He is also a top-selling author and his speaking promotes his writing. Max Walker's great strength is his understanding of his audience. He knows that they want light-hearted, easily absorbed stories and that they come to hear him, or read his books, for the sole purpose of being entertained. His secret is never trying be someone that he is not. He tells his stories with humour and verve and this works perfectly with his audiences.
Passion is another reason audiences come to hear a speaker.
The great dissidents and political activitists are passionate about their causes, and their aim is to pass on the power of their passion to their audience. If you go to hear Fidel Ramos Jorta , the Nobel Prize winner and Timorese activist, it is because of his passion for his cause and his people. Martin Luther King kindled people's feelings around the world because of his passion for equality and the dream of a world free of racial discrimination. Noel Pearson argues his case brilliantly with facts and knowledge, but it is his passion which gives such force and power to his message. As I mentioned previously, I was not born with a natural gift for public speaking, and although I adore puns and witty conversation, I have never been able to use them for myself in a public situation of more than two sentences.