3 Practical Tips for Practicing a Eulogy

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Here are 3 super-practical tips for how to practice your funeral speech before the big day so that you can walk up to the rostrum with confidence.

You will most likely have butterflies in your stomach when it’s your turn to stand up and deliver the eulogy.  This is only natural. But you will feel more confident once you’re up there if you had practised your speech many times beforehand. You are likely to be very emotional while you are speaking.  The loss is so fresh, and the memories so powerful.  Under such circumstances, it is easy to lose track of your thoughts.

Practising your eulogy several times beforehand will help you remember the general points you wanted to make, even if you forget the exact order you wanted to make them in or a specific joke you wanted to tell.

1. Read the Eulogy Aloud as Many Times as Possible

Rehearsing your eulogy over and over is a highly effective public speaking tip.   Repetition will help you memorize your speech, which will really help you when the nerves on the day set in. You should have some notes to fall back on in case your mind goes momentarily blank. Keep in mind, though, that your eulogy will come across as more genuine and heartfelt if you are not reading it word-for-word off a piece of paper.

Reading the eulogy out loud to yourself in the days leading up to the service will help you recognize which parts are likely to make you emotional.  Being forewarned might make it easier to get through those parts on the day. Reading the eulogy aloud is also an effective way to improve the flow of your speech.  Words sound differently when read aloud than when you are reading them.  Through this process, you will be able to improve your eulogy.
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Everything might sound great to you, but others might find that one of your jokes is a little inappropriate or that your wording is a little awkward or confusing.

2.  Read Your Eulogy Aloud to a Family Member

In addition to reading the eulogy aloud to yourself, in order to work out the kinks and to memorize it, you should also read it aloud to a trusted family member or friend in order to get constructive feedback.

Everything might sound great to you, but others might find that one of your jokes is a little inappropriate or that your wording is a little awkward or confusing.  

It can be really helpful to get a second opinion from someone whose feedback you value.  This will only make your eulogy better.

Lastly, family members and friends might also be able to give you ideas or stories that you could incorporate into your eulogy.  As the old saying goes: “Many hands make light work.”

Focus on Key Points - The reality is that you won’t be able to cover everything; there will never be enough time. You should focus on making a couple of key points in your eulogy instead.

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3.  Time Your Eulogy

Once you have a final draft of your eulogy, it is important to time how long it takes to say out loud.   A good length for a eulogy is 3 to 5 minutes (10 minutes maximum).

You might feel as if 10 minutes is not enough to talk about all the things you want to. With a longer speech you run the risk of loosing your audience’s attention.

The reality is that you won’t be able to cover everything; there will never be enough time.  You should focus on making a couple of key points in your eulogy instead.