Rhetorical Questions

Rhetorical Questions:  So it’s that time again.  Speech time.  My students are all turning in speeches.  One set of classes are on their persuasives and the other are performing informatives.  That means I get to hear about 100 introductions in the next few weeks.  And that means I also get to hear about 30 rhetorical questions.  Can anyone guess if I like rhetorical questions?

The problem with these figures of speech is multi-faceted.  Mostly, it comes down to strategic thinking.  The average rhetorical question isn’t put forth with any kind of thought behind it.  It’s a semantic afterthought.  It’s the word-smith equivalent of cuddling. 

Why, when there are so many other idioms, would you choose the rhetorical question?  Do they ever elicit the kind of thought provoking engagement they are supposed to?  Unfortunately, after viewing thousands of speeches by students AND professionals, I can say that they do not.  I would guess that 99% of the time they are mindless filler.  Mental fluff.  Rhetorical questions are to speech introductions as Long John Silver’s is to fish.  Do you know what the other 1% of the time is?  And that brings me to my first main point.

1. Rhetorical questions that aren’t actually rhetorical.  Ugh – I’ve heard questions asked of the audience that, upon really thinking about it, needed an answer!  They may be trivia or they may simply be interesting, but either way they are NOT rhetorical.  Let me share an example from a student: “Do you know how many men play fantasy football each Sunday?”  If you read my blog a few weeks ago, you would know that I am addicted to FF.  So, I would LOVE to know the answer to this question!  It’s not rhetorical, it’s informative!  But now, I’m stuck thinking about the question you asked and wondering if you’re ever going to answer it.  Nice going.

2. Rhetorical questions that might not be rhetorical.  “Can anyone tell me how the economy got so bad?”  This recent opener for a speech was responded to with two raised hands and one shout out.  Unfortunately, the speaker had no intention of taking audience feedback during the speech.  Uh oh…now what?  If you must use an RQ, make sure the audience knows it’s rhetorical!

3. Questions that SHOULD be rhetorical, but the questioner waits for a response making everyone feel oh so comfortable.  “How many of you have ever been pulled over?”  (Pause.  8 hands in the room slowly go up.)  “Interesting.  Well, today I’d like to tell you about…”  WHAT!?!?  How did the audience member’s admission help anyone?  How did it impact the speech?  It doesn’t look like a poll was being taken, but surely they’ll use that little survey later, right?  (Answer: probably not…)  If you aren’t planning to do anything with the information, my first piece of advice would be leave it out of your presentation.  My second would be to turn it into a rhetorical question and move on!

4. Rhetorical questions that nobody cares about, nor do they elicit any kind of thought provocation.  A recent student pondered aloud, “Do you know what makes up a quilting bee?”  (Cricket cricket…)  A better question would have been, “Does anyone care what makes up a quilting bee?”  The answer would have been a classroom full of ,”NO” responses.

5. (My personal favorite) Rhetorical questions that actually alienate the audience from the start.  “Have you ever wanted to learn to shoot so you could butcher your own dinner?”  Amid dozens of raised eye brows and horrified audience members praying the visual aids don’t involve organs or blood is a scream of brain activity shouting, “NEVER HAVE…NEVER WILL!”  But at least all of these audience members know that this speech will have no redeeming value and be a total waste of their time, so there’s that.

Ok…so hopefully I’ve made my point.  Is it possible to create a rhetorical question that works?  One that elicits thinking and personal reflection?  Sure.  Is it rare?  Absolutely!  So, my best piece of advice is to just stay away from them.  They’re more trouble than they are worth! 

I know RQs are VERY popular attention getters, but come on.  You can do better!  There are significantly better ways to get the audience to listen to you.  Stories, statistics, quotes, jokes, video clips, audio clips, and even “Thanks for coming today, my name is…” is a better attention getter than a rhetorical question.  (By the way…don’t start with thank you or your name…but that’s another blog.)  Don’t you believe me?

