8月20日，公共演讲世界冠军赛（Toastmasters International world champion of public speaking）在美国落下帷幕。这可是全世界最大的演讲比赛，历时6个月，吸引了来自100多个国家超过30000名选手参加！这竞争简直是：
冠军最终花落这位27岁的新加坡律师——Darren Tay↓↓
点击观看魔性演讲8分钟 ▽▽▽
一般来讲，参加演讲比赛大家都是西装革履，可是Darren Tay一上台，竟然是这样的画风 ↓↓
What！这是在变相兜售内裤么……
Darren Tay从自己上中学时遭到凌辱的经历讲起。同学Greg让他把内裤穿在外面，在校园里走，百般羞辱他：
'Hey, loser! How do you like your new school uniform? I think it looks great on you.' Those were the words of my high school bully, Greg Amberfield. Now, if you're all wondering if the underwear that Greg used was clean, I had the same question.
“嘿！废物！你喜欢你的新校服吗？我觉得你穿着超赞的！”，这些话是我中学时期的恶霸格雷·安伯菲对我说的。好的，如果你们都在想，格雷给我穿的那件内裤是不是干净的，我也有同样的疑问。
不仅如此，Greg还经常把他半路拦住，扬言要给他一些颜色看看：
At age 14, when I went to school, my high school bully Greg, would stop me in my tracks during recess and would tell me, 'I'm gonna so get you outside. I'm gonna knock you in your teeth, punch you in the gut, and laugh at your sorry behind.' But he didn't quite use the word 'behind'. I just cleaned it up because this is a Toastmasters program.
我14岁上中学的时候，我学校的恶霸格雷会在下课时间拦住我，对我说：“我会在学校外面堵你，我会打断你的牙齿，狠锤你的肚子，然后嘲笑你的后面被打得落花流水。”只不过他当时用的不是“后面”这个词。我只是讲得比较文雅一点，毕竟这是演讲会的节目。
Greg如此嚣张的背后是因为，他的体型有这么大↓↓
Have you ever wondered why bullies always thought they need to tell you the exact sequence they're gonna bully you? My friends, whenever I heard those words, my hand would tremble. Have you ever felt so fearful that you could not eat or sleep? At age 16, Greg was six feet tall and weighed 240 pounds of what I can only presume to be biological insulation.
你有没有想过为什么恶霸总是认为他们需要告诉你欺凌你的每个步骤？各位朋友，每当我听到那些话，我的手就会发抖。你有没有那么害怕过？害怕到吃不下饭，睡不着觉？16岁的时候，格雷已经身高183公分，体重109公斤。我只能假设他是一种不同的物种。
为了应付Greg，Darren用尽了一个高中孩子所能想出的一切办法：给他送蛋糕、向老师告密、自己练跆拳道……
I tried everything I could. I tried buying a cake for Greg, hoping he would stop, only to have the cake on my face. I tried telling the teacher about it, only to have Greg torment me even more. I even tried taking up taekwondo and karate, only to break my wrist while I tried to hit a thin plank.
我尝试过一切可能的方法。我试着给他买蛋糕，希望他能就此罢手，只换来蛋糕砸在我的脸上。我试过跟老师告状，只换来他加倍折磨我，我甚至试过上跆拳道和空手道课。但是我在试图击破一块薄板时手腕骨折。
就在小Darren心灰意冷、行将认命的时候，婶婶曙光般地出现了：
She said, 'The way to deal with bullies is not to hide or run; the way to deal with bullies is to outsmart and outlast.' It was like a light bulb in my mind that went 'Bing! I can do that'.
她说：“对抗霸凌的方法不是躲也不是逃，而是你要比他更聪明更长久。”这句话让我的脑袋像灯泡一样亮起来，“叮！这我会啊！”
Darren于是做出了一个一劳永逸（once and for all）的决定：转学！
换完学校的Darren自然省心了不少，不过多年过去了，他竟然遇到了比Greg还要更强大的恶霸！这让他惶惶终日，觉得自己真是弱爆了：
Several years later, after my encounter with Greg, I met a bigger bully, a better bully, a stronger bully. And this bully, no matter what I do, I could not get rid of it. This bully would echo negative words to me, telling me I’m a loser, telling me that I would never ever succeed. My self-esteem would be so damaged that some days, I would just want to lie in bed, not wanting to get up. Have you felt that way before?
