Open the Loop. Close the Loop.

In A&E we saw a lot of wounds.

Not the chronic diabetes or circulation related ones.

The traumatic kind.

Lacerations, cuts, things have been opened suddenly with sharp pointy things. 

Wounds that needed closing properly. 

There is a very particular way in which you treat these wounds so that they heal and they don't scar.

You start at the base.

You close the first layer.

Then you work up until you get to the skin at the top.

That order is important.

You wouldn't for example just sew the skin together and walk away, because you're going to get a really shit outcome.

The whole process is done entirely with awareness and intention.

(And a sterile field)

You could think of the initial trauma as being the opening and your treatment as the closing.

A speech works in the same way.

When I'm working with clients, I talk a lot about opening and closing loops.

This idea that when you start something you have to finish it.

When you don't, it can be really uncomfortable for your audience and your delivery just might not make sense.

How many times do you see this when somebody speaks on stage?

They open a loop, introducing an idea, a question, or a story, and then you wait consciously or unconsciously for them to close it.

For that moment of resolution.

The point where the whole thing makes sense.

Aaaaand… it doesn’t happen.

Many speakers, particularly early in their development, don't plan these loops.

Perhaps they're told they should create a really strong hook and then have some stories in the middle.

But they're not really told how to tie it all together.

With a speech the simplest loop is the one between the beginning and the end.

You start. You finish.

However there are loops which also exist within your speech as well.

Stories.

Activities.

Lessons.

Each one of these will need to be opened and closed in a particular order so that they make sense.

If it doesn't make sense your audience will feel that discomfort and things won't feel complete.

Now what I'm talking about is making sure that you open loops and you close them, there are times where you won't want to do that.

Sometimes you want to create tension.

Sometimes you want to open up a process that needs to be completed outside of your speech.

Sometimes you want to create a curiosity that can only be resolved when somebody approaches you afterwards.

That is always done with intention and knowing exactly what you're trying to achieve.

In photography there is a principle called the "rule of thirds."

It's based on the idea that the most important parts of your image should be on the intersection of a grid of thirds. It creates a sense of balance, peace, and resolution in an image. 

It was one of the first things that I learnt when I started doing photography and it really helped me to develop my photography style.

Over time you realise that you can break the rule and create tension which can be really effective.

Loops in speeches work in the same way.

Most of the time I would suggest that you open and close them, but sometimes a well-placed open loop without a close can be hugely useful.

It creates just enough tension so that people become curious to find out more.

That can lead to some amazing conversations in the coffee breaks after you've spoken.

Of course it has to be done with intention.

Accidental loops leave things feeling unfinished.

A deliberate loop feels like an absolute invitation.

So how do you start thinking about this in your own work?

Start looking at your words and think “what have I opened that I haven't closed?"

And ask yourself whether that's intentional or accidental.

In a speech you don't need to give your audience everything, but you do need to give them enough so that it feels complete.

Or leave them with enough curiosity to want to find out more.

Nothing in your speech should happen by accident.

If you want to have a chat about how this might work in your speaking, come and drop me a DM.

And if developing your speaking is on your mind, I have a one day Speaking Without Freaking™ workshop on June 5th in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire. 

There are still spaces available.