Stop the Yawns
Author: Marcus Sheridan
Publisher: Bonneville Books (an imprint of Cedar Fort)
Year: 2002
When author Marcus Sheridan was preparing to write this book, he took an informal survey of members to find out who their favorite speaker was among the general authorities. More than half chose President Monson because he tells great stories. Imagine yourself standing before a Sacrament Meeting congregation, a Relief Society class, or even a family taking the missionary lessons and being able to speak with the power of President Monson. Brother Sheridan’s book sets out to show you what makes the great speakers of the church great. Whether you are new to the church, or an old pro, this book will help you bring power to your talks.
The chapters cover all the essentials of great teaching and speaking: enthusiasm, using personal experiences, using scriptures and quotes, the speaker’s relationship with the audience, preparation and giving a talk or lesson. Chapter seven evaluates President Monson’s speaking method using a talk you can easily look up on the church site. The final chapter offers fifteen things to do in order to teach a powerful lesson and the five things you should not do.
One of the most useful portions of this book is the section on preparing talks or lessons. He has a very simple list of six steps to use when preparing a talk outline. He follows this up with a sample of an outline from one of his own talks. This outline is all Brother Sheridan brings to the podium with him when he speaks, and looking at the outline, I can see that written this way, instead of the way I have always done it, I would need nothing else. In fact, his outline is so clear that I could give the talk he outlined, except of course for two of the personal stories.
Brother Sheridan is a popular Especially for Youth speaker who joined the church when he was seventeen. This decision, of course, forced him to confront his deep fear of public speaking. His first book, Heavenly Father’s Angels: The Ultimate Missionary Guide shares what he learned about successful missionary teaching while serving a mission in Chile. He currently lives in Virginia, and at the time his biography page was written, he was a counselor in the bishopric of his ward.
While this book focuses primarily on Sacrament meeting talks, the material is applicable to any situation in which we are required to talk, including a classroom lesson. This is an impressive addition to the body of LDS non-fiction, and surprisingly, an area that is often neglected. While much of what he teaches is basic to any sort of public speaking, Latter-day Saints will find the essential additions of scriptures, gospel principles and examples from our own leaders. After all, we have rather unique talks, and this is just the book to help you become a memorable speaker.
By Terrie Lynn Bittner