Jan. 19, 2026

257. Move Your Audience: Lessons From MLK You Should Use

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257. Move Your Audience: Lessons From MLK You Should Use

Why it’s not about being born a great communicator, but becoming one.

 

The greatest communicators aren’t always great from the start. As Lerone Martin knows, even the great Martin Luther King Jr. had to practice before he could persuade.

Martin is the Martin Luther King Jr. Centennial Professor at Stanford, and as director of the King Research and Education Institute, he has spent years studying how King developed his brilliant communication that continues to captivate audiences to this day. “This is a skill that Martin developed over years,” Martin says. “There are stories of him practicing in the mirror... And I think it speaks to us about how we can develop this skill over time.”

In this episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, Martin and host Matt Abrahams unpack the techniques behind King's legendary speeches, from the musicality of his voice to his use of repetition and narrative structure. Whether you’re preparing a speech or building conversation skills, Martin highlights King’s example to show that great communication isn’t always born — it’s built.

To listen to the extended Deep Thinks version of this episode, please visit FasterSmarter.io/premium.

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Chapters:

 

  • (00:00) - Introduction
  • (02:50) - Why MLK Was So Compelling
  • (04:17) - MLK’s Early Speaking Struggles
  • (05:49) - How MLK Practiced and Improved
  • (06:44) - Favorite MLK Speech
  • (07:58) - “I Have A Dream” and Prepared Spontaneity
  • (10:03) - MLK’s Core Techniques
  • (13:01) - Repetition, Rhythm, and Momentum
  • (15:30) - Conviction vs. Performative Messaging
  • (19:00) - The Final Three Questions
  • (23:35) - Conclusion

 

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Chapters

00:00 - Introduction

02:50 - Why MLK Was So Compelling

04:17 - MLK’s Early Speaking Struggles

05:49 - How MLK Practiced and Improved

06:44 - Favorite MLK Speech

07:58 - “I Have A Dream” and Prepared Spontaneity

10:03 - MLK’s Core Techniques

13:01 - Repetition, Rhythm, and Momentum

15:30 - Conviction vs. Performative Messaging

19:00 - The Final Three Questions

23:35 - Conclusion

Transcript

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Matt Abrahams: Conviction and creativity
are critical for successful communication.

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My name's Matt Abrahams and I
teach Strategic Communication at

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Stanford Graduate School of Business.

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Welcome to Think Fast
Talk Smart, the podcast.

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Today I'm excited to
speak with Lerone Martin.

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Lerone is the Martin Luther King Jr.
Centennial professor in religious

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studies and African American
studies at Stanford University.

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He also serves as the director of
the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research

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and Education Institute at Stanford.

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His second book will be out soon.

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Well, welcome Lerone.

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I am so excited to have you here.

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We've known each other for a while and
we've been talking about doing this.

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Thanks for being here.

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Lerone Martin: Happy to be here.

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Matt Abrahams: Excellent.

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Shall we get started?

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Lerone Martin: Let's get started.

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Matt Abrahams: Every one of our episodes
of this show ends with me asking our

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guests the same question, who's a
communicator that they admire and why?

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And above all else, the two most
popular answers are Michelle Obama

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and Martin Luther King, Jr. I'm not
sure of your knowledge of Michelle

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Obama, but I certainly know you're an
expert in Martin Luther King, Jr. Why

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do you think so many people view him
as a great speaker and communicator?

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Lerone Martin: I think one of the
things that makes Martin so fascinating

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and so compelling as a speaker is
his ability to paint a picture.

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I think he was so good at taking
you on a journey and painting a

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picture, and then getting people
excited about what he was saying.

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And I think his ability to bring
out emotion, to bring out excitement

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in his listeners, I think is
one reason why people really

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gravitate to him as a preacher.

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And I also think his ability to
use his voice almost like a musical

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instrument, that's the other reason
that people are so moved by him.

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The musicality of his
voice, his pacing, his tone.

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I'm teaching a class right now
here on campus, and for some of

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the assignments, students actually
have to listen to his speeches.

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Obviously I could assign them to read
them, but I tell them they have to hear

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it and I want them to hear him, and I
want them to hear how audiences responded.

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And students are still to this
day, moved by his speeches.

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Even, you know, almost
over 60 years later.

