Next level communicators know how to get to the heart.
Next level communicators know how to get to the heart.
When you stand to speak, you should be thinking of three specific places you want to reach in the anatomy of your audience- their head, their hearts and their feet- in that order. As communicators we want to give them great content, stir their affections with the ultimate goal of moving them in a specific direction.
Today I want to talk to you about how to reach people’s affections…their hearts.
One of the marks of a truly great talk is people stop taking notes at the end. We should be encouraged as communicators when we look out and notice they have put down their devices and pens, and are locked in on what we are saying. If the bulk of the audience is still documenting your words as you are wrapping things up, you’ve captured their heads, just not their hearts, which means you won’t get to their feet.
The great twentieth century preacher, D.M. Lloyd-Jones said that notes are for lectures, and believed that the role of the speaker was to make knowledge come alive. One of the most effective communicators of our time, Tim Keller, believed Lloyd-Jones to be true. Keller writes, “I would say that it’s fine if listeners are taking notes in the first part of the sermon, but if they are doing so at the end, you are probably not reaching their affections” (Tim Keller, Preaching, page 165).
And then there’s Jesus. In the most well known sermon in human history- the Sermon on the Mount- notice the crowds reaction at the end: “And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes”- Matthew 7:28-29. The original language of these verses is Greek, and the Greek word for “astonished” is a deeply emotional word meaning to be so filled with amazement as to be overwhelmed. What’s being implied here is Jesus has not just filled their heads, he’s stirred their hearts. And this is what we should want as communicators every single time we speak.
So how do we move from lecturers to cardiologists as communicators? How do we make the leap from information to inspiration? I’ve found these principles to be helpful:
Moved people move people. Again, Keller is helpful: “If you want to preach to the heart, you need to preach from the heart. It’s got to be clear that your own heart has been reached by the truth of the text…What is required is that as you speak it becomes evident in all sorts of ways that you yourself have been humbled, wounded, healed, comforted, and exalted by the truths you are presenting, and that they have genuine power in your life” (Tim Keller, Preaching, page 166).
Use stories. We’ve talked plenty about the power of story, and the science behind why they connect so much with the human experience. In fact, right before Jesus’ audience expressed astonishment at his sermon on the mount, Jesus told a story of two people who had built homes on two different foundations. He used stories to move his audience. We should try to do the same.
Be authentic. The easy thing to do is to take this post and try to manufacture stirring people’s affections. This is the worst thing you can do because it will come across as manipulative and inauthentic. Instead, you need to be your authentic self. Remember, speaking is essentially connecting with your audience, and in order to maximize connection and authenticity you need to know your material so well you are able to unleash your true self, with your true emotions in ways which reach down from the head to the heart and into the feet.
Watch your pace. Pace is the rate at which we speak. Think of pace as the soundtrack to a movie, and when movies are scored, the pace is intentionally varied in ways which move us emotionally. Action scenes have fast paced music, while romantic scenes the music is slowed down, and sometimes there’s no music at all. When we are trying to authentically reach the hearts of our hearers, pace is critical. We may want to speed up, or slow down, but our pace for inspiration should be different from our pace for information.
Thanks again for your support of my new book, Grace to Overcome. The feedback has been overwhelming. Can you help me get the word out by leaving a kind review on Amazon today? Thanks so much.
