I’m a fan of Stephen Fry. Here he is talking about tennis at Wimbledon a month ago.
He appears to be speaking with very little preparation (which takes considerable skill if you’re not going to look a fool, especially on live TV). People often talk about Mr. Fry’s huge intellect, but I don’t think that’s relevant here. Instead, these are the essential qualities he exhibits:
- good knowledge of the subject
- affection for the subject
- self-deprecation
- improvisation
- politeness
- humour
When you’re next speaking (it could be a meeting, or just chatting over a coffee), try and add some of those and see how they add to to your communication.
Fry is a gentleman, and a great speaker. You can see why I’m a fan.