Finding a Purpose
In both our business and personal lives, we hear about the
importance of being goal-oriented. If you don’t have a target, you’ll hit it
every time.
To make the most of your influence in communication, you
need to have a clear purpose for your message. Do you want to help someone
understand a task or do you want them to be more productive as they do it? Do
you want someone to understand the features of your product, or do you want
them to buy it? Do you want to convince your boss that you’re a valuable asset
or do you wan to get a raise?
Since your purpose should be the straight-edge against
which you measure what will work in your presentation, subtle differences in
your purpose can make for big differences in the form and content of the message.
Take the time to choose a clear, realistic purpose and use
it to guide your preparation.
This material is based on Ehninger, Douglas, et al.
Principles and Types of Speech Communication. 9th Ed. Glenview,
IL: Scott, Forseman and Co., 1986 and Sprague, Jo and Douglas Stuart.
Speaker’s Handbook. 2nd Ed. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich,
1988.
1.
Ask yourself, “After hearing this message, I
want my audience to . . . “
Examples:
NOT:
My specific purpose is to inform the audience about politics.
BUT:
My specific purpose is to inform the audience about the role of the two-party
system in American politics.
NOT:
My specific purpose is to persuade the audience against drunk driving.
BUT:
My specific purpose is to persuade the audience of the need for stiffer
penalties for drunk driving.
NOT:
My desired outcome is to sell this product.
BUT:
My desired outcome is to have you buy this product.
NOT:
My desired outcome is to explain photosynthesis.
BUT:
My desired outcome is to have you understand the workings of photosynthesis.
2.
Be specific with your specific purpose.
a.
The
emphasis is on the behavior you want the audience to adopt.
b. Teachers
have learned to phrase their previously fuzzy goals as concrete behavioral
objectives.
c.
The
Management by Objectives movement has helped employers and employees analyze
tasks and set definite goals and deadlines.
d. Example
“I
want my audience to appreciate art” is fine for a primary audience outcome, but
you must go further and ask yourself how you will know if you have succeeded.
What, exactly, are people doing when they are appreciating art? If you think
about the specific behaviors or operations that contribute to appreciating art,
you will come up with a list like this:
Go
to galleries.
Read
books on art.
Create
pieces of art themselves.
3.
Examples
a.
Informative
Message
i.
General
purpose: To inform
ii. Specific
Purpose: To inform the audience of the steps of a successful job interview
iii. Primary
Audience Outcome: I want my audience to become familiar with the steps of a
successful job interview.
iv. Contributing
Audience Outcomes: I want my audience to:
1.) distinguish between the job interview and other types of
interviews.
2.) understand what the interviewer expects.
3.) be able to list the four phases of the typical employment
interview
4.) recognize the importance of appearance and body language.
b. Persuasive
Message
i.
General
purpose: To Persuade
ii. Specific
Purpose: To convince the audience that changes in individual behaviors are
needed to protect our environment.
iii. Primary
Audience Outcome: I want my audience to commit themselves actively to
environmental concerns.
iv. Contributing
Audience Outcomes: I want my audience to:
1.) use public transportation, when possible.
2.) minimize the use of nonbiodegradeable
materials.
3.) recycle paper, glass, aluminum, and steel.
4.) make their dwellings energy efficient.
5.) support environmentally-oriented political candidates and
contribute money and time to environmental causes.
c.
Entertainment
Message
i.
General
purpose: To Evoke
ii. Specific
Purpose: To celebrate a successful tennis season and honor the individuals
responsible for the success.
iii. Audience
Outcome: I want my audience to experience a sense of community with all those
who participated in or supported the Central
High School tennis program.
iv. Contributing
Audience Outcomes: I want my audience to:
1.) recognize the contribution and achievement of each group:
players, coaches, staff, parents, booster club, and fans.
2.) feel pride in their individual contribution.
3.) relive some of the high points of the past season.
4.) identify with each other by laughing at “in jokes” that only
someone involved in this program would understand.
5.) share in the warmth felt for Coach Pierce.
1.
Your Private or Ultimate Aim
as a Speaker.
What
do you know about the topic?
What
are you willing to risk?
2.
The Authority of the Listeners
or Their Capacity to Act.
What
does this audience have the ability or authority to do?
3.
The Existing Attitudes of the
Listeners.
What
is this audience willing to do given their opinions?
4.
The Nature of the Speech
Occasion.
What
is appropriate for this occasion?
5.
The Time Limits of the Speech.
What’s
possible within the time or space that you have?
