Short Best Man Speeches - Why They Work

Some men think a best man speech should be long because a wedding is such an important occasion. The problem is, long speeches are not necessarily better than short ones. In fact, they can be the opposite. If the best man is a poor speaker or poorly prepared, then the speech will be poor and everyone at the wedding will be the victims. Short best man speeches take pressure of the best man and earn the gratitude of the guests and the bridal couple.

Short best man speeches work best if there is a format to follow:

1. Stay with the basics. At most weddings, you will be the first to speak, so thank the guests for coming.

2. Say something light and amusing to break the ice. This will get the audience on side and help you relax. You can make a joke about the groom - something from your relationship with him. A funny story about him is always good. If you do not have one, then move on.

3. Comment on the couple - how well suited they are; how happy they are together; why they will have a good marriage. You can say how lucky the groom was to find such a woman to be his bride. Thank them for the chance to make the toast then make the toast. That's short and sweet.

4. The bridesmaids' toast can be the same. Say how lovely they look and what great choices the bride made in asking them to be bridesmaids. How they contributed to the day. Then offer the toast.

You can do this in less than two minutes and do it well. No one will complain that your speech was too short. Many will be grateful. You might feel you have to say more but you could spoil it by talking too long. Some people feel they are expected to make a long speech and they start to ramble. It has been said a good speech is like packing for holidays - once you have packed, unpack and leave half at home. After you write your speech see if there are things you can discard.

A word of caution: the key to a good speech is preparation, whether the speech is long or short. Make sure you know what you are going to say and then practice it so you know it thoroughly. This way you will know what you are going to say and how long it will take to say it.


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You can take the stress out of preparing your best man speech by adapting one of the professionally written speeches and following the many tips at http://www.squidoo.com/how-to-make-a-wedding-speech William Burnell has been a groom, a best man, father of the bride 4 times and a wedding MC.