The three pees of public speaking

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have repeatedly seen reference to there being 3 P’s of public speaking. One article by Anne L. Anastasi at the Philadelphia Business Journal on July 3, 2006 is titled Fearless public speaking is a simple as learning the 3 P’s. A second article by Nancy Daniels at Ezine articles on August 14, 2009 is more explicitly titled: The 3 P’s of public speaking – prepare, practice and present. A third article by Veronica Harth at LinkedIn Pulse on July 4, 2017 also is titled 3 Ps of public speaking.

 

But there is a more explicit and important meaning about preparation, the Three Pees. You should plan to urinate thrice that day, lest you wind up trying to speak with an overflowing bladder. A fourth article by Kevin Lerner at PresentationTeam on May 27, 2019 titled Dealing with distractions – public speaking tips when the unexpected strikes warned:

 

“One of the last things I do before taking the stage is to take a quick trip to the restroom to empty my bladder. It’s a habit learned from having to do the pee-pee dance on stage once following a hearty breakfast rich with water and orange juice. I raced through my presentation and ended five minutes early, clearly in a state of discomfort.”

 

The first time should be very early in the day, before you head to the venue. This is in case you have a shy bladder, as discussed in a fifth article by Dario Sabaghi at Discover on December 18, 2020 titled Shy bladder syndrome is a social phobia that’s more common and treatable than people realize.

 

But some have argued instead that a full bladder can be beneficial. A sixth article by Brad Phillips at The Throughline Blog on August 24, 2014 is titled Should you really use a restroom before a speech? He told how British Prime Minister David Cameron claimed that condition helped him focus. A seventh article by Brandon Specktor at the Reader’s Digest on December 23, 2018 is titled The convincing reason you should hold your pee – sometimes. The transcript to a TED-Ed talk by Heba Shaheed titled Is it bad to hold your pee? discusses the anatomy and physiology. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I agree with the quotation shown above (attributed to Ulysses S. Grant as related by Lew Bryson in the 2009 book, Pennsylvania Breweries). Similar sentiments by others are described on page 185 of The Dictionary of Modern Proverbs.

 

Images of three urinals and a photo of Grant came from Wikimedia Commons.