Promoting
something like a book requires one to be good at the power of persuasion.
Lawyers know this skill well, as do politicians, businessmen, and husbands and
wives. So do debaters. My nephew, who attends Booklyn Technical High School, just won the New York State HS Debate Championship with his debate partner, Dante
DeBlasio, the son of New York Mayor Bill DeBlasio. The duo was recently
featured in The New York Times. Here is
the story: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/20/nyregion/dante-de-blasio-mayors-fast-talking-son-is-a-new-debate-champion.html?hpw&rref=nyregion&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=well-region®ion=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well
. They also
participated in an interview with BookMarketingBuzzBlog. Here it is:
Interview with Dante DeBlasio
1.
What do
you find fulfilling about debating others? Debate is an ideal opportunity
to learn about current events and alternative views on a wide variety of
topics. Debaters are given the unique opportunity to dive deeply into a topic
for a year and consider policy solutions to many current issues. I also enjoy
the competitive aspect of debating, especially the ability to face some of the
best teams in the state and country.
2. Does debating help you see there are two
sides to every issue-- or does it make it clear to you that one side is truly
right on an issue? Debate shows that there are often two sides to an issue,
but one side usually has better arguments supporting it. One good aspect of
debate is that it forces you to learn both sides of an issue, but at times this
can be a bad thing since we might have to support a position we know is badly
supported or one that goes against our beliefs.
3. Is the debate team's success inspiring you
to consider a career in law or politics? The debate team has definitely led
me to look more deeply into our legal and political solutions for issues that
affect the world. I am still not sure what career I want.
4. As a key member of the NY State champion
high school debate team, how would you describe what it is like to partner with
Sam and work together with the goal of winning every argument? Sam has
been a great partner this year and we’ve worked very well together, which was
instrumental towards this victory. The most important thing has been finding
the best ways to complement each other’s strengths and ensuring that the
workload is evenly distributed. Communication has also been very important
since we both need to understand the strategies we are employing.
5. What skills or techniques do you employ to
be so convincing? I use three main techniques to be convincing. The first
is voice control, I use my voice’s loudness and tone to emphasize certain
important points and I use my voice to carry emotion. The second is posture; I
adopt a confident pose at the beginning of every speech and don’t sway or move
excessively which allows me to show assertiveness. The third is rebuttal
skills. If you are able to effectively answer your opponent’s arguments in a
direct manner judges will look more favorably upon your speech
performance.
Interview
With Sam Eluto
1. How
do you prep for a debate?
I prep for debate by researching other people's positions on an open case list
and tailor my positions towards those arguments.
2. How
challenging is it to argue for a position you don't personally believe in? It isn’t relatively hard
because you can still bring up valid points with the position, even if you don’t
believe in it.
3. How
difficult is it to lobby for an argument when you don't feel fully informed on
the topic?
It is very hard, and that’s why you try to research before the debate.
4. What
does it feel like when you know you are convincing the judge and winning him or
her over? It
is hard to recognize because judges are supposed to be as objective as possible
5. Do
you recognize the potential power of being persuasive and being able to get
others to accept your point of view? Yes and it is a powerful skill that debate helps to foster
because you have to be able to convince a "judge" of your specific
argument in order to win, and you are supposed to do that under time
constraints and pressure. The ability to simulate the real world can get
you far in life.
DON’T MISS:
ALL NEW RESOURCE OF THE YEAR
2015 Book PR & Marketing Toolkit: All New
Brian Feinblum’s views, opinions, and ideas expressed in this blog
are his alone and not that of his employer. You can follow him on Twitter @theprexpert and email him
at brianfeinblum@gmail.com. He feels more important when discussed in the
third-person. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog © 2015
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.