Be wary about statistics
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In listening to an a speech many people begin to distrust as soon as figures are mentioned.
Statistics will illustrate and prove assertions, but they must be used judiciously. Do not use too many statistics. Never be too detailed. In a speech, $4,000,000 sounds more impressive than $4,232,196.96. Use round numbers.
Never let them stand alone. Show their relationship. Burke quotes exact amounts to show the growth of the commerce of Pennsylvania, but he adds that it had increased fifty fold. A hearer will forget the numbers; he will remember the fact.
Similar reasons will warn you concerning the use of too many dates.
They can be easily avoided by showing lapses of time–by saying,
“fifty years later,” or “when he was forty-six years old,” or “this
condition was endured only a score of months.”
(Written by Clarence Stratton and edited by LearningPublicSpeaking.com)
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