Emotions in funeral speeches

One of the distinctive aspects of funeral speeches is their strong emotional charge. Knowing how to handle oneself within this scenario is fundamental when it comes to elaborating an effective and restorative message. The speaker must be a sensitive person with highly developed empathic skills. The average audience that attends this type of ceremony does so because they share a certain bond of affinity with the deceased. That said, we must choose our words carefully to manifest the empathy that is required in these cases.

During the development of this session, we will be offering you a series of basic recommendations to maintain an adequate emotional state during your presentations. This will be useful when preparing funeral speeches that will be remembered for their positivity and empathy towards the audience.

Emotional balance: No matter how much empathy we achieve with our audience, we will never be in the position of those who suffer the loss of the deceased. We cannot aspire for our emotional state to be the same as that of family, friends or acquaintances. This does not mean that we do not allow ourselves to be infected by the environment; clearly our more human side will come to the surface in such circumstances. Nevertheless, we have a job to do. We have been summoned to convey a comforting message.

Having said that, we have to focus on finding an emotional balance that allows us to share with our loved ones in a respectful way. We must not show indifference or coldness towards the pain of others, but neither can we encourage the proliferation of sadness or depression. Our message must stand out for its warmth and welcome to those who listen to us. It is important to note that although we are not part of that close circle, we are sensitive beings and we are also affected by the suffering of others.

When we balance our emotions, we manage to maintain professionalism without neglecting the feelings and regrets of all those who have come to the presentation. We have the task of serving as a bridge between grief and coping. Our perception of the scenario in which we find ourselves is what will tell us the level of intensity we should use in our speech. On some occasions, the family needs to cry and vent as a mechanism to relieve the emotional burden. This is not an aspect that you should fight, it is natural that each person has his or her own way of handling grief and as a mediator you have to respect it.

Body language: Our emotions are not only perceived through our words or verbal expressions. Body language in many occasions can transmit much more information than verbal. The emotional balance to which we referred above, must be extended to our body. The way we walk, our facial gestures or the movement of our hands can communicate emotions such as anxiety, sadness, discouragement, restlessness, among others.

Rehearse your movements before the presentation. If you focus only on taking care of the words, it is possible that they will not be coherent with your body language and you will end up provoking unwanted feelings in your audience. The idea is for your body to reflect calmness and passivity. You want your audience to find tranquility in your image and that when they look at your face they come across an empathetic person who knows how to understand the moment they are going through.

You must connect the mind with the body so that they coordinate automatically. For this you have to be able to feel what you express, approaching your audience in an honest way and understanding how they feel.