Top 5 Ways to Prepare for an Impromptu Speech
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In an ideal world, every presentation or speech would be meticulously planned in advance. However, life almost never goes according to plan. Whether you’re giving a presentation to your company’s executive team, giving a speech at your alma mater, or speaking at a conference, things don’t always go as planned. The trick is to be prepared for the unexpected. Whether it’s because your preparation was subpar that day or because something unplanned happens while you’re speaking, there will inevitably come a time when you need to give an impromptu speech. When that moment comes, you want to make sure that you are ready with some key strategies to keep your cool and deliver an effective speech. Here are our top five ways to prepare for an impromptu speech.
Have a Game Plan
Whether you’re thrown off by an unexpected question or you’ve been given a last-minute opportunity to speak, if you’re not prepared, you’re already behind the eight ball. If you have a game plan in place, you’ll be able to think on your feet more effectively and give a more polished performance. For example, if you’re speaking at a conference and the preceding speaker goes way over their allotted time, you can be ready with some key talking points to get the audience back on track. If you’re speaking at an unplanned event, like an impromptu company meeting, you can have a game plan ready to help prepare the audience and get them up to speed quickly. A game plan can include things like what you’ll be covering in your speech, any key points you want to hit, or the tone you’ll be using. If you have any visuals you’ll be using in the presentation, this is a great time to pull them out and make sure you’re prepared to use them.
Breathe and Build Confidence
No matter how much you prepared for your speech, you will almost certainly feel some level of nerves when you get behind the podium to actually deliver it. The trick is to channel that nervous energy into a positive and confident energy. Essentially, you want to take a deep breath and then take the stage. There are a number of ways you can do this. One common strategy used by public speakers is to silently recite your speech in your head while you’re walking to the stage. This is a great way to get your nerves settled and ready to go when you get behind the podium. Another way to relax and build your confidence is to reframe your inner dialogue. Instead of telling yourself you’re going to mess up or that you’re going to freeze up, tell yourself that you’re prepared and you’ve got this. Another great trick is to visualize yourself delivering a perfect presentation. You can do this while you’re walking to the stage or in any other way that works for you. Visualizing yourself giving a perfect speech will help you to calm down, build your confidence, and get ready to deliver a great performance.
Know Your Audience
Sometimes, an impromptu speech takes place in a scenario where you don’t have time to prepare, but you know exactly the type of audience you’ll be speaking to. If you know exactly who you’ll be speaking to and have some insight into the types of things they’d like to hear, this can be a major advantage. If you’re speaking to a group of young professionals at a university or a group of investors at a conference, you know that they’ll be interested in hearing about the latest trends in your industry. If you know the group you will be speaking to, you can tailor your speech to their interests to make it easier to deliver the speech. If you know the people you’ll be speaking to, you can also tailor your speech to their needs and concerns to help get your message across more effectively.
Rehearse an Outline
If you have the opportunity to prep for an impromptu speech, you should absolutely do so. This can help you to avoid some of the pitfalls of an impromptu speech where you have to be flexible without any prep whatsoever. For example, if you’re speaking at a conference and you’ve had a chance to look at some of the other presentations, you can quickly scan the list of topics and select the one that most closely aligns with your topic and your expertise. If you’re speaking at an event where you’ve had the opportunity to meet with some of the other speakers beforehand, you can ask them what their topics are and select the one that’s most closely aligned with your expertise. If you’ve had the opportunity to look at the program for an event where you’ll be speaking, you can also see when the other speakers will be speaking and try to select a topic that lines up with what they’ll be covering. This can help you to avoid having to improvise a topic that might not fit with the overall event. If you’re speaking at a company meeting or some other event where the topics are less structured, try to find out what other speakers are covering before you speak. This can help you to select a topic that is closely related to what the other speakers are addressing.
Write Down Your Talking Points
Even if you’ve had the chance to prepare, there are some scenarios where you may not have time to even select an appropriate topic. For example, if you’re speaking at a company meeting, you may not have the opportunity to look at the program beforehand, let alone get familiar enough with the topics to select the one that’s most closely related to your expertise. While it’s true that you can’t prepare for everything and sometimes things just happen, there are still a few things that you can do in advance to help ease the stress. One of the most important things that you can do is to write down a list of talking points. This can be especially helpful if you’re speaking to a group of executives. Since this group is particularly likely to be used to speaking from notes and may expect you to do the same. This can help you to get your thoughts organized for your speech and deliver it in a way that feels more polished.
Conclusion
Whether you’re invited to the last-minute or thrown into an unexpected situation, impromptu speeches are a part of public speaking. There are many things you can do in advance to prepare for impromptu speeches, such as having an outline ready and knowing your audience, as well as things you can do while delivering a speech, such as breathing and building confidence. Having a game plan, knowing your audience, rehearsing an outline, and writing down your talking points can help you to deliver an effective impromptu speech.
