So You Want to be Mayor of Burlington

Why should I vote for you?

I attended a public meeting to hear from the candidates for mayor. The sound was bad in the auditorium and none of the candidates impressed me. I labeled each of the speakers to keep it simple for me to remember. This is what I noticed and remember.


The Incumbent
He conveyed the most confidence. That comes from years of experience in politics. He knew the issues and spoke openly and clearly. He was positive. He highlighted the accomplishments of his council and was smart enough not to tangle with the red herrings that were dangled by the other candidates. Yet there was a lack of charm.



The Reader
He read his opening and his closing statements and almost all of his answers. While the other speakers were speaking he was nervously scribbling notes. When he spoke he was reading instead of talking to the audience. He was simply reading his notes. He might be a good back room researcher but not a leader. He couldn't speak without notes.


Mumbles
I heard and understood less than half of what he said. He seemed to be winging it. He often looked anxiously at the MC and his statements seemed to end without conclusion. His only strengths seemed to be that he was totally inexperienced and unqualified. He seemed the least likely winner and most likely will attract the protest vote. That means people will vote for this person to waste their vote but hope that he doesn’t win. What’s in it for him – I wonder.


Mr. Angry
Parking, parking, parking! That seemed to be his mantra. Was that intended to help his downtown business? He encouraged the audience to call the federal MP. Why? For some private cause of his. He criticized the current council and promised to fix it by forcing them to work together. How? By getting angry at them? He refereed to himself as a business man (not a business owner) while ignoring the females in his audience. It was difficult to like this cold and angry person.


George Torok

Executive Speech Coach



Executive Speech Coach, Business presentation tips from George Torok, the Speech Coach for Executives.