You’re at an awards dinner. Or maybe it’s a grand opening or even a retirement party. You’re asked to say a few words, but you aren’t sure how to do it. How do you find the right level of mush—not too mushy, but just mushy enough? It’s a special occasion, so you want to give your audience a warm feeling, but you don’t want to get too corny and make them cringe. Here are five simple tips to bear in mind for your next toast.
1. START WITH THE OBVIOUS
When you gather together for a celebration, you share the same physical space with your audience. You all experience the same setting—the decor, and so on. Yet inside, each of you still inhabits your own little world—noting the buzz of your smartphone, the thoughts in your head about the food, or the people you’re seated next to. So the first challenge any master of ceremonies or toast-maker faces is simply connecting with their audience by sharing the same mental space.
The easiest way to create that connection, of course, is simply to talk about what’s in common with everyone: Why are you here together in the first place? When you begin with the obvious, it’s like listening to a familiar tune’s first notes—everyone gets into the same groove.
For example, if you’re celebrating a retirement, you could begin by saying something like, “We’re here today to celebrate a transition—from ending to beginning, from the familiar to the unknown, from one challenge to another challenge.” This may not sound especially original to you, but it’s an effective way to quickly set the tone. By giving voice to the common experience, you bring the audience together, forging a feeling of unity.
2. SHARE SOMETHING ABOUT YOURSELF
From there, it’s time to move away from anything potentially trite. Now that you have your audience thinking about the same thing, you want to instill a common feeling about it while also consolidating their focus on you. The easiest way to do that is by telling them a quick story about yourself relevant to the situation.
Don’t worry—you aren’t stealing the spotlight. Here’s an example I might use from my own experience:
I remember the day in Montreal when I received a letter from the Quebec government. I had applied for a scholarship to achieve my dream of doing to graduate school. Would I be one of two people in the province to win the scholarship? My hands were shaking as I opened the letter. I was selected! That letter changed my life. Today, you too have opened a new envelope, achieved a new opportunity, forged a new beginning—and reached a new level of achievement.
By revealing personal moments like these, you establish a measure of trust that helps your audience feel open positively and open to what you have to say.
3. STICK WITH SHORT SENTENCES.
Nothing kills attention faster than somebody who drones on and on. The best remedy for that is to speak in short sentences. The shorter the sentence, the greater the punch.
For example, instead of saying, “David is a great asset to our company because he is a hard worker, he never complains, and nobody deals with customers better than he does,” you could phrase it this way: “David is a great asset to our company. He’s a hard worker. He never complains. Nobody deals with customers better.” It doesn’t mean cutting content, just breaking it into more digestible units.
