Public speaking and the path of reconciliation

My friend Rueben Berg is a Gunditjmara man (an Indigenous group from the area around present day Warrnambool), and has recently been re-elected to the First Peoples' Assembly of Victoria.

The Victorian Government is 'full steam ahead' in attempting to sign a treaty with our Indigenous cousins, while the Federal Government is also preparing for a referendum about a permanent Voice to Parliament for Indigenous People in Australia. As an elected representative of the Victorian Indigenous community at this time, Rueben often finds himself with the opportunity and responsibility to speak to groups about the complex issues, processes, and negotiations that exist in this space.

He's a wonderfully gifted speaker, and his audience is treated to a compelling, interesting, entertaining and unscripted chat when Rueben speaks. Rueben doesn't use Powerpoint nor refer to notes.

That said, he's not in the least bit unprepared. He's talked about these topics for thousands of hours. In his mind, his presentations have a structure and flow to them, so that while no two speeches are exactly the same, he’s delivering much the same thing each time he talks.

Or, that’s how it usually works.

The other day, he was invited to speak in the Yarra Ranges (my local council) for a second time. Given that he was returning, he thought to ask the audience how many had attended his previous presentation. The room responded with a near-unanimous raising of hands!

Rueben was now on stage, with an hour to speak, and a crowd who had all heard before the speech he’d planned to give.

Not wanting to bore them with a repeat performance, he just… started talking. He talked about recent developments. About issues that were concerning him. About issues that were front of mind for those in the audience.

No script, no plan. Just a room full of curious minds, and a wise expert to lead them.

He said it was one of the best presentations he’s ever given - even the moment where he lost his train of thought mid-sentence was well received, because he and the audience shared a laugh about it.

Audiences don't want perfection, they want connection. By speaking unscripted, Rueben created exactly that (and he rang me to let me know, because he knows me well and knew I’d love a speaking unscripted success story!)

You can learn more about Rueben at his website, and see him speak about the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria and the treaty process here.