Want a better attention getter?  Need someone to teach you how to use figurative language effectively?  Contact jborden@jeffpresents.com for more information!

Politics

You may have read some of my blogs about the RNC and DNC.  The race for the Presidency is a fascinating one this year for so many reasons!  But I have to admit, I’m really hopeful that the media will take their job in this process seriously.  So far, it’s been a bit disappointing.   

Case in point – I heard an interview of Virginia citizens on NPR the other day.  One person said, “I don’t know who I’ll vote for.  I don’t think either guy can fix Washington – the whole system is too corrupt.”  The interviewer responded with a tremendous non-sequitur.  “But you realize this is an historic election!?” 

What?  What does one have to do with the other!?  This guy – this American voter – was expressing his frustration with the political system in the USA and the media wanted to focus on the “hype”.  The interviewer might as well have asked, “So are you going to vote for Sarah Palin because she’s pretty or will you take your lunch to work today?”  Ugh.

So, in the spirit of good communication, here is short a letter to the media around the coverage of the Obama / McCain political race. 

ONE: Please let them talk to us.  Stop worrying about how well Sarah Palin can speak.  Please quit doing the puff pieces on McCain’s military service or Obama’s mother.  It’s time to really talk turkey here!  Let the people hear about their ideas, their decisions, their records, etc.  Let them…no, FORCE them to talk to us about the important things that everyone is worried about.  The economy comes to mind.  I’d like to hear what they plan to do about the lack of financial oversight that got us into this mess as big companies insured ridiculous claims, mortgages, etc.  The war is another important topic.  Oh, how about energy? 

TWO: Please hold their feet to the fire.  If a candidate says something that is untrue or an exaggeration, report it.  Report why you say so.  Give us the facts.  And don’t let them explain their lie by telling the same lie again in a different fashion.  Be responsible to the people, not to a party and not to an ideology.

THREE: Make the debates actual debates.  As a debate coach I know what a real debate is.  We haven’t had one in years when it comes down to senior level politics.  Make them debate real issues against each other and then get out of the way!  Let them duke it out.  And if an audience member’s question isn’t answered, confront them.  Or, if the answer is a lie, confront them.  Come on…this is too important to “play nice” with.

FOUR: Nobody cares about what kind of first lady anyone will be.  If the wife of the President chooses to tackle a social function, that’s great.  But it’s not important yet.  Let these women support their husbands as they see fit, but focus on the two men running for office.  That’s what is important today.  (Besides, if anyone is voiting for a candidate based on their wife, we’re in deeper trouble than anyone imagined…)

FIVE: Do your homework.  Please stop waiting for one side or the other to give you talking points…it’s obvious and it’s annoying!  It seems sometimes that journalists don’t have the same research tools I have in the Internet, etc.  (In fact, shouldn’t you have more than I have???) 

SIX: When it comes time for the actual vote, PLEASE be responsible.  Quit “calling” states for one person or another.  Last time you did that, several thousand people didn’t vote.  Then it turned out there were errors made and those votes could have changed history.  Be responsible about your journalism.  Exit polls don’t work with enough accuracy to consider them valid!!!

Okay, that should do it.  I hope someone in the media reads these suggestions.  (Tom Brokaw – aren’t you facilitating one of the debates?  Man up and do this right!)  Everyone else, it’s time to listen.  It’s time to watch.  It’s time to learn.  Our country and our future is at stake.  Happy voting.

Want someone to talk with your group about persuasive rhetoric?  Need a consultant to help you campaign, argument, or debate?  Contact jborden@jeffpresents.com for more information!

Brazil (Intercultural Communication)

Brazil: BOM DIA!  I think this is the first week I’ve missed my self-imposed deadline for my blog.  But I hope to give you a good reason…I’ve been in Sao Paulo, Brazil!  While the conference I was speaking at (ABED) had great connectivity, unfortunately the same couldn’t be said of my hotel.  So, my few minutes of Internet connection per day were spent doing stuff for my day job and my night job, vs this blog…my weekend job. 

