Speech Tips for People in a Hurry
For the past ten years I've been writing speeches, about once every other month. I've also helped others write speeches, usually in the context of Toastmasters but sometimes for TED talks, speeches for work, and other presentations.
Today I want to talk about how to pick a topic, make a title and introduction, build and practice your speech, and following up after you complete a speech.
I know we're all busy so I'll make this quick.
Sometimes the hardest thing is to just get started.
Over the years I've mentored nearly 20 students and members.
One of the most common questions I would get from my mentees was, “What should I talk about?”
I would tell my mentees, here’s the stuff you KNOW… here’s the stuff you passionately CARE about… and thirdly the stuff that the AUDIENCE cares about. That sweet spot in the middle is where you develop good speeches.
I keep a running list of ideas for possible speeches.
Whenever I think of a good topic, I write it down for future development.
Don’t do what my mentee Jessi would do.
Jessi was a personal trainer, very energetic and enthusiastic.
Once she said, “I’m going to do a speech about the AFRICAN DIASPORA: how black people were taken from Africa and brought to America, I want to talk about the Underground Railroad, and then I want to tie in exercise and nutrition and how that can heal our national psyche…”
I said, “Whoa, whoa, Jessi, that’s a topic for a four day conference, not a five minute speech.
Most Toastmasters speeches are five to seven minutes long.
In a five minute speech, you only have time to talk about one thing: one topic with perhaps three sub-topics, and a few stories to illustrate your point.
That translates to a one and one half pages, double spaced, or perhaps two, but no more.
One of the first things to do after you find out what you want to talk about and how much time you are allotted: find out what the goal is for the speech.
"If you don’t know where you are going, you'll end up someplace else"
-- Yogi Berra
Toastmasters has a kind of curriculum, to guide you through doing different speeches or to explore different aspects of basic speech making. I like to read through the speech criteria to review the lesson, then print out the evaluation so I know what I’m aiming for.
Next, the Title. A title can focus your speech. In this age of clickbaity articles, sometimes the title is THE most important part of your speech.
If you cannot get anyone interested in your topic via your title, they may never hear your speech.
Some people, like bloggers, will brainstorm up to 40 titles per article, to get the one title that has the best wording.
Are you writing your own introduction?
That is, an introduction so that the emcee or the Toastmaster can set the stage for your speech.
It’s good practice to get in the habit of writing your own. Who else knows as much about you and your topic, and your topic’s relevance to the audience?
You should say why you are the subject matter expert, why people need to hear your perspective, and what they will get for paying attention.
When it comes to the speech itself, my mentor Jeff Burdette suggested to jot down your keywords on index cards, which you can use to practice your speech.
I used to write my entire speech down, every sentence.
But I found that this leads to stiff speeches. Better to have notecards which lends a certain flexibility to your speaking.
I cannot emphasize the importance of practicing saying your speech out loud. A speech is not an essay. A speech in your head is not a speech until you say it out loud.
Just as you practice any sport or technique, get your vocal cords and your mouth accustomed to forming the words and phrases you will use.
The more you go over your speech out loud, the better your presentation will go.
My friend Kelly signed up for a speech contest. Over the course of several months, he practiced saying his speech out loud in the car as he commuted from the East Mountains. He practiced his speech hundreds of times – after all, it was a five minute speech.
By the time he gave his speech at the club contest and then the area contest, he had it completely memorized and he could riff on it, change it up and work on his vocal variety, fine-tune his emphases, his timing, his gestures, and body language.
I’m not saying you must memorize your speech, but no one ever criticized a speech by saying, “I think you practiced TOO much.”
Finally, after you do your speech, do a self evaluation. Keep a record of which speeches you gave, what their titles and dates were, and how it went. If you're working through the Toastmasters system, you'll want to submit your list of speeches to the Vice President of Education after you complete a set so you get the award and recognition you deserve.
Remember to also enjoy the process, or if not, enjoy the feeling of being done.
After a speech, my partner John often asks, “How was your speech?” and I say, “It’s done.”
Enjoy the feeling of relief – no matter how it went, it’s over.