A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.- Winston Churchill

One of the things I love MOST about Winston Churchill is his intelligent wit, as demonstrated in this popular quote about public speaking.

For more details about Winston Churchill I skip Wikipedia and, instead, defer to a quote from the “AskMen” blog about Winston Churchill as the great orator:

“As Prime Minister of England during World War II, Churchill gave his most electrifying speeches over the radio. He spent weeks crafting them with a rhetorical precision that is virtually extinct today. His favorite tactic, which he relied on, again and again, was to appeal to history. He contextualized his most important points and ideas with allusions or direct references to the past andthe future, giving his message an intoxicating and inspirational timelessness. “

Many years ago I read a book titled, Winston Churchill by his Personal Secretary: Recollections of The Great Man by A Woman Who Worked for Him, written by his secretary, Elizabeth Nel.  She shared how diligent Mr. Churchill was when it came to his speeches.   She recalled hearing him practice segments of speeches over and over until satisfied with them.  He often practiced while taking his baths.  As with all great speeches, they don’t just happen.  Churchill worked tirelessly on his talks.  

Well stated.  Lucky for us, Winston’s talks are available for free, free at the Project Gutenberg complete works of Winston Churchill, which is also available for free on Kindle.