sexist, or vulgar humor. Ever. Instead, the safest approach is self-deprecating humor – with one caveat. The first words out of your mouth shouldn’t cut yourself down. Apologizing for yourself right out of the gate tells people you’re not worth listening to … so they’ll heed your own words and tune you out. 

3) Know your audience.  I once wrote a joke for a room of Russians and it royally flopped. They sat there, stony faced. Not a single chuckle. Honestly, it was crickets! Fortunately, my boss at the time (then the Secretary of Defense) kept rolling. He later laughed off the experience, but I learned an important lesson. Do your homework. Be sensitive to other cultures. And if you’re not sure if your joke will fly for non-native speakers … skip it.

Update: After I wrote this blog, I came across this article in The Guardian in mid-February. In it, Brad Pitt talks about his acceptance speeches at both the Golden Globes and Oscars. He said he didn’t hire a speechwriter, but instead put in some good ‘ol fashion hard work. Nice job, Brad. It certainly paid off!

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For more tips on using humor in your next speech, check out this blog, this blog, or drop me a line. Reach out too if your organization is looking for a public speaking trainer. At the end of last year, I did gigs in Washington, DC, Phoenix, and Colorado Springs. I’d love to come to your home town. You can reach me at rose@rosespeechwriter.com.