public speaking consultancy
the orator
about us
Who is the orator?
An engineer and a linguist sharing a passion for the spoken word, with a firm conviction: form is content. They way you say it, is what you say. We read, study and know more than ever before, but stumble when we are forced to talk about it. Nerves get the best of us and any attention to the audience fades.
The Orator wants to reinvigorate public speaking. During workshops, keynotes and coaching sessions they try to show that solid content can sound articulate and persuasive. And above all, that speaking well should not be as tedious as it seems.
engineer with intuition
Dietmar Hertsen
background
Bio-engineer, moon extinguisher, PhD in quantum chemistry, avid runner, parttime Dutch and patent attorney trainee.
rhetorical heroes
Richard Feynman elucidates the intricacy of a dental drill and how the spaceshuttle Challenger crashed.
Dietmar
engineer with intuition
linguist with precision
Edward De Vooght
background
Latinist, Ghentian, PhD fellow studying political rhetoric and persuasion, parttime Italian and jazz fanatic.
rhetorical heroes
Cicero. His Pro Caelio frees Marcus Caelius Rufus.
Edward
linguist with precision
ingenieur met buikgevoel
Dietmar Hertsen
achtergrond
Bio-ingenieur, maneblusser, doctor in de kwantumchemie, loper, parttime-Nederlander en patent attorney trainee.
retorische held
Richard Feynman legt uit hoe een tandartsboor werkt en waarom de spaceshuttle Challenger neerstortte.
latinist met precisie
Edward De Vooght
achtergrond
Classicus, stroppendrager, doctoraatsonderzoeker naar politieke retoriek en overtuiging, parttime-Italiaan en jazzfanaat.
retorische held
Cicero draait en keert de Romeinse geesten en spreekt landverrader Caelius vrij met humor en een vleugje drama.
what we do
Keynotes
Inspiring speeches pinpointing the importance of public speaking and the vigor of the spoken word.
teambuildings
Relaxing group activities filled with playful speaking exercises defying all expectations.
consultancy
Guidance to deliver that one speech, pitch or presentation with a lasting impact.
coaching
Personal counseling to transform a speaker into a dazzling orator whose each and every word persuades.
Education
Development of educational materials and courses in rhetoric for pupils and students of all ages.
our mission
why the orator is needed
Speaking is no longer worth a golden medal, but barely loose sand. We don’t have it at our finger tips anymore. Becoming increasingly lenient towards our speaking skills, we don’t question our skills any longer. Nobody graduated without rhetoric. Today, not even lawyers learn to speak anymore. If the animals could speak, they would undoubtedly outdo us.
Do we take it too far? Yes, we don’t need an hourglass to time our pauses, nor six years of Jesuits to write a plea. We don’t need to be animals to have a passion for stories, all we need is a listening ear but we throw all of those obvious things away because the packaging doesn’t matter anymore. We consider good public speaking to be a tool for shady managers with shady companies.
Have we become immune to it then? That’s wishful thinking. Even though we have lost our speaking skills and the packaging has become as loose and cheap as words: we have become blind. The rhetorical tricks, we don’t recognise them anymore. Applications, pitches, exams, debates and wedding parties: we are being fooled. Every single one of us, except the orator of course.
orators
companies
social profit
education
keynotes