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Matt Abrahams: The imagery that he's
able to create, the connection through

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that engagement and energy, and certainly
the way he used his voice are all, when

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combined together, I think what make
him so charismatic and so interesting.

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And these are skills we can all learn,
not to try to sound like him, but these

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are the same levers that we can use.

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Speaking of public speaking in, in
your new book, you look at Martin

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Luther King Jr's early years, is it
true that he received poor grades

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in public speaking in Oratory?

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Lerone Martin: He did.

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I mean, they were passing grades, but
they weren't a's, as you would expect.

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He participated in a speech
contest as a high school student.

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He won the high school contest and then
he went to the state competition and

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did not even place in that competition.

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When he got to college, he had to take
a course called Composition and Reading

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with this legendary professor at Morehouse
by the name of Gladstone Lewis Chandler.

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And he said that King had a great
voice, but he really struggled, um,

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showed potential in that course.

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And so he got a C in that
class as a public speaker.

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And then he went on to seminary and took
a preaching class in which he got a B. So,

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I think what that tells us is that this is
a skill that Martin developed over years.

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He had a great voice, his mother taught
him to sing at a very young age, so we

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had the musicality, but in terms of the
pacing, the organization, I think this

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is something he developed over time.

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And I think it speaks to us about how
we can develop this skill over time.

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Matt Abrahams: I'm curious, was
it mostly through repetition?

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Did he really invest time and effort
in improving his communication?

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Did he look to others who he admired?

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Lerone Martin: There are stories
of him practicing in the mirror.

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And then when he was off to seminary,
his father would have him come home

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every summer and take over the pulpit.

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So, he had those hours of
rehearsing and practicing in

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front of people at his church.

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And so he took it very seriously.

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And then he admired local
preachers, not as much his father.

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He felt his father was a bit
too fundamentalist and carried

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away too much with emotion.

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But he admired people like William Holmes
Borders, who was a local minister at

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Wheat Street Baptist Church in Atlanta.

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And these individuals were really
influential and shaped the way that

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he thought about public speaking.

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And he brought elements of their style,
his own style, the musicality he was

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taught from his mother, and he brought
all that together to produce the

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Martin Luther King Jr. that we know.

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Matt Abrahams: What I'm hearing
and that I hope everybody is

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hearing that we can all get better.

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Absolutely.

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And even somebody that we admire and is
noted for his oratory and speaking ability

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might not have started there, but it was
through practice, having role models.

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You know, if you wanna be a good speaker,
you gotta watch people speak, and

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speak yourself, and I appreciate that.

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Almost everybody is familiar with the
eloquence of Martin Luther King Jr's.

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I Have a Dream speech.

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I actually find his Nobel Prize
acceptance speech to be more

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rousing and better architected.

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Do you have a favorite speech,
sermon or writing of his, and

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if so, what is it and why?

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Lerone Martin: It's a great question.

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It depends on what day you ask me
about which speech i'll tell you,

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I've been a big fan of the speech
he gave here at Stanford in 1967.

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It's a speech called The Other America.

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Our Stanford Library has put it
on YouTube, you can watch it.

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What I love is that it's about 45
minutes and he doesn't stumble once.

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There's no manuscript.

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It's all coming from his heart
and mind, and it's a speech about

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poverty in America, and it's also
a speech about racism and war.

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And watching him hold this audience of
over a thousand Stanford undergraduates

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in the palm of his hand as he's delivering
this speech, I find extremely moving,

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and I try to watch it at least once a
year because I find it just so moving.

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Matt Abrahams: I adore the speech as well.

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I think it's very well done and
obviously having a connection to

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this institution makes it special.

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You mentioned in there that
it wasn't a manuscript.

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Can you share with us a little
bit of the history behind the

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famous I Have a Dream speech.

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Is it true that part of that, if
not most of it was extemporaneous?

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Lerone Martin: Yes.

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The, I Have a Dream part of the speech
towards the end and the repetition

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of that is something that he had not
written down that he was going to do.

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However, to our point earlier
about practice, he had used that

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refrain twice prior, once in
Detroit and once in South Carolina.

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It was a part of his repertoire, but
it was a part of the repertoire that

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he did not plan to use that day.

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And I like that idea in the sense that
you can have a manuscript prepared,

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but it's always great, I think, as a
public speaker to try your best, to be

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attuned to the moment, to be attuned to
your audience and to be open to perhaps

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deviating a bit in a public address.