But, as a teacher of inter-cultural communication, I found some fascinating things about my Brazillian friends and their cities!  I thought you might be interested in some fo my findings.  Some are academic, while others are just interesting…at least to me   See what you think!

• 3 deaths PER DAY for motorcycle couriers in Sao Paulo – the city licenses 800 new cars every day.  So, you can imagine the traffic and congestion!  Hence the need for motorcyclists who deliver everything from documents to organs.  But as speed is also assigned to these people, they tend to cut corners, drive in between cars, etc.  And 3 of them don’t come home every evening…wow.
• Education is highly academic – this is much like Europe.  There really isn’t a notion of private colleges there, other than those in organizations.  No UoP in Brazil!  This tends to make their decisions all very traditional and very facutly centric!
• Guards at every door, every floor of dept store, and every lobby – This is much like my experiences in Central America.  The need for guards is prolific.
• Sun dried tomatoes & white cheese is good – the spread which I had every day for lunch is a simple blending of the two ingredients…but is SO tastey!
• 11 million people in
  Sao Paulo + 4 million more each week day for workers – can you say metropolitan area?!  Wow.
• Portuguese doesn’t sound like Spanish – I must admit that I was absolutely lost there.  I know enough Spanish to get around in El Salvador or the Dominican Republic.  But having now been to both Portugal AND Brazil in the last 3 months…I had NO idea what anyone was saying – EVER!
• People here love the Beatles!  I heard Lennon & McCartney all over the place!
• Home feels far away from halfway around the globe – I was shocked to see that DC to Brazil was 4 hours LONGER than DC to London.  And being so far away from Denver, my wife, and my baby girl was hard to take!
• The Ministry of Education is governing online education – without their buy-in, real growth is giong to prove quite difficult for educators who understand both the power of and the need for distance education. 
• Small soccer fields (with 16 foot fences) are everywhere – much like tennis courts in the states and about the same size.
• The people are beautiful, friendly, and varying in appearance – I was wonderfully surprised to see people of every look and color in Brazil.  What a true melting pot! 
• Mobile (phone) learning could benefit the poor / disenfranchised tremendously – with only 50% of people in Brazil owning computers, yet 90% owning phones, what better place to take mobile learning?  Plus, with so many poor needing education on everything from reading and writing to farming and business…it’s a big market!
• The voice over guy for Brad Pitt made me happy – anyone who can make Mr. Pitt sound like a geek or a pip squeak gets my vote.  While he’s a great actor and ridiculously handsome (yes, I said it), it’s just good for us normal guys to come out on top once in a while!
• Simultaneous translation is extremely hard – I now understand what it’s like tp speak at the U.N.  I would catch myself saying words or phrases that I just knew the translators didn’t get…it’s tricky!
• 18 wheel truck tires can’t be shot out due to continuous air pumps attached to wheel centers – this ingenious invention was created to stop truck hijacking that was commonplace.  Wow.

• Sunday afternoon sports tv was soccer and horse racing – that’s right.  No NFL.  Not on Sunday morning, afternoon, night, or even on the ESPN Latin America feed Monday night.  (See my Fantasy Football blog to understand my problem with that…)

• McDonalds is as easy to order from in Brazil as
  America – and it tastes the same.  I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad thing.  Better living through chemistry, right?

• I was interviewed on tv, radio, and by 3 magazines!  (Brazil1- or Brazil2- or Brazil3- or Brazil4)

• Finally, a HUGE thank you Mavi, Marco, the translation students, and Dr. Litto – I appreciate your help so very, very much.

Want someone to talk with your group about intercultural communication?  Need a speaker for an international conference on education, communication, or distance learning?  Contact jborden@jeffpresents.com for more information!

