Effective speakers use three modes of persuasion and appeal with audiences: ethos, pathos, and logos. Logos presents logical and rational arguments; pathos goes for emotional arguments or targets an emotional bond with the audience; ethos is a speaker's credibility.

Ethos can be established in a variety of ways. What a speaker wears to present in does affect that speaker's ethos. Audiences are making judgements about the speaker right from the moment they see that person. You might think that is unfair, but it can be a powerful tool to use in your favor as well. Beyond visual credibility is credibility that a speaker establishes during the speech. Audiences want to know that a speaker knows what they are talking about due to extensive research or personal experiences. The attached video of Dwayne Johnson shows him establishing a great deal of ethos by openly inviting his audience members to see what his daily routines are like. He informs them about times when he failed and was feeling down. He tells them about successes that he has had, and all of that works to establish his credibility as a motivational speaker.

A "regular" speaker can do the same kind of thing. For example, let's say that you are trying to convince your audience that Brooks running shoes are the best running shoes on the market. You can include all kinds of statistical data about the shoe construction, who wears them, durability, and so on. All of that information is establishing logos and pathos; however, if you admitted to never owning a pair, that would ruin your ethos. It would be much better to have an anecdotal story about how many more miles you were able to put on a pair of Brooks over a pair of Nike shoes. Your audience believes your stats so much more because they know you have so much confidence in the shoe that you are willing to purchase and use yourself.

Johnson begins using the rhetorical device of "ethos." He says that he will not be telling his audience what they ought to be doing but will, instead, mention some techniques that have worked for him. This is an excellent way of incorporating personal experience into a speech, but it is important to note that Johnson has a built-in advantage, since the audience already sees him as successful. If you are not famous, your examples will have to be even stronger to make your audience accept your experience as valid.

Johnson goes on to talk about his negative experiences, including evictions and arrests. This is a highly effective technique and a good way to build ethos. Audiences are not receptive to recitations of the speaker's triumphs, since they are likely to see this as boasting. It is more effective to stress the disadvantages under which you have worked. While it is worth talking about how you have overcome difficulties, it is important not to make yourself the hero of every anecdote and to include some self-deprecating humor, as Johnson does when he talks about another football player successfully challenging him for his position.

It is notable that Johnson does not make extensive use of visual aids, statistics, references, and other methods of supporting his speech, but when he does so, he actively incorporates them. Many speakers, when showing a video, appear to pause their presentation while doing so, letting the visual aid take over. Johnson, however, provides commentary to let the audience know what is happening and make the presentation flow more smoothly.