When trying to put together my own wedding speech, I didn’t make use of other sample speeches as a pattern until very late in the game – they would have saved me a lot of time. I really did the things the hard way – and hopefully you will be able to save yourself that trouble. Good samples can really jumpstart your thinking about your own speeches content and style – I recommend using them highly.
Remember that just because you are using another’s sample as a blueprint, you are not copying everything verbatim – in other words, use what you find as a guide – you want to make the speech totally, entirely your own.
Fortunately, good wedding speech outlines are just that outlines, with fill-in-the blank type of a format. You have to come up with the detail about:
Those whom you are going to say thanks to
Funny stories about you and your fiancé (tasteful – not embarrassing)
Your feels about this huge day
etc.
Another great benefit of the groom speech layouts is that they helped me to stay focused – my mind tends to get lost in detail. If wander when you talk, like me, have a structured outline will help you stay on target – which is a benefit for you and your guests. You don’t want to bore them!
Filed under Examples, Groom Wedding Speech by on Sep 5th, 2009. 
Tip #1 – Get Organized
Being organized for your groom’s wedding speech is pretty essential for success, unless you are one of the rare few who can wing it.
You want to get your information/facts collected, at the very latest, the night before.
Tip #2 – Try Not to Drink Alcohol Until…
- Fact – alcohol affects your judgment.
- Fact – alcohol can make you slur your speech.
- Fact – alcohol can cause you say things that you may not want to say.
If you must drink, do yourself a favor and wait until after your speech is done. If you must imbibe (say for adhoc toasts), do so very sparingly.
Tip #3 – Make Sure to Get a Least 8 Hours of Sleep
This is going to be a tough one, especially if your groomsmen have scheduled a fun bachelor party. However, trying to give this very important speech while sleepy can be tough. You don’t want to yawn in the middle of it, if you know what I mean. If you are the least bit skiddish about speaking in front of others, you are going to need to be well-rested to help calm your nerves.
Filed under Groom Wedding Speech, Ideas, Tips by on Sep 5th, 2009.
My knees were definitely shaking when I started thinking about the groom’s wedding toast. Yes, it is traditional part of the wedding reception, but I was not looking forward to it nonetheless. I think a lot of my anxiety could have been allayed with good, advanced planning. I’ve been to a few wedding where out-of-control toasts created a reception train-wreck disaster – and this had to be avoided at all costs.
The good news for me was that the groom’s toast is a very short ’talk’ if you will. However, it was suggested that I not read verbatim from note cards – but to use them as reminder notes. That’s what I did – and actually, the toast was surprisingly better than what it could have been. I used the note cards, I didn’t read anything verbatim and it worked out.
So from my learning, here are some train-wreck elements you may want to avoid…
Don’t mention or talk about past relationships – don’t laugh, it’s been done before!
Avoid alcohol until after your speaking duties are done, if at all possible. The alcohol can affect your sense of timing and your ability speak clearly.
Don’t do an open-mic type of toast, where multiple people are getting up after you and giving toasts – this can be a real disaster.
Here are some helpful things you should do…
Make sure to stand up before giving your toast.
If you are not mic’d, make sure you speak up loudly and clearly. If you have a mic, make sure to talk toward the microphone, not moving your head around back and forth too much (unless you move the mic too).
Don’t forget to have everyone raise their glasses after the toast – this is frequently forgotten during the nervousness of the moment.
Filed under Groom Wedding Speech, Groom Wedding Toast by on Sep 15th, 2009.