Language

Language: So last week was all about the way the Democrats used inoculation during their convention.  This week, let’s give the Republicans a look, shall we?  Once the convention got rolling (after the Hurricane Gustav scare slowed down), the language elements were certainly something to hear!  Who doesn’t like listening to Fred Thompson talk?  The professional actor has one of the best “grandpa” voices in the land.  Just simple, and straight – there is a reason he was cast in The Hunt For Red October, only one of the best movies ever made!  And as a political advocate, that voice was added to some interesting language about the Dems…

Adding to the magnitude of the event was of course Governor Palin.  The former Miss Alaska runner up, sports commentator, mayor, and current leader of the 49^th US State caught a wave and rode it pretty well, I think.  As a speaker (which is ultimately what I look at), she was polished, eloquent, and seemed to understand timing like a seasoned veteran.  Regardless of what you thought of her message, she did exactly what they wanted her to do…she impressed some people.

But I wanted to focus on the language of the speeches here.  Mayor Giuliani’s speech, which was highly pointed against the opposition seemed to set the stage (in my mind) for the rest of the event.  Let’s see if we can deconstruct it a bit.

Semantic Assimilation:  One of the problems I thought existed with the Republican speeches had to do with this concept.  Semantic assimilation is when you hear a word so many times, it loses it’s meaning.  Ever try to tell your dog or your kid to stop doing something by saying, “no?”  After the 10^th time, they ignore you like you’re speaking another language, right?  They’ve reached assimilation.  It’s just like when you buy a house and you start wondering if you are signing your name correctly.  You see it so many times in a short period of time, it actually starts to look wrong! 

It sure seemed like someone should have told the Republicans about this concept.  They seemed to use certain words a LOT during the convention.  Particularly, the word “fight.”  Senator McCain will fight for the economy, he’ll fight for healthcare, he’ll fight to defend our country…so, in other words, he’ll fight.  It’s so much more powerful to use multiple ways to get at the same message with an audience.  The word fight in and of itself isn’t bad.  But, after the 15^th time, it really wasn’t powerful anymore.  This is where a thesaurus becomes important.  What about attack, battle, assault, etc?  In fact, imagine how powerful it would have been to start with the word fight and finish with the word assault?  Don’t get stuck in a rut with any word…or the audience will get stuck trying to remember what your message was!

Relational Phrasing:  Have you ever sat on a jury?  Notice how the prosecutor refers to the defendant?  It’s usually as, “Now the defendant will have you believe….”  Notice they don’t say, “Now, Mr. Smith will have you believe…” or better yet, “Now, Eddie will have you believe…”  Why?  Because they don’t want to humanize this person to the jury.  They want you to think of them as a machine, a feeling (like evil), or a crime. 

The Republicans did do a pretty nice job with this during the convention.  Rarely did you hear “Barack Obama” mentioned using his whole name.  (Although it did happen – but a whole name is quite formal – you didn’t hear just “Barack.”)  Typically, you heard “Senator Obama” or even more often, “My opponent will have you believe…”  BUT, when the Republican hopeful was discussed, he was “John” or “husband” or “friend” etc.  He was a person instead of the untouchable celebrity on the other side of the ballot.

The language used at both conventions was fascinating.  (They usually are!)  But both events gave students (of communication) something to look at regarding language, persuasion, ethics, and communication in general.  I hope you enjoyed them as much as I did.  If the pollsters are correct, the convention speeches moved about 2% of the population to a place where they feel they can now vote.  The debates will likely move more than that.  I can’t wait to see what happens then…

Need to figure out how to use language effectively in your speeches?  Trying to argue a point for your business, your career, or your innocence?  Contact jborden@jeffpresents.com for more information!

