To be a successful speaker, it is essential for you to know why you are speaking and what you wish to accomplish by your speech. The four most common 1 of speech are to inform, to convince, to move to action, and to entertain. Do you, like a teacher or an expert in a(an) 2 , wish to make your ideas clear to people unfamiliar with your subject? Or, like a debater, wish to convince the judge or the audience? Or, like a fund raiser for a naturalist foundation, wish to secure donations or invest cash? Or, like a comedian or an after-dinner speaker, wish to entertain? The language and the tone that you use must be important for your purpose, for your audience and for the occasion.