An Impromptu Speaking Exercise to Boost Your Skillset

Impromptu speaking. It’s a phrase that can strike fear in new and seasoned speakers alike. But like most things, impromptu speaking isn’t actually so scary when you know what it is and you practice it. In fact, impromptu speaking is a really important skill that can help you become a stronger communicator overall. So today I’m going to share why impromptu speaking is so important, and then we’ll look at a fun exercise you can use with your coworkers or friends to boost your speaking skillset.

What is Impromptu Speaking?

Impromptu speaking is when you have to deliver a message with little or no time to prepare. Situations like this happen when you are called on during meetings without knowing you were going to be asked to speak. Job interviews are another common impromptu speaking scenario. You typically don’t know what you’ll be asked, and yet you are expected to respond immediately with a professional and organized answer. Most of us strongly prefer to plan and practice our messages out ahead of time. And thank goodness that’s how public speaking works most of the time. But with a little practice, we can be better prepared when impromptu situations come up.

The Benefits

You might be wondering why you’d put yourself through the stress of impromptu speaking. But I’m guessing that after just a few times of trying the exercise below, you’ll find yourself reaping the following benefits just for starters:

You can organize your thoughts more easily and quickly.

Impromptu speaking teaches you to organize your thoughts so that you sound coherent even when you aren’t prepared. You’ll learn more about this below. It gives you practice in strongly communicating the most important things first. Once you learn to think in this pattern, you’ll find that you are thinking more clearly and organizing your communication more effectively and efficiently no matter what the context.

You don’t rely on your notes quite as much.

Because you don’t have time to write out a full script or practice extensively, impromptu speaking teaches you that you can succeed without extensive notes. It forces you to rely on your brain rather than on the notes you’ve prepared. This gives you confidence to succeed without or without notes and reminds you just how strong your memory is.

You have better eye contact and use more gestures.

When I’m coaching beginning speakers, I find that often their best delivery occurs during their impromptu speeches. That’s because they look at the audience more often because they aren’t buried in their notes. They also tend to use their hands more often to help them communicate. Studies have shown that hand gestures “serve a self-priming function, helping the speaker past an awkwardness in his speech or thought, accelerating the flow of his ideas.” Because impromptu speaking forces us to think “on the fly,” it also forces us to use our hands more to prime our thoughts.

The Exercise

Ready to get started? The easiest way to use this impromptu speaking exercise is with a small group of people who have similar goals of improving their speaking skills. You could use it as a personal development exercise for a group of coworkers or invite a group of friends over and make it more of a game. You can also adapt the exercise and simply practice it on your own if you feel more comfortable. We’ve attached a simple PDF in case you’d like to print the exercise.

Supplies Needed:

  • Index cards or small slips of paper
  • Pens/pencils
  • A container for the quotes/words (an envelope or basket or bowl works fine)
  • A timer
  • Evaluation sheets (if desired)

Instructions:

  1. Have each person find a quote and then write it on a note card or slip of paper. The quote should be something that most anyone could relate with or speak about, but avoid quotes that are overused or cliché.
  2. Put all the quotes in a container.
  3. One at a time, have one person draw a quote from the container (pick again if you draw your own).
  4. Give that person 3 minutes to prepare a speech on the quote he/she drew. It will probably help if he/she is able to leave the room and work in a quiet space.
  5. After 3 minutes, have the person come back in and deliver a 2-3 minute speech. Make sure one person times the speech.
  6. The group should listen to the speech and make notes using the evaluation sheet.
  7. After the speech, take time to offer the speaker feedback on what he/she did well and what could have been better.
  8. Repeat until everyone has had a chance to speak.

To make it even more fun, have each person in the group also write down a random word on a separate note card or slip of paper and put those all in a separate container. Then have each speaker draw one quote and one random word that has to be worked into the speech. This variation helps to move the exercise from being a task to being more of a game.

In her paper in The Journal of Family Therapy on reframing, Carmel Flaskas shares the standard definition from Watzlawick, Weakland and Fisch’s 1974 work on the subject: “To re-frame, then, means to change the conceptual and/or emotional setting or viewpoint in relation to which a situation is experienced and to place it in another frame which fits the ‘facts’ of the same concrete situation equally well or even better, and thereby changes its entire meaning.” She goes on to define it more simply in her own terms: “A simple understanding of reframing is that it is the process whereby people come to think about and experience their situation differently.” By turning a personal development, impromptu speaking exercise into a game, you can increase the participation and engagement of your team.

Tips for Success

When you draw your quote, think of what you want your main idea to be first. If you “lock” or “freeze” up and it feels difficult to think coherently, focus on just one main word in the quote. After you’ve come up with a strong main idea, think of a couple main points that help illustrate or prove this. Fill those in with specific examples. You will probably find that it’s difficult to talk coherently about abstract concepts for very long without repeating yourself. So think of some specific examples to use. Then, think of a clever way to get into your message. Can you ask a question or share a personal example? Finally, if you have time, think of how you’d like to end your speech.

And when you are speaking, make sure to spend ample time previewing what you’ll be covering, transitioning between your main points and ideas, and reviewing what you’ve covered in the end of your message. Those little parts of the speech can feel unimportant, but they really help you organize your thoughts while also helping your audience follow along.

Evaluating your Performance

You can use these questions to evaluate yourself or another speaker during this exercise. Make sure to give feedback that is constructive and helpful.

  • Did the speaker stay focused on topic and clearly develop ideas related to the topic?
  • Did the speaker offer specific examples?
  • Did the speaker clearly state his/her thesis or main idea?
  • Did the speaker give a preview of what would be covered (main points to be addressed)?
  • Did the speaker use transitions in between the major parts of the speech?
  • Did the speaker appear confident and control his/her nerves?
  • Did the speaker use good eye contact?
  • Did the speaker use good posture/stance (not rocking or pacing)?
  • Did the speaker have good vocal delivery (volume, rate, and variety of pitch)?
  • Did the speaker review what he/she had covered?
  • Was there a clear sense of closure at the end of the speech?
  • Did the speaker fall within the designated time frame?

You don’t have to be afraid of impromptu speaking. Grab a group of friends and turn this skillset building exercise into a game. One that leads to great confidence the next time you stand up to present.

Want more tips to build your speaking skillset? We can help.

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