Say What's in Your Heart in Speeches

Terry Szuplat, White House speechwriter for President Barack Obama from 2009 - 2017, believes that Obama connected so well with people all over the world because he was comfortable with himself and believed in himself. "He had his voice. He had his vision," Szuplat said.

Speaking to a packed room during an engaging and timely talk Sept. 19 at The National Churchill Leadership Center at The George Washington University campus in Washington, D.C., Szuplat asserted, “We have to believe in ourselves, we have to know what we’re about.”

Szuplat's lessons learned from his time with Obama are detailed in his just-released book, Say It Well: Find Your Voice, Speak Your Mind, Inspire Any Audience (Harper Business, HarperCollins Publishers, Sept. 17, 2024).

Moderator and Co-Host Anthony Shop of Social Driver (left) and author Terry Szuplat at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., Sept. 19.

During his tenure at the White House, Szuplat traveled with Obama to more than 40 countries on Air Force One and learned much from him about the power of thoughtful communications.

"People worry so much about being judged, but if you are true to yourself that won’t be a concern," he explained.

“But when you’re confident of who you are, you know what you believe, you know what you stand for, maybe what other people think about you doesn’t matter so much,” he added.

These same principles apply when creating a speech for the president, a CEO or any boss or colleague. He explained that ultimately the words must reflect their thoughts and beliefs. The words always must be authentic to the person.

He asserted regarding his subjects, “If they don’t want to say it the way you have written it—you can encourage, you can cajole, you can point out the pros and cons, but in the end it’s their words literally.”

Explaining the speechwriting process for President Obama, he explained, “That’s not how we saw it—putting words in the president’s mouth.”

“President Obama never had to read a single word that was on the page,” he added.

“Every word was a choice. All it was—was a draft prepared by us in collaboration with him and a leader gets to decide what words come out of their mouth. And if they don’t like the draft that the team has prepared, they don’t have to give it.”

He continued, “In the end, it’s their words, their voice.” “Ultimately it’s their choice.”

He reflected that speechwriters and communications professionals must be humble when crafting speeches and follow the three V’s of their subject—their voice, their vision and their values.

Clear Messages & Personal Stories are Key

Regarding speechwriting, Szuplat mentioned how someone once told him they were okay if 90 percent of the people they were speaking to understood what they were saying.

He asserted, “You should not be okay with that!” He added, “That means that 10 percent of your audience doesn’t understand what you’re saying. And maybe that 10 percent is your next partner, your next investor, your next donor, your next volunteer.” He continued, “And you’re leaving them in the dark. They’re not going to join you, they’re not going to partner with you.”

Szuplat emphasized the importance of personal stories in speeches. “The best way to connect with your audience is to deliver authentic speeches,” he said.

He continued, “The audience wants you. They don’t want you to get up and give a policy paper. They want to connect with you.”

“Think of all the speeches that impacted you the most, that resonated with you the most, is when a speaker gets up and speaks from their heart—about who they are,” he added.

He continued, “Personalize your remarks. No one can tell your stories better than you can. You have your own stories. You have your own life. You have your own anecdotes you can share.”

Audience members received a copy of the new book, which Szuplat signed. In talking about the book, he asserted that it’s not a memoir, but a handbook, a guidebook and workbook that he wants people to refer to again and again for tips in their daily work life as communicators.

Szuplat recounted one of the most moving and memorable parts of President Obama’s 2014 State of the Union speech. It came towards the end when the president honored Army Ranger Cory Remsburg, who had been injured in Afghanistan.

“He (Cory) stood up and it was unbelievable,” said Szuplat. Remsburg received a two-minute standing ovation and he touched people all over the world. “Stories resonate so powerfully,” added Szuplat.

Szuplat remembered one of his favorite videos created by President Obama in which he greeted audiences from all over the world in their languages.

“Watching one of the great orators connect with people all over the world by literally speaking their language. How simple, and yet how profound that is. That one of the most powerful people in the world would take the time to learn somebody else’s phrase and language and try to connect with them on a human level,” he commented.

Szuplat learned so much from President Obama as he gave the speechwriting team time and attention, which was critical.

Szuplat asserted about the former president, “I am very grateful to him and his office that they’re allowing me to share my conversations with him over the years. I hope that every chapter you feel like you’re having a conversation with Barack Obama about writing and communications.”

50-25-25 Rule

Szuplat believes that fifty percent of your time should be dedicated to thinking about what you want to say before you even begin writing. Then 25 percent can be dedicated to writing and 25 percent to editing and practicing a speech.

Szuplat stated, “You don’t have to start writing immediately.” “You don’t have to start creating right away.”

“Just set aside the first 50 percent of your time to do the most important job of all, which is to think about what you want to say,” he continued.

“Write down your ideas, create a document, start collecting stories, start talking to people. Just do all that work and you’ll find all of a sudden you have so much more material than you know what to do with,” he added.

He explained that then you can spend 25 percent writing and 25 percent editing and practicing the speech. He remarked how too many times speeches are written too quickly with only hours to spare with no time to practice or edit the speech, leading to an unsatisfactory result.

This advice about thinking carefully about what you want to say first can actually be used for any other type of writing, including articles, papers, and especially e-mails and texts and social media posts!

Again, content is key.

He asserted, “Obsess about your ideas, obsess about your content, say something interesting, say something concrete, say something that’s going to challenge people, move people, inspire people.”

Thoughts on ChatGPT

At the end of the meeting, Szuplat did weigh in on ChatGPT and generative AI and how communicators have to be careful how they use these technologies. While he said AI can be helpful for research, etc., it must be used thoughtfully.

For example, as a professor at American University’s School of Public Affairs, he said that if he discovers any of his students submitting AI generated work as their own, it’s an “automatic F!”

He asserted, “If you are going to stand up or sit as a human being in front of other human beings and you expect to form a human connection with them, don’t ever use a bot for that.”

He continued, “Your audience wants humanity, they want what’s in your heart, they do not want stuff regurgitated by a machine.”

He declared, “We don’t know what’s true, we don’t know what’s being generated by a human versus a machine.”

“Talk like a human,” he said. “Share what’s in your heart. The machine will never know what’s in your heart.”

From 2009 to 2017 Szuplat served as special assistant to the president and as a member of the National Security Council staff, and from 2013 to 2017 he was the deputy director of the White House Speechwriting Office.

Today, Szuplat runs his own speechwriting firm, Global Voices Communications, and teaches speechwriting at American University’s School of Public Affairs. He is a popular speaker and trainer and his essays have appeared in The New Yorker, New York Magazine, and The Washington Post, among many other publications.

The event was co-hosted by The George Washington University College of Professional Studies and the digital marketing and communications agency Social Driver.

PRSA-NCC and IABC DC Metro were promotional partners, and the discussion was also recorded for the “Chief Influencer” podcast, an initiative of Social Driver and The Communications Board.