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Matt Abrahams: I do a lot of work on
spontaneous speaking, speaking in the

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moment, and one of the fundamental
points I try to make is that you

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have to prepare to be spontaneous.

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An athlete does a lot of drills to prepare
for the moment that is spontaneous.

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And it sounds like in a similar
way, the I Have a Dream speech

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had some of those elements.

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He had practiced some of this but
hadn't intended, and for whatever

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reason in that moment, felt that was
the appropriate thing to bring about.

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And I think there's a lesson for all
of us in that as well, which is you

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can practice, you can think through
things, and then allow yourself in the

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moment to read the room, read the space.

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What amazes me is that was a very
big stage and a very important

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talk, and that he took that
opportunity to be spontaneous.

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I think many of us would've
stuck to the script that we had.

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Lerone Martin: But I like the way you said
though, about practice, the repetition

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will allow you to be spontaneous.

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I like that.

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And using the metaphor
of an athlete is so true.

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Thinking about Steph Curry and
LeBron James and others, like they

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do what they do and sometimes it's
impromptu, but that muscle memory

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right, enables them to do that.

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And I think approaching public speaking
like that, I love that metaphor.

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Matt Abrahams: It's that practice and
knowing that practice is preparing

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you for that is important as well.

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To know that in that moment I have
those skills and I can rely on

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them is really important, there's
a confidence that comes from that.

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As someone who's extensively studied Dr.
King's writings and speeches, I'd love

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for you to share with us some of the
techniques and devices that he would use.

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You've highlighted some already,
but he was excellent at using

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lots of different oratorical and
rhetorical devices to really engage.

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Can you share with us some of the ones
that you note or pay attention to?

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Lerone Martin: Absolutely.

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And I love the way he said that
'cause he is kind of a jazz man in

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that he pulls from different styles.

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So I think one style that we,
that you know first and foremost

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will be the experience of the
African American Baptist Church.

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His ability to use narrative and
story from the Bible to elucidate

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modern points, I think was something
he learned from the pulpit.

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Bringing pathos, bringing emotion
right to his speeches, that's

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something he learns from the pulpit
in the Black Baptist tradition.

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And part of that is organizing a sermon
around what some African American

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preachers have talked about, in
particular Samuel Dewitt Proctor, who

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went to the same seminary as King before
King, Crozier Theological Seminary.

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And he, in a book called The Sound of
the Trumpet, talked about organizing

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sermons along the lines of an antithesis.

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The world is so bad, things aren't
going well, and then a thesis,

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but God or the Bible says this.

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And then ending with a synthesis
about, now how are we then to live?

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What are we now called to do?

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And I think that King's structure
of his sermons often followed that.

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The world is bad.

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It may be racism or poverty or war.

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Here's what the Bible says, and
now here's how we ought to live.

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So I think the structure of the
African-American sermon, I think

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the emotion of it, I think is one
aspect we can look to for King.

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And then the other is, I think
what we talked about earlier, is

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just the pacing and the musicality.

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He is so good at emphasizing
certain words, slowing down,

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elongating certain phrases.

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So I think the musicality, the tonality,
I think that's another mechanism

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or device that he used so well.

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And finally, I think, you know,
of course, it's the content.

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I love the way that he not only
uses biblical stories, but King

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will also use examples from everyday
life to really elucidate his points.

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And I think in providing a story, you
bring your audience with you on a journey.

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And you are taking them somewhere.

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And I love the way that he does that, both
using the Bible, but everyday experiences.

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He will use examples of his own
personal life to elucidate a

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broader point, to connect people
around their shared humanity.

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And I think those sort
of techniques, right?

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It's the musicality, it's the structure
of the African American sermon, the

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emotion of the sermon and the ability
to use narrative and storytelling I

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think are some of the devices he used
and just made him the man that we know.

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Matt Abrahams: We don't have to
necessarily refer to the Bible, just

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making any reference to some commonly
understood experience or story can help.

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And he uses even more specific techniques
that I'd love to get your opinion on.

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He uses a lot of alliteration where
there's a rhyme in what he says.

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There's a technique called
anaphora, which is the repetition.

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The I have A Dream is repeated,
in his Nobel Prize speech

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he repeats the same phrases.

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And there's a sense of momentum, a sense
of passion that comes in that repetition.

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The use of analogies is so
powerful in a lot of his work.

