In most weddings, being elected a best man or maid of honor carries with it no pre-requisite of being a good public speaker. However, at that moment of truth for every wedding party, the bride and groom, their families, and just about every guest and banquet hall staff member will turn their eyes to the front, as you are expected to deliver a memorable speech worthy of Harvard's commencement — or at least a good Vince Vaughn-Owen Wilson movie.
But writing a memorable wedding speech is not as difficult as it may seem. To avoid being met with an awkward silence and la deflated wedding party is simple: It's all about finding that personal link and mixing it with a perfect balance between humor and sincerity.
And keeping it under a couple minutes.
* Have a structure and idea of what you will say. Don't just wing it or the guests will be left confused at what will sound like a disjointed, meandering rant.
* Determine that personal link between yourself and the bride or groom. Why were you chosen? What role do you play in this person's life? Reference that by telling an amusing (but brief) anecdote of your past relationship. If you can, make it as complimentary as possible and maybe even a touch self-deprecating; like a time where he or she helped you cram for a college test last minute after you decided to spend the night partying. Avoid embarassing stories, excessive details of past irresponsibility and ex-partners at all costs.
* Finally, find a way to relate the anecdote as a reflection in his or her commitment with their future spouse. Maybe you see his or her same commitment to studying that night as you do in this relationship. Make sure you do this while complimenting the other half of the couple, as this will impress the side of the wedding who most likely doesn't know you very well. The key to this is classiness.
Remember: this is a monumental day in your friend's life. Make it count by delivering something well-considered, personal and with the right balance of humor and class.
<1b>— Scott J. Krischke
<hd>How to Toast the Bride and Groom
<bt>
As a maid of honor for my sister's wedding, I will have to give a toast to her and her new husband. Like many out there, I have a slight fear of public speaking. Since I am a newbie to this speech writing stuff, I did what most people do when starting out.
I Googled "maid of honor speech" and a ton of Web sites came up, from the basic "what to put in a speech" to "if you are completely desperate for a speech, buy one of our pre-written speeches."
Since I am not yet that desperate to spend money for a speech, I looked at the free information. I did notice that they all said the same thing: "Tell a story that is funny about the bride and yourself." I also noticed another trend that, to me, was quite disturbing: There was no explanation how to start the speech.
As with anything I have written (including this very article), once I have the beginning, everything seems to fall in place; but I need to think of a way to start. I searched some more and found a couple of examples on how they started the speech: "Hello my name is ... and I am (somehow related to the bride)."
Then, every speech went into some funny story that entails the bride and maid of honor, and then the newlyweds. But, to me, that seems a boring way to start a speech.
I would recommend starting it with a funny story, such as, "When my best friend and I were young ..." and then the audience knows how you are related to the bride and they get a good laugh out of it.
Once you get the speech started, it will start to fall into place like a puzzle. From there, you can go into a funny story that the bride told you about her and the groom. After that, it's a good time to end the speech with a happy little thought about the newlyweds, such as: "I hope she doesn't burn too many meals while perfecting her cooking."
Starting the speech with a laugh and ending it with a laugh will make it memorable, which is the goal.
<1b>— Rebecca Halik