Inoculation

Are you as fascinated by the political conventions as I am?  The DNC was last week and the RNC is this coming week (unless Hurricane Gustav changes that…).  But the rhetoric is flowing like tequila shooters at Spring Break in Cancun.  “I promise to do this” or “He’ll never do that” or “This will be an historic event as…”

Quite frankly, I’m in semantic paradise.  I love watching both sides of the debates.  I enjoy hearing the candidates, the supporters, the pundits, the antagonists, and even the spouses get into the mix.  I try as hard as I can to watch and listen to every speech with an unbiased ear.  (It’s not always easy…I’ve been approached about a possible job if one candidate were to win so…)

But, since the Republicans haven’t had their turn yet, I really have a week of Democratic rhetoric to write about.  And I wanted to talk about one of the important factors of going first!  Argue Primacy versus Recency all you want, there is one extremely important aspect of persuasion that many people forget or ignore when they are first up.  It’s the important concept of inoculation.

You probably are much more familiar with inoculation as it relates to a shot, right?  You get “inoculated” against getting the flu or Polio in the future.  That’s exactly how it works with communication – you inoculate the audience against the future comments they may hear or against future thoughts they may have.  It’s LAW 101 in the courtroom.  Any prosecutor or defender who doesn’t understand the concept is not going to be a trial attorney for long.  It is just as critical in everyday situations, if you want to be persuasive!  Think about it…

Education – Teachers, how many times when you were in school did you think to yourself, “When am I EVER going to use this?”  (It’s probably easier to measure that per class rather than per grade…)  You know they’re thinking it, so answer the question!  Inoculate them against their own thoughts and against the lunchroom discussion where they ridicule the content AND you.  (Leave it at just you and you’ve done your job.)

Sales – what is the key to selling anything?  Convincing a person that they need it.  How do you do that?  By inoculating them against any other thoughts or arguments.  “Now, I know you’re thinking that $1000 is too much money, right?  BUT, if you think about it, you’ll use this every day for the next ten years.  That means you’re paying 30 cents per day, every time you use this!”

Business – how do you get an idea up to (or past) your boss?  You inoculate against the cons of the idea.  Every idea has a downside.  Talk about them up front to show you aren’t afraid of them and then explain how your plan will mitigate them. 

Politics – Barak Obama is more than a skillful presenter.  He’s a rhetorician who gets inoculation.  By bringing up specific topics he essentially accomplished 1 of 2 things.  First, he may have taken the argument away from John McCain.  “You’re going to hear John McCain say that…”  Suddenly, if John McCain says it, some audience members will think to themselves, “Wait a minute.  Senator Obama told us that we’d hear this!  Senator McCain must be wrong!”  So, the Republican strategists must find another way to say it or take it off the table altogether.  By going first, you can show that you know what the opposition will say and why it won’t work – suddenly the opposition looks defensive and (potentially) wrong.

Second, by talking through the opposing arguments before the audience hears them, the Senator lessened the blow dramatically.  Suddenly people who are on the fence aren’t as easily swayed by Senator McCain’s comments as they would have been without knowing that Senator Obama already knows them and has an argument against them. 

Taxes, healthcare, Iraq, education, leadership experience, and the economy were brought into the Democrat’s rhetoric to inoculate against what would happen at the Republican convention.  So, the Republican’s have to find ways to combat the “already known” with ideas and concepts that take away the preset notion.  They may need to rethink their strategies on specific policies and character elements. 

Will the Republicans do that?  Of course they will.  And next week, I’ll talk about important strategies when going last.  But for now, the inoculation is setting in with many Americans.  Only time will tell which side deals with it better.

The only other thing I’ll bring up here, as it’s probably best suited for an entire blog entry, is that Senator Clinton really didn’t help Barak Obama with her own rhetoric.  She originally talked down both his leadership ability and his policies.  However, at the convention, she seemed to only mitigate her comments on his policies.  The communication point here?  Be VERY careful who you get to speak on your behalf.  Whether it’s for your character, your idea, or your goals, you will likely always say it better than someone else. 

I’m not saying that I always want to go first.  There are definite advantages to going last!  But, if you do end up starting things off, remember the importance of inoculation.  You not only look smart, you also cement your own ideas and philosophies in the minds of your audience!

Want to learn more about inoculation? Trying to find a strategy for persuasion?  Contact jborden@jeffpresents.com for more information!