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When you really dissect it, it's
fascinating to see how many different

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techniques he weaves together.

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And I think for many of us, we
can say that was Martin Luther

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King Jr. He was an expert at it.

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But we can all put some of
this into our communication.

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Do you find, trying to put some of
this stuff in your work, tell me a

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little bit about how you do that.

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I'd love to learn 'cause I'd like
to put even more in what I do.

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Lerone Martin: Well, what you just said
about repetition is what I try to do in my

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public speaking and some of my lectures,
because you do get a sense of momentum.

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He uses it in a speech, his last
actually speech on April 3rd.

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I mean, everyone knows the mountaintop
part, but before that, he goes on this

00:12:04.260 --> 00:12:08.699
long discourse about if I had sneezed
and he's telling a story about that

00:12:08.699 --> 00:12:10.739
he had been stabbed in the 1950s.

00:12:11.010 --> 00:12:14.270
It was stabbed by a letter
opener by a a mentally ill woman.

00:12:14.459 --> 00:12:17.719
And the doctors had told him it
just missed his aorta, and if he had

00:12:17.719 --> 00:12:20.060
sneezed, then he would've not survived.

00:12:20.390 --> 00:12:23.990
And so he uses that and says, if I
had sneezed, I wouldn't have been

00:12:23.990 --> 00:12:27.050
here in 1961 when this happened.

00:12:27.199 --> 00:12:30.109
If I had sneezed, I wouldn't
have been here in 1962.

00:12:30.290 --> 00:12:33.890
And it brings it all the way back
up to 68 with this momentum that

00:12:33.890 --> 00:12:35.449
then say, and now here we are.

00:12:36.090 --> 00:12:40.710
And now we're going to move forward and
continue the progress in American society.

00:12:41.069 --> 00:12:44.430
I love the use of repetition
in that regard because it does

00:12:44.819 --> 00:12:45.990
bring your audience with you.

00:12:45.990 --> 00:12:48.780
It's almost like you're on a
rollercoaster and you're going tick,

00:12:48.780 --> 00:12:51.569
tick, tick up to the top, and then
you're about ready to take off.

00:12:51.870 --> 00:12:53.130
So I like to use that.

00:12:53.130 --> 00:12:57.365
And as well as everyday experiences
of shared humanity that I try

00:12:57.365 --> 00:12:58.565
to use for my students, right?

00:12:58.565 --> 00:13:02.555
So I know that all of them are probably
not sleeping well or all of them are

00:13:02.555 --> 00:13:06.005
probably eating certain types of foods
or they're stressing out 'cause we're

00:13:06.005 --> 00:13:07.115
getting to the end of the quarter.

00:13:07.475 --> 00:13:12.305
I try to use those experiences to relate
to the course material, to understand

00:13:12.305 --> 00:13:15.035
that this is a shared experience,
that all of us are going through this

00:13:15.035 --> 00:13:17.525
together and there's a way forward.

00:13:17.610 --> 00:13:21.720
So I think that I tried to use some
of the stuff that King used as well

00:13:21.720 --> 00:13:23.340
in my lectures and my public speaking.

00:13:23.460 --> 00:13:26.010
Matt Abrahams: And I know from what the
students say, it's very well received.

00:13:26.310 --> 00:13:28.830
I wanna highlight on
this notion of momentum.

00:13:28.830 --> 00:13:33.030
The feeling and experience of
movement that happens in really

00:13:33.030 --> 00:13:34.770
potent, powerful speeches.

00:13:34.980 --> 00:13:36.600
And I think he was a master of that.

00:13:36.600 --> 00:13:40.950
And I think all of us can tap into, it's
not just talking about movement, but

00:13:40.950 --> 00:13:42.990
it's actually giving us an experience.

00:13:43.335 --> 00:13:45.855
Saying words more quickly,
more slowly repeating.

00:13:45.855 --> 00:13:48.225
These are all tools that give that,
and that's really, really helpful.

00:13:48.960 --> 00:13:51.930
Something else that's really powerful
about Martin Luther King Jr's

00:13:51.930 --> 00:13:56.250
communication is that he was rooted
in a clear purpose to achieve justice.

00:13:56.550 --> 00:14:00.510
I'd like you to step out of your role
as a, as an academic teacher, how can

00:14:00.569 --> 00:14:04.890
contemporary leaders and managers ensure
their messages are anchored in something

00:14:04.890 --> 00:14:10.319
that's genuine, a purpose, rather than
appearing as just performative statements?