在我遇见格雷的几年后，我遇到了一个更大的恶霸，更厉害的恶霸，更强大的恶霸。这个恶霸，不管我做什么，我都没有办法摆脱它。这个恶霸会让负面的言语在我耳畔回响，跟我说我是个废物，我永远都不会成功。我的自信心被严重打击了，以至于有些时候我只想躺在床上不想起来。你们有过那样的感觉吗？
Darren说，这个恶霸洞悉他的日常，并且无时无刻不在跟踪他（This bully knew my schedule so well and would stalk me 24/7）：
原来，这个恶霸正是→→他自己。
My friends, as much as we try to deny it, we are our toughest and strongest bullies. We beat ourselves up, and put ourselves down. Have you ever felt that you are not good enough? I felt that way. At times, we are our worst enemies. And at this point in time, if you are wondering: How long is Darren going to have this underwear outside his pants? This is the world championship of public speaking grand finals. Isn't five minutes too long? If you felt that five minutes was long, how long have you been wearing your invisible underwear outside your pants? How long have you permitted your inner bully to take charge of your life? Five minutes isn't long.
各位朋友，就算我们试图在否认这件事，我就是我们自己最强悍的霸凌者。我们苛责自己，贬低自己。你是否曾经觉得觉得自己不够好？我有过。有时候我们就是自己最大的敌人。此时，如果你在想Darren到底要把内裤穿在外面多久？这可是一个公众演讲的世界冠军总决赛，五分钟难道不会太久吗？如果你觉得五分钟很久，你将那件看不见的内裤穿在外面多久了？你允许内心的恶霸控制你的生活多久了？五分钟真的不久。
多年以后，当Darren再次遇到Greg，当年恃强凌弱的恶霸如今却在教青少年怎么应对恶霸，简直是狗血剧有木有！
I met Greg. I was shocked to meet him at a Toastmasters' meeting. Since when did the Toastmaster's logo turn from 'Where leaders are made' to 'Where bullies are made'? Greg, by the way, is now a counselor teaching teenagers to combat bullies.
我居然遇到了格雷！在演讲会上遇到他我是真的很惊讶！从什么时候开始演讲会的标语从“领袖的摇篮”变成“霸凌的摇篮”。顺道一提，格雷现在是一个咨询师，教年轻人如何对抗霸凌。
Greg甚至给了Darren一些建议，教他怎么应对这个新的恶霸：
'The best way to deal with inner bullies is not to run or hide; you cannot run away from the bully here. The best way to deal with it is to stand firm, face it and acknowledge its presence. When you do so, you are no longer identifying with it. You are stepping out and observing it. It's like instead of being out there in the storm, you are now in the house watching the storm. Your inner bully will weaken and fade.'
“对抗内在霸凌的最好方法不是逃跑或是躲藏。你没有办法逃离住在心里的恶霸。对抗它的最好方法是态度坚定。正视它，并承认它的存在。当你这么做的时候，你就不再跟它一样了。你跳脱出来并在旁边观察它。就像是原本困在暴风雨里，现在你在家里从旁边观察这个暴风雨。你的内在霸凌将会减弱直至消失。”
在演讲的末尾，Darren鼓舞观众说：
I'm not afraid any more. I'm in control because I'm acknowledging it, I'm stepping out of it, observing it, and watching it weaken and fade. My friends, let us all not run away from our inner bullies anymore. Let us all face our inner bullies, acknowledge its presence, and fight. Let us all be vulnerable together as a family, supporting one another, because we can all outsmart and outlast.
我不再害怕。我掌控一切。因为我承认它，我走出它，观察它并看着它减弱最后消失。朋友们，让我们都不再逃避内在的霸凌。让我们一起正视我们内在的霸凌，承认它的存在，然后对抗它。让我们尽管脆弱，但如家人一般在一起，互相扶持。因为我们都可以更聪明和更长久！
获得冠军以后，Darren接受了Business Insider的采访，总结了一些演讲的技巧。
他说在台上演讲，你得让观众舒服（get the audience comfortable first）。
所以尽管年少时被凌辱是一件很伤心的事情，他还是决定有说有笑地来讲述。毕竟，当观众笑起来很放松的时候，他们更容易接受你接下来要讲的内容（when audience members laugh they are more open to your message）。
Darren还说，演讲得有一个贯穿始终的主题（develop a message and let the message guide your speech）。
有了主题以后，试着讲一个故事。“如果你能讲一个很有力的故事，你的信息会传递得更好。”（If you tell a very powerful story, it can help to bring a message across much better.）
此外，“好的演讲让观众觉得，你是在跟他们直接对话。”（Great speeches make audience members feel like the speaker is talking directly to them.）
所以在演讲过程中，Darren多次向观众发问，比如你们会不会觉得我内裤外穿五分钟已经太久了，你们有没有过因恐惧而难以进食和入眠的经历等。
除此之外，有效运用肢体语言（effectively use body language）也是很重要的。
Darren说，新手的手势常常要么离脸过近，显得自己很紧张，要么放得过低，让人分心。理想的手势位置应该是肚脐处（It's common for novice public speakers to have their gestures centered either too close to their face, which suggests nervousness, or too low, which is distracting. He said the ideal center is around the belly button.）。
双语君就希望大家在看完Darren的这段演讲以后，可以像他一样既不失风趣、又不乏深度！
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