The Poet, Rupert Brooke (1887-1915)
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ARupert_Brooke.jpg
Ask yourself how
much you read each day. And then ask yourself what kind of reading you do.
Newspapers, Business Articles/Books, Novels, Biographies, Blogs, Graphic
Novels/Comics, Poetry…there are numerous ways and sources to read. But read you
must! The best presenters I have ever come across – those who really understand
language and are able to use their voice in a way that maximizes how their
words have impact within a room – are voracious readers. And they read for at
least one hour a day in a wide variety of different mediums. Of all the things
to read, poetry is my personal favourite for understanding the power of
language and the way that words are used to convey emotion and to enable
thought and understanding.
There are a whole
plethora of terms for describing poetic effects, and I don’t want to bog you
down with these. The main thing to understand is that in poetry every word has
a specific place, for a specific meaning and effect, and that every sentence is
structured to help those words find their way effectively to the reader. It is
within poetry that you can truly begin to understand the power of words; which
words to use and when, for the effect that you desire. I have copied out one of
my favourite poems below, for your enjoyment and study.
The
Soldier by Rupert Brooke
If I should die, think only this of me:
That
there’s some corner of a foreign field
That is for ever England. There shall be
In
that rich earth a richer dust concealed;
A dust whom England bore, shaped, made
aware,
Gave,
once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam,
A body of England’s, breathing English air,
Washed
by the rivers, blessed by suns of home.
And think, this heart, all evil shed away,
A
pulse in the eternal mind, no less
Gives
somewhere back the thoughts by England given;
Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her
day;
And
laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness,
In
hearts at peace, under an English heaven.
So, go and read
poetry, and then supplement it with at least two additional types of reading
every day. If you can understand how words within poetry are used to convey
meaning effectively, then you are on your way to becoming a good speaker. If
you become a good speaker, then you will know how to communicate information
that will resonate with your audience and this will improve your influencing
skills. If you can influence through the power of your words, then you are well
on your way to becoming a good presenter. Poetry is a force-multiplier for
presenting.
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