00:14:10.620 --> 00:14:12.270
Lerone Martin: Yeah, I think conviction.

00:14:12.600 --> 00:14:18.345
I think you've just, you've really
got to be completely convinced of

00:14:18.345 --> 00:14:21.495
the cause that you're speaking about
or the issue you're addressing.

00:14:21.555 --> 00:14:24.915
'Cause I think in today's world,
people can spot when people are

00:14:24.915 --> 00:14:28.695
fraudulent or when people are
just, as you said, just performing.

00:14:29.085 --> 00:14:32.745
I think that you've gotta be completely
convinced and completely convicted

00:14:32.745 --> 00:14:36.165
of what you're saying, because if
you're not convinced it's gonna be

00:14:36.165 --> 00:14:37.635
difficult for you to convince others.

00:14:37.875 --> 00:14:41.880
And I think King was completely
convinced about at least where

00:14:41.880 --> 00:14:45.090
he thought America could get to
or where he wanted America to go.

00:14:45.420 --> 00:14:48.480
He wasn't always sure about what
was the best method to get there,

00:14:48.480 --> 00:14:49.890
other than of course non-violence.

00:14:49.980 --> 00:14:53.550
But he was always convinced that
what he was doing was right.

00:14:53.640 --> 00:14:55.950
And I think that's a lesson for all of us.

00:14:55.950 --> 00:15:00.150
I think we have to ourselves be convinced
and convicted of what we're talking

00:15:00.210 --> 00:15:02.160
about before we can convince others.

00:15:02.310 --> 00:15:03.900
And I think that King shows us that.

00:15:04.375 --> 00:15:06.594
Matt Abrahams: That notion of
conviction is really powerful.

00:15:06.594 --> 00:15:09.985
It takes reflection To get there, you
have to think about what's important

00:15:09.985 --> 00:15:13.885
to me, and then the next step is,
how do I manifest that in my own

00:15:13.885 --> 00:15:16.074
actions so that I'm seen as authentic.

00:15:16.285 --> 00:15:18.954
It's very easy as a leader
to talk about values.

00:15:18.954 --> 00:15:22.344
It's a little more challenging
to live them, to to show them.

00:15:22.730 --> 00:15:25.790
I always talk with my students
about credibility comes not

00:15:25.790 --> 00:15:27.079
just from telling, but showing.

00:15:27.230 --> 00:15:30.860
And so finding ways to show through the
stories you tell, through the actions,

00:15:30.860 --> 00:15:32.930
through who you highlight and uplift.

00:15:33.140 --> 00:15:36.140
So I really appreciate that notion of
conviction and I challenge everybody

00:15:36.140 --> 00:15:39.740
listening regardless of your role to
really think about what has you convicted,

00:15:39.740 --> 00:15:40.980
what is it that's important to you?

00:15:42.599 --> 00:15:43.739
This has been fantastic.

00:15:43.920 --> 00:15:46.140
Before we end, I'd like to
ask everybody three questions.

00:15:46.140 --> 00:15:49.410
One, I make up just for you, and two are
similar to everyone I've interviewed.

00:15:49.770 --> 00:15:54.089
I'm curious if you had this moment
to share with younger people

00:15:54.359 --> 00:15:56.400
the importance of communication.

00:15:56.489 --> 00:15:58.140
Share with me why it's so important.

00:15:58.140 --> 00:16:01.260
I mean, you and I prior to the interview,
we're talking about AI and how AI

00:16:01.260 --> 00:16:04.589
is being used, and certainly it's a
wonderful tool to help with communication.

00:16:04.645 --> 00:16:07.845
But, from your perspective, somebody
who studied one of the greats and

00:16:07.845 --> 00:16:11.355
many of the greats in communication,
why is it so important for a young

00:16:11.355 --> 00:16:14.444
person to learn how to communicate
authentically with conviction?

00:16:14.820 --> 00:16:19.380
Lerone Martin: Well, I think the first
thing would be to inspire others.

00:16:19.500 --> 00:16:22.140
If we're thinking about Martin
Luther King Jr. one of the things

00:16:22.140 --> 00:16:25.440
that he always said was, life's
most persistent and urgent question

00:16:25.440 --> 00:16:26.670
is, what are you doing for others?

