I am fine-tuning a new rating system for evaluating public speakers. Here is a sneak-preview. If you have somone you wnat me to rate. Send me a note and a video link to tj@tjwalker.com. 

The WalkerSpeak™ Rating (0-50 rating)

Movement
Message
Memorablity
Motivation
eMotion

The WalkerSpeak™ Rating system judges speakers based on five criteria:

1. Movement. Does the speaker move his/her body/hands/face/eyebrows/voice in a natural, comfortable and confident manner? (0-10 pts)
2. Message. Does the speaker have a clear, understandable and relevant message for the audience? (0-10 pts)
3. Memorablity. Does the speaker use memorable stories, case studies and examples or does the speaker dump data and remain abstract? If the person uses PowerPoint slides, video clips, or other media, does the speaker use the media in a visual, memorable manner (i.e. images only and one idea per slide or image) or does the speaker use the media as a boring crutch for holding text and bullet points. (0-10 pts)
4. Motivation. Does the speaker motivate the audience to take a specific action? (Note: the speaker is not being judged by the standards of a cheesy “motivational speaker.”) (0-10 pts)
5. eMotion. Does the speaker connect with the audience on not just an intellectual level but an emotional level? (0-10 pts)

General Ratings

40-50. An outstanding speaker who communicates substance with style
39-32. A competent, above-average speaker
31-26. An adequate speaker 
25-21. Not a painful speaker to listen to, but little communication occurs
20 and below. A problem speaker who needs major improvement in style and substance

The WalkerSpeak™ Rating was created by TJ Walker, founder of The Speaking Channel www.speakingchannel.tv and the CEO of Media Training Worldwide. Walker has conducted presentation training for thousands of executives, CEOs. Prime Ministers, Nobel Peace Prize winners, Miss Universes, athletes and celebrities since 1984.
 

Because of all the types of speaking, motivational speaking, in the classic sense, is the easiest to devolve into meaningless clichés and useless abstractions. Personally, whenever I hear most motivational speakers, all I hear is Chris Farley’s absurd satire of a motivational speaker in his Matt Foley skit on Saturday Night Live. If you want three minutes of pure joy and a lifetime of future chuckles at other motivational speakers, then watch this Chris Farley video on youtube here.

I have housed my blog entries over the years on various web sites. If you would like to see any of my nearly 1000 old columns, videos, or audios that relate to speaking or media training, you can find them here. www.speakingchannel.tv/tjsinsights