While the use of motivational speakers becomes more and more popular within the business and academic sectors of the United Kingdom, traditionalists everywhere in the country are often heard criticising and turning their noses up at what they scathingly announce to be some sort of ridiculous new fangled American tendency. It’s hilarious, actually, how anything which is popular in the US is so swiftly written off by certain groups of scornful Brits.
What is maybe funnier, in an ironic kind of way, is that the motivational speaker could not be any further from some new fangled American sensation. Motivational speaking is not new at all. Illustrations of the motivational speaker can be found all through history; as far back as speech itself goes.
Not just in history is the motivational speaker common. All through centuries of literature, the best leaders were always good speakers. Fictional motivational speakers have long inspired fresh generations of speakers. Which speaker has not tried to emulate the power, effect and drama wielded by Marc Antony in Shakespeare’s rhetoric-laced ‘Friends, Romans, Countrymen’ speech?
The work of a fine motivational speaker can’t be undervalued. A powerful example is that of Winston Churchill’s ‘We shall fight them on the beaches’ speech. Morale has been raised and conflicts have been won and lost by excellent motivational speakers.
It follows then, really, that their abilities within the corporate and academic sectors has been spotted. When morale is reduced and sales have plummeted, it’s unbelievably easy for companies to get themselves trapped in a rut. Inspiring words uttered by managers often have an accusatory or warning tone, which hinders instead of assists the problem. No real surprise then that the motivational speaker is in much more demand than ever before.
Who then is the motivational speaker of the twenty-first century? In the public eye it is still the politicians. In the realm of sport it’s the football managers. In the world of learning it’s the lecturers. Yet as motivational speaking turns into big business the motivational speaker turns into a vaguer, more fluid notion. The present motivational speaker may be the big business man, the sports legend, the adventurer, the celeb and the success story, or any mixture thereof. You may disbelieve their power or question their authority, but you can’t argue with the results of a great motivational speaker.gab



