00:16:26.880 --> 00:16:31.515
And I think what he shows us is how
communication can inspire others to dream.

00:16:31.875 --> 00:16:33.405
Good communication, I should say.

00:16:33.495 --> 00:16:35.655
So I think that's one thing
I would tell a young adult.

00:16:35.745 --> 00:16:40.035
How do you wanna inspire others
and move others and help to

00:16:40.035 --> 00:16:41.385
have an impact on the world?

00:16:41.564 --> 00:16:43.125
Great communicators can do that.

00:16:43.305 --> 00:16:46.275
Even if you have great ideas, if
you don't know how to communicate

00:16:46.275 --> 00:16:50.115
them in an effective manner, the
greatness of your ideas or the

00:16:50.115 --> 00:16:52.035
genius of your ideas can get lost.

00:16:52.125 --> 00:16:55.095
So I would say to a young person,
if you really want to have an impact

00:16:55.095 --> 00:16:58.905
on your community, you want to
inspire others, learn how to be a

00:16:58.905 --> 00:17:02.625
great communicator, and I think that
you'll find you'll have an impact on

00:17:02.625 --> 00:17:04.305
your community and those around you.

00:17:04.815 --> 00:17:08.714
Matt Abrahams: Inspiration is so
important and tools can't necessarily

00:17:08.714 --> 00:17:12.165
give you that, and it's not just for
young people, I think all of us benefit

00:17:12.165 --> 00:17:15.075
when we think about how we inspire
others through our communication.

00:17:15.075 --> 00:17:16.065
I really appreciate it.

00:17:16.395 --> 00:17:18.285
So I'm gonna modify my
second question for you.

00:17:18.315 --> 00:17:20.625
I always ask people, who's a
communicator you admire and why?

00:17:20.625 --> 00:17:23.685
But I'm gonna remove one from the
table for you, beyond Martin Luther

00:17:23.685 --> 00:17:27.015
King Jr., who is a communicator
that you admire and why?

00:17:27.469 --> 00:17:29.399
Lerone Martin: You know, I have
to go with who you started with.

00:17:29.399 --> 00:17:33.479
I'll join the crowd and say that I've
always been impressed with Michelle Obama.

00:17:33.750 --> 00:17:34.800
She's a great storyteller.

00:17:35.219 --> 00:17:39.000
And she can take you along on a
journey, she'll make a point, and then

00:17:39.000 --> 00:17:44.399
she'll tell an amazing story that's
heartfelt, that puts you in the moment.

00:17:44.699 --> 00:17:48.629
And she finds these common human
experiences and say, we all know what it's

00:17:48.629 --> 00:17:52.770
like to come home from work and then be
stressed about, okay, what's for dinner?

00:17:52.770 --> 00:17:53.610
Are the kids okay?

00:17:53.614 --> 00:17:53.745
Right.

00:17:54.360 --> 00:17:55.620
That takes you there.

00:17:55.740 --> 00:18:01.080
And then her conviction, she's
always able to convey her lectures

00:18:01.080 --> 00:18:02.610
and her speeches with feeling.

00:18:02.610 --> 00:18:04.740
You always get the
sense that this is real.

00:18:04.860 --> 00:18:06.330
So I'm a big fan of hers.

00:18:06.750 --> 00:18:08.250
I'm also a big fan of Barack.

00:18:08.250 --> 00:18:13.260
I think Barack does a great job
of reminding us, or at least

00:18:13.260 --> 00:18:16.659
attempting to remind America
of our values and who we are.

00:18:16.850 --> 00:18:18.645
And calling us to something greater.

00:18:18.855 --> 00:18:23.655
I love that when Barack speaks, he's
so good at painting the American story.

00:18:23.774 --> 00:18:25.875
He embodies it, as we
talked about earlier, right?

00:18:25.875 --> 00:18:27.855
I mean, his own story about his family.

00:18:28.245 --> 00:18:31.270
And I love the way that he
calls us into something greater.

00:18:32.040 --> 00:18:34.710
I've heard him on podcasts,
I've heard him give public

00:18:34.710 --> 00:18:36.600
lectures and I think he's good.

00:18:36.600 --> 00:18:39.780
So I, I guess you could say I'm
a fan of the Obama family when

00:18:39.780 --> 00:18:41.100
it comes to public speaking.

