Virtually every human interaction includes elements of persuasion, from extending invitations to friends, to cajoling people for help, to simply getting others to like us. A persuasive speaker likewise attempts to generate a desired response from audience members. To persuade is to influence the attitudes and behavior of others. Related to the Greek verb “to induce by words to believe,”¹ persuasion is a deliberate process of influence, of convincing others to share your beliefs.

Of all the types of public speaking, persuasive speaking may be the one you do most frequently—and the one that offers the greatest potential for professional and personal rewards. Skilled persuasive speakers often reap significant benefits, achieving positions of leadership for their motivational abilities and earning the respect of their communities for making a difference. They are able to make their voices count during public conversations about issues that are important to them. Practiced persuasive speakers also tend to be skilled evaluators of persuasive communications. In a world in which persuasive messages incessantly pop up on mobile devices and even trail us in the sky, being a critical receiver of persuasion never has been more necessary.

Perhaps most important of all, the ability to speak persuasively ensures a healthy democracy. “In a Republican nation,” Thomas Jefferson said in a speech during his term as the third president of the United States, “whose citizens are to be led by reason and persuasion and not by force, the art of reasoning becomes of first importance.”