He can get away with jumping on a soap box, and that's for one main reason: he’s a great communicator. Yup, we’re talking about Matt Damon. Sure he’s popular, a talented writer and performer, etc., but so are many actors. This guy knows how to use specific communication tools to rally an audience and most importantly, come across sincere.

So here he went again, hitting a homerun while speaking at the Save Our Schools March a few days ago, not only to support his mother (a teacher and fellow activist), but all teachers who are fighting standardized test score-based funding. Regardless of how you feel about the subject, anyone can appreciate Matt’s ability to pump up the crowd.

Check out this clip so you can see what I’m talking about (or see the whole thing here).

Matt artfully matches his behavior to his content to come across genuine. Here are my keepers and improvements (have to keep it balanced feedback!).

Keepers:

• Story (one of our SHARP principles) – he weaves the point of his speech around his experiences in public schools. This personalizes the message, gives him credibility, and is memorable. When listing out all the growth he experienced in school, he brought it back to the point by saying, “None of these qualities that have made me who I am can be tested.”
• Concise – he’s up there for about five minutes, but but still gives a memorable and meaningful talk. No need to go on and on if you can do it succinctly.
• Vocal variety – he speaks clearly, with plenty of variation to avoid the monotone. He also takes time to pause and pace himself, which is especially important when speaking over a mic to a large audience. He gives them time to hear the ends of his sentences, and ups the ante.

Improvements:

• A lot of I, I, I – common mistake in messaging is to talk a lot about yourself when you’re proving the value of your idea, product, or service. To be the most influential and affect change, take every opportunity to make the message about your listeners.
• Reading – at the end of the day, when you look down to read, you’re breaking connection with your audience. It’s best to organize yourself and speak off the cuff while using eye communication with your listeners (we need to get him a Decker Grid!).
• Nonwords – um’s and uh’s creep in there. They chip away at the experience you create when speaking. Better to pause instead of inserting a filler word.

High hopes for Matt as a communicator going forward, even a Top 10 spot! (Maybe not as high as Michael Moore suggesting he run for President in 2012, though.) Anything stick out to you, in terms of what went well, and what could be improved?