Creativity Sources: Gary Numan and “Cars”

 

Do you know the song “Cars” by Gary Numan? It’s an old song released in 1979.  He feels safe in his car.  He can lock all the doors.

It’s an interesting tune for a few reasons. One of the YouTube channels to which I subscribe is titled Behind the Vinyl. They invite musicians to talk about distinctive songs they’ve released.  I’ve watched Gary Numan’s four-minute interview on this song and was struck by his trust, innovation and the creativity that enabled the song to see life. You can see the interview here https://youtu.be/ehUDudbtqsQ 

The distinctive bass line, the riff that opens the song and reoccurs throughout, is a result of Numan purchasing a bass guitar.  He didn’t know how to play bass guitar, but he plugged it in and the first notes he played sounded good.  It became that opening riff in “Cars.”

Simple Stories

I love that simple story because it provides an example of innovation, in that he used an instrument with which he was unfamiliar, an unfamiliar tool. The story also illustrates creativity and instinct, which applies to speeches as well.  We should trust our instincts more often. If you’re wondering whether a story fits in your speech, give it a try. Afterwards ask for some audience feedback.  Sometimes audience members see more value and different perspectives in a story than you might see.

 Another distinctive element in “Cars” is a very long note he plays on a Moog synthesizer. He holds the note for eight seconds, a long time for one note.  In the video he explains that while building an overlay onto the song he pressed the note on the Moog and didn’t know where to go next, what note to play next, so he just held it. Trusted his instinct.   

Additionally, while he doesn’t mention this in the interview, yet another distinctive element is that the song does not have a chorus, it contravenes traditional song structure.  

Finally, he talked about the inspiration for the lyrics about feeling safe in his car.  He described making a mistake in London traffic, then some people trying to pull him from his car to beat him up, so he made his escape in the car via a sidewalk. He felt safe in his car. He can lock all the doors. May you and I never discover a similar source of inspiration.

Songs and Creativity: Aerosmith

I play guitar and I’m a geek about music. There are so many great stories about how songs were created. Another terrific and simple story describes how Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way” came about.  Steven Tyler writes about it in his autobiography, which is not a book for the faint of heart. Guitarist Joe Perry was noodling around on his guitar in soundcheck before a concert. Tyler’s ear and instinct recognized the potential of some of that noodling. Tyler heard and locked onto the memorable riff that anchors the song. Most of you reading this will have now recalled that riff and it’s earwormed it’s way into your head.

Speeches, Creativity and Connecting with the Human

I think most speakers should trust our instinct more often. At times speakers have a personal story they consider inserting, but back away because they feel it’s not good enough, or perhaps too revealing. However, audiences want to connect with the human presenting.

When using a personal story, we don’t need to reveal every detail, or embarrassing details. We can shape our stories. If you’re considering using such a story, you likely don’t even remember all the details accurately. Over time you have shaped the memory of the event as you’ve replayed the story in your mind over the years.

The purpose in telling a story during a speech, is to illustrate a lesson. It doesn’t need to be 100% accurate.  Trust your instinct. Experiment.

Even during business presentations, there is room for creativity and at times, some light emotional content. For example, if justifying an investment, it can be helpful to relate a story about the impact the business has had on a customer. A story about an interaction with a customer can appeal to emotion, and help support a rational decision.

 

Creativity, Inspiration and Instinct

Gary Numan trusted his instinct and wrote a great, memorable song. Steven Tyler and Aerosmith did as well.

Trust your instinct. Experiment with stories. The result might be more memorable speeches and presentations.

 

 

 

How To Prepare a Long Duration Speech

 

Recently I published a post about crafting a basic speech in just five minutes.  This is helpful if you need to make a presentation with little or no notice. It happens, especially if you are known for some level of expertise in your organization. You can read the post here https://gycz.blogspot.com/2022/10/how-to-prepare-speech-in-five-minutes.html

After publishing that post, I received some e-mails asking how to prepare for longer presentations. I do like receiving questions or seeing comments posted to the blog page.  I’ll share my approach for longer speeches.

A Series of Short Speeches

It can seem a daunting task to prepare a presentation that lasts twenty minutes, or forty minutes, or perhaps longer, however, a helpful way to plan for a longer presentation is to think of it as a series of smaller, well connected short speeches. My sweet spot is twenty to forty minutes so I tend to guide requests to this range, and this works for most meeting planners.

Planning with Bubbles

When I need to deliver a longer presentation, I begin planning by creating a bubble diagram, which is a creativity technique. Here’s an example of a bubble diagram https://bit.ly/3tjX5GD

I use a bubble diagram to visually capture all of my possible material on one page.  While I use the bubble technique, some people are more familiar with other creativity techniques, such as the fish bone technique. A key for any creativity tool is to capture ideas without judgement, to creatively generate ideas, or in this case to creatively capture possible content, or talk points. To be clear, when documenting these talk points, I avoid editing and judging with thoughts like ‘this doesn’t belong.’  Initially I want to quickly and non-judgementally document all possible content, and let the creative juices further inspire other ideas that might not be immediately obvious when staring at a blank page.

Creating a Bubble Diagram  

To begin generating ideas I place a circle, a bubble, in the center of the page with the core theme, for example “Speech Development.”  Then I start placing related ideas in surrounding bubbles, for example, “organization,”” use of notes,” “define purpose,” or “ relevant stories.”  Then I usually break some of the related bubbles into smaller components, for example referencing some specific stories. 

After a first version of the bubble diagram is complete, I put this away for at least 24 hours.  Later when I review it, I always have new ideas, and new content with a bubble or two to add.

Capture All Possible Talking Points  

My purpose in performing this exercise is to satisfy myself that I’ve captured all, or virtually all, of my knowledge and possible talking points on the page. That gives me confidence that I have lots of usable content for a longer speech.  I also use this approach when I coach people on speech development.

As I review the diagram, I consider each bubble and assess whether each point is substantial. My measure of substantial is that I could speak to each point for two minutes or more.  

Purpose Drives Content

The next step is the most important.  I ask myself ‘what is my purpose in speaking to this specific audience on this day?’  What exactly do I want the audience to understand, or to do differently. Purpose drives content.  This forces me to give consideration to the expertise level of the audience, and why they’ve invited me to speak.

What to Keep, What to Use on Another Day

Once I’ve defined my presentation purpose, I can choose the bubbles that support my purpose. At this point, I usually have to set aside some material I really would like to use, but that does not support the purpose of my speech. Once content is selected, then I can experiment with sequencing the ideas, and refining my speaking points.

Conclusion

This is a short introduction to my method of preparing longer presentations. There will always be discernment in defining purpose and selecting content.

Practice, Practice, Practice

If you wish to excel in public speaking, you will need to practice.  Public speaking is a skill, and skills require practice.  The best athletes in the world practice basic skills regularly.

My key practice venue is my Toastmasters club. I have been a member of Toastmasters since 1987 and I remain for many reasons. One is to regularly practice these skills including 2-minute impromptu speeches and 5–7-minute speeches.  Public speaking is a skill and skills require practice if you expect them to be sharp.