When you’re speaking about controversial topics like food choices, excellent communication skills are a must. For the public speaker, vegan educator or everyday conversationalist, here are some tips from the speakers I heard at Portland’s VegFest on September 17, 2011.
1) Speak about something your audience is already familiar with and connect on common ground. Wayne Pacelle, CEO of The Humane Society and author of The Bond: Our Kinship with Animals commented how difficult it is to find anyone in America who isn’t an animal lover. He went on to say that if you’re one of them, you are part of the mainstream. People love to be part of a movement and included in a group. He shared a personal story about being the youngest child and how his siblings were on a mission to teach him. The one thing they didn’t have to teach him though, was how to love animals. Who couldn’t relate to that natural, instinctive drive? I looked around the room and most people in the audience were nodding their heads in agreement. Once he established a bond, he brought up the grueling statistics of baby seals who are killed every year and chickens who have less than an 8 ½ X 11 sheet of paper’s space to live their entire lives. He got the audience members thinking about contradictions in our society. He asked tough questions like ‘Are we really that miserly?’ It’s his inclusive style that encourages more people to speak up for their inherent values.
2) Clearly state that you’ve considered both sides of the argument. Amy Lanou, author of Building Bone Vitality began her speech talking about what’s right with dairy like the fact it’s nutrient dense, well marketed and low-cost. It was surprising and unexpected since she’s well known for her papers linking health concerns with dairy. After addressing the positive side of dairy, she questioned if we’ve been sold a bill of goods. Notice she didn’t say you’ve been sold a bill of goods but we’ve all been sold a bill of goods indicating that we’re all in this together. Amy made a strong case by showing slide after slide of slick million dollar marketing campaigns, relating it to the increased consumption of dairy. She spoke of dairy’s high fat, sugar and lack of fiber and how it contributes to the worsening health in America. There’s no doubt she’s an expert in her field, but the aspect that stood out for me was how she communicated her message by first addressing the benefits of dairy.
3) Add Humor. Dr. Neil Barnard’s room was so packed, the conference chair had to ask some of us to leave. I’ve enjoyed several videos of him on VegTV.com so I went next door to see the author of Speed Vegan, Alan Roettinger. He playfully told the audience how he used to sing, ‘La, la, la, la, la, la’ in his head so he wouldn’t have to think about what it took to get the meat on his plate. Now that he’s educated himself and made different choices, he says the brain fog has totally disappeared. He makes no apologies for caring. At one point he called himself anal for trying to get his cooking demonstration just right. Just as soon as those words came out of his mouth he remarked, ‘What an ugly word we use to describe people who care… It was probably made up by some slob to justify being lazy!’
It was a quick trip down from Seattle to hear a few speakers, but well worth the drive. Next time you’re speaking about controversial topics, see how you can add these tips to win over your audience and make a positive change in the world.
Pamela Ziemann is a communication trainer and author of the book Giving Voice to Your Cause. She can be reached at 425.223.0123 or www.PamelaZiemann.com