00:18:41.100 --> 00:18:43.770
I think they're very good and they're
both very gifted in their own way.

00:18:44.100 --> 00:18:47.370
Matt Abrahams: Michelle Obama's ability
to tell a story in much the same way

00:18:47.370 --> 00:18:50.400
that Martin Luther King Jr. Could tell
a story, they tell stories differently,

00:18:50.460 --> 00:18:52.080
but use them for the same purpose.

00:18:52.200 --> 00:18:56.730
To really connect, to demonstrate, to
humanize, and that's a very powerful tool.

00:18:56.790 --> 00:18:57.660
Thank you for sharing that.

00:18:57.965 --> 00:18:58.685
Final question.

00:18:58.804 --> 00:19:03.365
What are the first three ingredients that
go into a successful communication recipe?

00:19:03.754 --> 00:19:05.524
Lerone Martin: First three ingredients.

00:19:05.824 --> 00:19:06.814
Oh, wow.

00:19:06.905 --> 00:19:07.205
I like that.

00:19:07.995 --> 00:19:09.495
I wanna start with conviction.

00:19:09.764 --> 00:19:14.264
I think you gotta do, reflect
and be convinced of your message.

00:19:14.355 --> 00:19:17.355
And then I think, of course, it's
the structure, it's the format, it's

00:19:17.355 --> 00:19:19.095
this, you said the GPS, the mapping.

00:19:19.425 --> 00:19:22.995
If you're convinced to know where
you want to go, now you have to then

00:19:22.995 --> 00:19:24.254
plan how you're gonna get there.

00:19:24.435 --> 00:19:25.450
And then I would say pacing.

00:19:26.010 --> 00:19:27.720
What pace do you wanna travel?

00:19:27.870 --> 00:19:29.760
Fast, slow, or moderate it?

00:19:29.760 --> 00:19:30.000
Right?

00:19:30.000 --> 00:19:31.650
Do you know where is
there gonna be rest stops?

00:19:31.650 --> 00:19:34.230
There gonna be places where you're
gonna park and linger a little longer.

00:19:34.379 --> 00:19:36.570
So I think those would
be the three for me.

00:19:36.570 --> 00:19:39.720
I think it'd be conviction, and I
think it'd be structure or mapping,

00:19:39.900 --> 00:19:41.190
and then I think I'd say pacing.

00:19:41.595 --> 00:19:43.065
Matt Abrahams: I love the way
you wrapped up that answer.

00:19:43.065 --> 00:19:45.225
A true teacher will summarize in the end.

00:19:45.225 --> 00:19:46.905
Uh, you make my job really easy.

00:19:47.115 --> 00:19:49.395
Conviction is all about
your focus, your North Star.

00:19:49.515 --> 00:19:52.125
Structure is about how do I
package it in a way that's

00:19:52.125 --> 00:19:53.775
meaningful with high fidelity?

00:19:53.865 --> 00:19:56.745
And then pacing is you can have a
great message, but one delivered

00:19:56.745 --> 00:19:58.905
poorly isn't gonna be as effective.

00:19:59.295 --> 00:20:00.255
Thank you so much.

00:20:00.255 --> 00:20:03.795
Thank you not only for sharing your
thoughts, but for also helping us

00:20:03.795 --> 00:20:07.629
dissect and better understand the
importance of communication in general,

00:20:07.629 --> 00:20:11.379
but specifically around how Martin
Luther King Jr. was so effective.

00:20:11.590 --> 00:20:13.629
I appreciate your time and
thanks for being with us.

00:20:13.750 --> 00:20:14.920
Lerone Martin: It was an
honor and a privilege.

00:20:14.920 --> 00:20:15.639
Thank you for having me.

00:20:17.920 --> 00:20:19.810
Matt Abrahams: Thank you for
joining us for another episode of

00:20:19.810 --> 00:20:22.060
Think Fast Talk Smart, the podcast.

00:20:22.420 --> 00:20:25.000
To learn more about how to
deliver compelling communication

00:20:25.120 --> 00:20:27.080
listen to episode 192.

00:20:27.580 --> 00:20:32.620
This episode was produced by Katherine
Reed, Ryan Campos, and me, Matt Abrahams.

00:20:32.920 --> 00:20:36.525
Our music is from Floyd Wonder, with
thanks to Podium Podcast company.

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Lerone Martin Profile Photo

Professor | Author | Director of the Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford