The Passion Speech

I’ve become something of a board game nut in recent years. I love playing new board games, old favorites and everything in between. So when I was assigned to give a short (3-4 minute) speech in a public speaking class about a passion of mine, the topic was a no-brainer. In fact, the only challenge was saying something meaningful in so short a time.

I titled my speech Board Games are for Business and tried to convince my audience of fellow MBA students to give board games a second chance after (presumably) giving up on them after their childhood. I had hoped to post a video of my speech here, but due to a technical glitch, no audio was recorded. So instead, I’ll post the text of my speech more or less as it existed the night before I delivered it. It’s unfortunate you can’t hear me deliver the speech to the audience, so you’ll just have to take my word for it that everyone sat rapt as I convinced all of them to go out and buy Cosmic Encounter and Dominion. Ok, at the very least I didn’t put anyone to sleep.

My latest board game obsession: Cosmic Encounter. Want to play?

Speech Text

I want you all to imagine a rainy Saturday afternoon from your childhood. You’ve been stuck inside all day, and it doesn’t look like that’s going to change any time soon. What did you do to pass the time? For me, rainy afternoons often meant playing board games with my brother. I think we’ve all got memories of playing board games as kids: Monopoly – Free Parking, Go to Jail, flipping the board over in anger; we’ve all been there. But then over time, you probably stopped playing board games. I get it. I mean, I did too. As I got older, there were other hobbies, school, work, and never enough time in the day. Certainly not for games.

But that all changed for me a few years ago. A group of friends invited me to join them for a weekly game night, and very quickly, I was hooked. Today, I’m going to tell you why you should give board games a second chance too.

First, I’d like to get one thing out of the way. Board games are not “bored games.” You don’t have to be bored to play them, and if you have the right group of friends, you certainly won’t be bored while playing. Another misconception is that all games have a board and little pieces. These days, there is a much wider variety of games. There are strategic card games, casual party games, and a new generation of classic board games on steroids. We’ve come a long way since Monopoly and the Game of Life.

Board games are not bored games. I'm particularly proud of this creative graphic.

Today’s board games are never just about pure luck. A great board game is an intellectual challenge. Each game is like a puzzle that needs to be solved. But board games are also socially engaging. It’s a great way to get people together, laughing, and talking. No phones, screens, or distractions, just you and your friends. Finally, board games are just plain fun. Whether you’re competitive, strategic, or just looking for a quick diversion, there’s a board game for you.

This is what business looks like. Or so I've heard.

In thinking about board games, I’ve come to realize that they’ve actually got a lot in common with business, or in this case silhouettes doing power poses. There’s a lot of strategic thought involved. You need to think about your moves and how your opponent will react. Board games and business require you to formulate a plan and stick to it.

I’d like to tell you a story about that last point. Let me introduce you to my friend Thom. He’s the one who reintroduced me to board games. And he almost always loses. In fact, at some point during almost any game, he’ll utter a line he’s now famous for: “I hate this game.”

Thom. The man. The Myth. The Legend.

Thom’s biggest challenge with games is that he inevitably forgets his strategy in the middle of the game and falls behind. One night, however, everything was different. Thom had stumbled on a great new strategy for a game, and promised to share it with us as long as we wouldn’t use it against him, at least for a night. We agreed, and watched as Thom stuck to his plan for once, and won. Big. In fact, Thom’s strategy was so effective, we couldn’t even beat him when we teamed up the whole table against him! Make a great plan, and when you’ve got one, stick to it!

Thom's strategy was the DoubleJack strategy in Dominion. It's not unbeatable, but it is really good in most games, and makes me not want to play with that card (and maybe Dominion in general) for a while after I see it.

I hope that board games will be a fun, intellectually challenging part of your life going forward. If they’re not already, talk to me. We’ll make a plan, stick to it, and find a game that you won’t hate.

Reflections

I recently read Tim Urban’s recounting of preparing for and giving a TED talk. One of the great points he made in his blog post was about the tradeoffs between memorizing a speech and just talking about something you know. It’s easier to keep people engaged when you have a real plan, but it also increases the chances of making a mistake unless you have your speech “Happy-Birthday-Level” memorized. When I first started thinking about my speech, I decided I wanted to attempt to deliver it memorized. Then, in a move that Tim Urban (and probably you) could relate to, I put off the speech to the last minute.

I knew what I wanted to say, but I waited until the night before to actually write it all down and (attempt to) memorize it. Needless to say, the speech was not “Happy-Birthday-Level” memorized. There was one spot in my speech that I consistently had trouble remembering. So I practiced just that part, over and over and over until eventually, I felt like I had it down.

The mind is a funny thing, though. Once I got it in my head that that particular transition was difficult for me, it was almost impossible to guarantee that I would nail it in the speech. In fact, I didn’t. I froze and fumbled about for a couple of seconds. I ad-libbed a few lines until a found I way to get back on track. I was discouraged by the mistake, but it may not have been as noticeable to my audience. I’ve uploaded the (silent) video of my speech to YouTube and embedded it below. Feel free to give it a watch and imagine how wonderful I must have sounded in person (hint: really wonderful.) I’d be interested if you can pick up on my body language and spot where I get really nervous that I’ve forgotten my speech!

Feel free to leave a comment below. And if you’re not already playing board games, get in touch and I was serious about giving recommendations. I’m nothing if not opinionated!