PUBLIC SPEAKING: HOW TO GIVE AN IMPROMPTU SPEECH

Many a times you will be asked to stand and deliver a speech with no word of warning and no time to arrange your thoughts. This may be an after dinner speech, some words in praise of a person or any other topic. But not everyone is comfortable giving an impromptu speech. There are many reasons why people have a fear of giving an impromptu speech.

Benefits of Giving an Impromptu Speech

In your life you may be asked to speak without any prior notice. In such a situation, you must not panic and stay calm to organise your thoughts. Although it is a difficult thing to do, but it has many benefits in public speaking and presentation skills:

• Improves oral expression of thought.
• Develops communication skills.
• Develops confidence in public speaking and presentation skills.
• You learn to “Think on Your Feet” through this.

In most public speaking subject, since we know beforehand what we have to speak therefore we practice it well. But what would you do when you are asked to give an Impromptu Speech? Here are a few steps:

• Listen– Listen carefully to the question / speech topic and make sure you understand the topic before going further. Ask for the question to be repeated if there is any doubt.
• Relax- Take deep breaths and pause briefly before starting your speech. You need to focus on your topic. You can get some seconds by slowly standing up, or walking up to the lectern.
• Act confidently– In any topic on public speaking, no matter how nervous you are, you must act confidently. Your audience should not know about your anxiety. While standing in a good posture, look at the audience and smile. Don’t be restless under any circumstance.
• Pick up a Theme or an Opening Statement- A theme may come readily to your mind and if not, begin to address the topic. Eg. For a topic like “Should reservations be made for schedule castes in universities?” the introduction can be: “This afternoon, I would like to tell you why I believe that there should be no reservations for SC/ST.”
• Build the body of your speech- Prepare the main points of the speech depending on the topic, time allotted to you for speaking & your knowledge on the topic. You may give an example or two, tell a story, share facts and figures, and support your point of view.
• Conclude with dignity- Conclusion will leave an impact of the whole speech on the mind of the audience. If you shared information, you may give a summary of your main points. If you were trying to persuade, you may appeal to the emotions in a powerful way. You may conclude with a thought provoking question, or ask the audience to take a specific action.

A few things always ready with you may help in avoiding that embarrassment of being blank on the stage. They are:

• Quotes
• Main ideas/points
• Personal statements
• Phrases

A few tips while preparing an impromptu speech:

1. Take a pen and a piece of paper as soon as possible but do it in a professional way.
2. Note down some interesting and significant points related to your topic.
3. If you can’t write anything, make sure you write down an introductory sentence and an ending sentence. If you can walk away with poise, your speech will be a success.
4. As you deliver your speech, concentrate on pronunciation, body language and voice modulation.

‘Anurag Aggarwal Institute of Public Speaking’ provides training on impromptu speech making in their course on Public Speaking, Personality Development and Presentation Skills. In this course you will be trained in all those things which are stopping you from growing in your career. A lot of people have problems regarding their communication skills, interacting with people and in presenting themselves in front of public. This course has all those contents which are very useful in your day to day life.

For more details on the course, visit www.anuragaggarwal.com
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