I came to Tony Robbins Ted speech with an open mind. I wanted to like it. I didn’t. Here’s why:

1) He comes onstage with his hands in his pocket. Really!? I thought Tony Robbins was suppose to be a speaking expert? Why is he conveying ambivalence with his gestures? Downward gaze, wiping his eyes in frustration, hands in pocket… these are tell-tale signs that he is not truly engaged with what he’s speaking about. Which brings me to my second point…

2) He speaks really, really, really, really fast. I dare you to comprehend what he is saying in the middle of the speech. You can’t. It all goes by in such a blur it’s impossible to grasp. My guess would be that Mr. Robbins has done a version of this TED talk 1,000 times at other venues and is simply bored with it. He’s speaking to finish the speech, to wow the audience with his inarticulate energy, rather than to truly make his point, and connect with the audience in an authentic way.

3) He displays contempt for the audience. Count the times he swears at the audience. I counted four. It may have been more. He even managed to insult Al Gore who was sitting in the front row . A great speaker never does this. A great speaker takes care of the audience and attempts to convince them.

So what can we learn from these missteps? Take a look at Ken Robinson’s speech for a truly great speech. He speaks briskly without rushing. He uses gestures to engage the audience. He doesn’t show contempt for the audience but rather respect. He uses wit and humor. His ideas are not obvious or predictable.

It’s easy to fake a good speech. It’s worth it to really take your time, discard stale concepts, and show respect for who you are speaking to.

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