Best Man CV
Some Best Men think they need to make their speech stand out by using technology, props and gimmicks. However, this can become all about the presentation not the content. Your focus should be on making your stories and jokes stand out, and for that you need a good structure.
The best structure for a Best Man speech is a simple one. And one of the simplest is the Best Man CV. It doesn’t draw too much attention to itself, and it doesn’t take too much set up.
So, how does the Best Man CV idea work in a speech?
Start your speech as you normally would. Introduce yourself and use an icebreaker or opening line to get people warmed up. There are some examples in this opening lines blog post. It’s now time to introduce the idea of the Best Man CV.
The bride is clearly a catch. She’s lovely, funny and kind. And the groom is… well, he’s the groom. So how on earth did he manage to get such a wonderful woman to sign on the dotted line? Why is he deserving of such a beautiful bride? Let’s take a look at his skills, talents and gifts and ask ourselves – do any of those words deserve to be used in the plural?
Generate your raw material
Brainstorm your ideas about the groom. Whether it’s big or small, a story or a foible – just get it down. It could be the time he fell asleep in a pub toilet. His obsession with true crime documentaries. His joy at beating an 8-year-old child at table tennis.
The more ideas you generate, the more potential patterns will appear. For example, the groom might always seem to set himself the challenge of getting home with no money, no co-ordination and no spatial awareness.
So, we now move on to the next stage: linking the ideas to Best Man CV headings.
Best Man CV examples
There are two ways you can approach the headings. You could draw up a list of typical qualities you see on a CV or profile. Things like attention to detail, team player, highly qualified or problem solver. Alternatively, you can look at the material you’ve got then think up a skill, talent or quality that matches it.
If he’s always late, you could have a section about how he is a “Creative timekeeper”. Most conventional people think “meet at 7pm” means 7pm. The groom thinks it means leave the house at 7pm then leave it to fate.
Here are some ways to match a heading with an idea.
Always goes the extra mile
Forget self-sacrifice, the groom knows this means falling asleep on the train or night bus and missing his stop.
Attention to detail
Like light from a black hole, nothing escapes the groom’s brilliant mind. His memory is the eighth wonder of the world. Just ask him what things he’s left behind in the pub and he’ll dazzle you with his recall: gloves, sunglasses, an iPad, his passport, his dignity.
Excellent budgeting
The groom loves to explore the boundaries and possibilities of finance. Like how much you can spend on things which aren’t food or rent. He is a man who knows how to restrict his spending to the essentials, such as video games, vinyl, golf equipment and beer.
Focussed
The groom is a man of such focus and determination that he sometimes forgets about the everyday things. Like having food in the fridge or remembering his friends’ birthdays. He much prefers to concentrate on life’s higher more spiritual goals like watching the latest Netflix documentary: “America’s Hottest Female Shoplifters”.
Likes a challenge
In his 20s, he clearly realised he was such a catch that when he went out on a Saturday night, he insisted on wearing the worst clothes imaginable to give the other guys a chance.
Putting others before himself
Nowhere is this more evident than in the pub. When it is suggested that it might be the groom’s turn to buy a round of drinks, his nobility shines through: “No. I believe it is others first.”
Work-life balance
Groom’s approach to this is admirable. Start each week with 100% leisure time then slowly introduce small amounts of work. On one occasion, it was so successful he managed an entire day in the office – albeit his lunch break lasted three hours.
Conclusion
The beauty of the Best Man CV is that it’s simple and flexible. You can simply make up each heading to fit the subject matter. Or you can write a heading first then think what could go with it. Once you’ve done that, each section can be as long as it needs to be.
It also allows for variation. If you’ve got lots of drinking stories, you can spread them over various headings rather than group them all together. You can also skip from stories that took place when he was a manager to when he was a teenager.
And you have a natural end point too. All these “qualities” mean the groom DOES deserve the bride. Especially when you end with some sincere remarks about what a good friend or brother he is. So, if you fancy using this format, why not get cracking? After you give the speech, the guests might congratulate you for your own great qualities: ability to deliver the brief and thinking outside the box.
Want more in-depth tips on how to construct your speech? Check out my Best Man structure post.