Re: #2. Note cards are fine; the issue isn't "does the speaker have notes?" which no one minds but "is the speaker just reading his notes?" A lot of great spea

Re: #2. Note cards are fine; the issue isn't "does the speaker have notes?" which no one minds but "is the speaker just reading his notes?" A lot of great speakers will casually glance down at their notes and go, "Uhh.... oh yeah!" It's perfectly okay, because the point of a speech is not to look perfect, but to say something worth hearing.