Lecture: Dynamism

I gave this lecture on February 11, 2023.

Dynamism

INTRODUCTION

One of the New Testament’s most vivid words is dunamis. We see it in such passages as Romans 1:16 (“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes”) and Mark 13:26 (“And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory”). It means “power; might; strength,” but can denote “energy,” “authority,” “efficacy,” “omnipotence,” and even “a miracle.”

Dunamis is the root word for all our “dynam-“ words: dynamic, dynamism, dynamo, even dynamite. The “dyna-“ in dynasty goes back to a related Greek word, dynastēs, “ruler, chief, lord, master, powerful or authoritative leader.” It is easy to see that these word groups all center on the idea of power, authority, even explosive energy and effectiveness.

SPS  In a sense, dunamis—dynamism—is what we are here in Speech Club to learn and develop. We should be here to become more dynamic speakers, to speak with authority and strength, and even explosive power when need be. We should desire to be effective in getting the truth of God across to our audience, enhancing the power of the gospel in its work to convey God’s people to salvation.

Dynamism in speech is not just about raw power. If you come across too strong, too loud, or too overbearing, you will offend and lose your audience. They will complain that you are always shouting at them, trying to cow them into submission. In my experience, a raised voice, a powerful delivery of a point or a punchline is most effective when used sparingly. You want your audience to say, “Wow, he really means it!”

A dictionary will state that dynamism means “great energy, force, or power; vigor.” A dynamic leader is energetic, but a dynamic leader is more than just a force of nature. It implies someone with lots of ideas and enthusiasm, who is skilled in developing those ideas and communicating them to others, getting others involved, and leading them to see them to fruition. Speech Club can assist you in developing those skills.

What are the skills that will help you become more dynamic as a speaker and a leader?

1. Vocal skills: You will have to learn to speak up so you can be heard. Mumbling or speaking softly keep people from hearing you, making them strain, and they will quickly tune you out.
   * You must learn to use vocal variety because speaking in a monotone will put your audience to sleep. Giving proper emphasis to certain important words, varying your speed and volume, and even using a different voice or accent keeps people engaged.
   * You will need to learn to enunciate your words clearly rather than slur them together—and also, to pronounce words correctly. Nothing distracts an audience like mispronouncing a word repeatedly throughout a speech. (Kurt Hoyer, Ambassador Club speech evaluation: “eloquencey ”)
2. Organizational skills: You will have to learn to craft a speech to get your point across clearly. Writing speeches will teach you about effective introductions and conclusions. It will make you fine-tune your points so they lead to an unmistakable conclusion. It will force you to consider illustrations and when to use them. You will need to learn ways to instruct, inspire, and stir people to action.
3. Memorization skills: You will need to learn how to keep much of your speech in your mind and speak extemporaneously rather than read notes. Reading your notes will bore an audience to tears! If you have enough of the contents of your speech in your head, you will only have to refer to your notes occasionally—meaning that you’ll be able to speak directly to your audience and make eye contact.
4. Presentation skills: You will need to learn to dress and groom yourself appropriately to appear competent to speak on a subject.
   * You will need to learn to control your facial expressions to be appropriate to your subject—to smile, to be stern or angry, to be open and pleasant, to be confident, or to look ridiculous, as necessary.
   * You will have to learn correct body language and gestures.

CONCLUSION  All these skills and more help a speaker appear and be more dynamic. It will take a while to develop them—and I sincerely hope we can help you to do so—but if you are diligent in making full use of the opportunities this Club presents, and do it with your might, you will become a dynamic speaker.