Fashion

How to Write a Great Speech, According to Obama’s Speechwriter

Sarah Hurwitz served as head and senior speechwriter to first lady Michelle Obama and President Barack Obama. Here, she shares 11 tips to master the art form of speechwriting….

It was the summer of 1998, the end of her junior year of college, when Sarah Hurwitz fell in love with the art form of writing the perfect speech, having scored an internship at the White House in Vice President Al Gore’s speechwriting office. “Every day, his staff used words to move, inspire, comfort, and empower people,” she recalls. “I still can’t imagine a better way to spend a career.”

And what an extraordinary career Hurwitz’s has been. After graduating from Harvard Law School, she became the chief speechwriter for Hillary Rodham Clinton on her 2008 presidential campaign. Eventually, she returned to the White House, serving as the head speechwriter for first lady Michelle Obama and as a senior speechwriter for President Barack Obama between 2009 and 2017.

Here, Hurwitz shares 11 nuggets of speechwriting wisdom that she’s garnered along the way so that you can shine at your next public address, whether that be a televised political debate, a work presentation, or a toast at your best friend’s wedding.

1. Channel the person who is speaking

The true art of speechwriting isn’t scripting someone—it’s channeling their voice. My first step when writing a speech for Mrs. Obama would be to sit down with her and ask, “What would you like to say?” She knows who she is, and she always knows what she wants to say. She’s also a naturally gifted speaker and writer, so I’d transcribe as she talked, forming the basis of the first draft.

2. Research and understand your audience

Who are you talking to? What are they concerned about? Why are you speaking to them? How well do they know you? What’s the venue? If Mrs. Obama was speaking at a university, for example, it was important to understand the history and student body of that university. If you’re giving a toast at your best friend’s wedding, you need to know if you can tell a story that’s a bit edgy or if their family will get offended.

3. Know that structure is destiny

If you have a bad structure, you can’t have a good speech. Every paragraph should flow logically from one to the next. When I’m trying to figure out the structure of a speech, I’ll often print it out and cut it up with scissors so I can move parts around. It’s only then that I realize the order is wrong or I see that I’m repeating myself or I notice that certain passages could be combined.

4. Seek multiple opinions

It’s really important to ask other people to look at your speech—as many as possible, especially if you’re speaking to a community that you don’t know well. You need to find someone from that audience who understands its cultural sensitivities and norms so you speak in a way that inspires people rather than causing offense.

5. Throw the rulebook out of the window

Writing to be read and writing to be heard are two very different skills. Spoken language doesn’t need to conform to grammar and punctuation norms. I often use ellipses instead of commas to indicate pauses because they’re easier to see. It’s fine to space things weirdly on the page or add notations if it helps you—all that matters is how the words sound coming out of your mouth.

With that in mind, you should edit out loud. Don’t just sit looking at your computer screen—print the speech out, practice delivering it, and edit as you go.

Tweet LinkedIn PinShares2

Fashion

4 Great Tips On Putting Together Outfits From Your Closet

The colorful world of clothing gives us certain confidence. Maybe it is not eye-catching enough to wear, but it is not difficult to wear clean and natural clothes. For example, pick a jumpsuit that works for you. This simple combination is the most versatile Wholesale baby Clothes you can wear. But instead of dressing like this, how else can you put together your clothes?

• Tip 1- Color Matching: Light And Dark
Bright and dark are two colors in general, and bright refers to bright colors such as white, bright red, and this year’s yellow and camel colors. Dark is the color that points to sedate a bit deeper, for instance, navy blue, blackish green still has of course invincible and all-match black. Look at those good-looking street photos, without exception, the color is coordinated, and the overall light and shade are appropriate, that is, a little bright, a little dark. So your suit collocation can pay attention to the shade of color collocation. For example, you can wear a white dress with black wholesale leggings for more visual harmony.

• Tip 2- Material: Hard And Soft
The so-called hard does not mean the material is hard to the touch (hard is armor), but the visual look of crisp, solid, such as leather, jeans, suit fabrics, and so on. Soft, really soft, soft down, soft waxy wool, soft chiffon, cotton T-shirt these are soft materials.

• Tip 3- Style: Cool And Sweet
Wearing nice clothes is only a combination of low order, and further, wear your own style, that is the high fashion of high order. For example, the unisex pilot embroidered jacket has been a hit in the last two years, so it’s fair to say everyone has one. It’s supposed to be a pantsuit, so cool that you don’t have a boyfriend, but have you ever worn a chiffon dress? Wearing high heels is also very harmonious, gentle and beautiful chiffon long dress has become handsome.

• Tip 4- Habit: A Little New, a Little Old
It’s human nature to love the new, but the “old” clothes in your closet have so much personal baggage that they can be more comfortable to wear. Old clothes do not directly mean that they have been worn many times, but more importantly, basic items with a high frequency of use. Therefore, I will pay more attention to quality in the selection of basic protective items. With the “old” basic style plus the latest fashionable clothes, the whole body is not too hard, of course, this will be more comfortable, but also more suitable for their own.

Conclusion:
We all need to dress appropriately because people judge us by what we wear. They don’t judge us by what we say or what we think. That’s why fashion is so important. Today, society places a lot of pressure on concepts that seem irrelevant. In certain cases, this may be true. For example, in terms of our values, how we look doesn’t matter. But it’s important in other areas of our lives. So it is very important to master the right style to wear.

Tweet LinkedIn PinShare1

Fashion

Exclusive Style: 2022 Streetwear Brand You Need To Know-Til The End Clothing

With the New Year here, streetwear junkies are on the lookout for emerging talented brands. While the street industry is competitive ranging from new generation trends to avant-garde corporate designers, Til The End goes above placing self expression and community building at the forefront of their company.

This New York standout brand came out of the pandemic and has been dropping non stop heat in the street wear industry.

“Til The End” went global during the 2020 year catching the attention of those worldwide. The meaning “to the ones we lost” is the movement the company is based on, remembering those we lost and representing for them “til the end” sparked community interest in support of the brand. Aside from the average start up brands these days with the same watered down hustle inspiration.

TTE stands out from the rest with their top quality pieces featuring new drops almost every month most recently tracksuits to custom windbreakers and everything in between. They have a wide selection of unisex garments and even a kids line supposedly dropping this month.

Similar to the legendary FUBU start up, TTE targeted the hip hop industry which got them a shout out from New York’s own “Jadakiss” and have been doing collaborations with rap artists such as the successful rap veteran “TOP NINJA” who is also a New York original. Currently, Til The End will be sponsoring in support of upcoming artist “Hudson Redwater” with music by DJ Drewski at S.O.B address 204 Varick Street this Wednesday 2/16 in New York City.