The Weekly Reflektion 16/2025
Communication is an art. Getting your message across is of course important, however this only really describes the mechanics of the process. It is about moving and motivating people. Communication is about inspiring others to join in the journey that you believe is necessary to reach the place you want to be, or the promised land, asMartin Luther King said just before he was tragically taken from us.
Will your next speech be a tipping point?
In the early 1900s, there was significant pressure to develop the Grand Canyon as a holiday resort, with theme parks, hotels, holidays homes etc. Many companies recognised the business opportunity and lobbied local and national politicians to try to realize the potential. Theodore Roosevelt visited the Grand Canyon in May 1903 and made a speech that contained the following words.
“Leave it as it is. You cannot improve upon it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it.”
On June 8, 1906, Roosevelt signed into legislation the Antiquities Act, which enabled the President “…to declare by public proclamation historic landmarks, historic and prehistoric structures, and other objects of historic or scientific interest that are situated upon the lands owned or controlled by the Government of the United States to be national monuments.”
The significance of the Grand Canyon was officially recognized on 11 January 2008 when it was proclaimed a national monument and in 1919 it was officially designated as a national park.
Roosevelts words in 1903 were a tipping point, not just for the fate of the Grand Canyon, but for many other areas in the US. He conveyed with passion the recognition that nature should be protected against the worst tendencies of mankind. In his time as President of the United States, Roosevelt used his authority to protect wildlife and public lands in unprecedented fashion. He created the United States Forest Service (USFS) in 1905 and established 150 national forests. In addition, Roosevelt also authorized the creation of 51 federal bird reserves, 4 national game preserves, 5 national parks, and 18 national monuments under the Antiquities Act. In total, Theodore Roosevelt protected approximately 230 million acres of public land.
Martin Luther Kings, ‘I have a dream’ speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial 28th August 1963 and his, ‘I have been to the Mountaintop’ speech 3rd April 1968 the day before he was assassinated are other tipping points speeches. John F. Kennedy’s speech 12th September 1962 where he committed the US to putting a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth, and Winston Churchills speech 13th May 1940 where he promised only blood, toil, tears and sweat, are also regarded as tipping points for the causes that they were promoting.
Research into the way words influence people has compared three factors in getting the message across. The words used, the voice tone and the body language. The relative importance of these is 7%, 38% and 55% respectively. So, what you say is less important than how you say it, and how you say it, is less important than the enthusiasm and passion you display when saying it. Communication is all about appealing to emotions and creating a feeling that things matter, and you care. While you don’t necessarily see our ‘body language’ in these Reflektions, we hope that we manage to convey our passion for learning to prevent Major Accidents.