How can you confidently speak off the cuff?

It's all about how you connect with the group. That will solve half of the purpose. Connecting well will help in conveying even the complicated matters easy. Also try to make the session interactive by asking the crowd to respond back by asking certain questions which will help to break the ice and take it up from there....

Just last week we had a regional team meeting and all of us communications professionals were in London. I vividly recall the sight of my colleagues, each engrossed in their own worlds of preparation, fine-tuning their presentations. Within the tapestry of this experience, I unearthed a super power we all want to possess —the art of impromptu speech. I will add three things to this discussion: *Practice Active Listening: Pay close attention to the conversation or discussion happening around you. This helps you pick up on cues and respond appropriately. *Know your audience. Tailor your speech to your audience. *Practice regularly. The more you practice speaking off the cuff, the better you'll become at it.

Knowing purpose sets the tone! If the topic is cheerful ~ Smile If the topic is intense ~ Change your voice If the topic is sad ~ the tone should be empathetic

The act of speaking itself is not as crucial as the mutual understanding we achieve through our communication. The key importance lies in ensuring that we comprehend one another effectively, allowing us to convey our messages clearly. When leaders address their teams, or audiences they must ignite the interest on them and master the art of effectively conveying their messages. It is crucial for leaders to connect with the hearts of their team or audience before engaging their minds, igniting a profound sense of passion and enthusiasm for attaining success and accomplishing the collective journey.

Focus on the question or subject proposed. Focus on delivering what was asked. It's like meeting the business requirements of a project. Do what is required first, then sprinkle unicorn dust.

State your main idea or opinion upfront. Be clear and concise. Give context by explaining why you believe this point. Share supporting evidence. Provide a relevant story, statistic, or scenario that illustrates your point. Make it come alive. Circle back and restate your main point. Summarize why it matters.

An example utilizing the PREP method: Let's discuss the importance of recycling (Point). Recycling helps conserve natural resources and reduce pollution (Reason). For example, when we recycle paper, we save trees and energy used in production (Example). Therefore, incorporating recycling habits into our daily lives is vital for a sustainable future (Point).

I found that in the midst of nerves, it can sometimes be difficult to remember structural clues or acronyms. I prefer memory triggers. Choose 3 words, each for the 3 main points of your message/story. Here's how: If you can condense your message down to three main points what would they be? Now, choose a single word for each that encapsulates each point. Maybe that's "strategy, insights, future" or even 3 words that may only make sense to you - it works. Let the 3 words guide you by triggering your memory, and you will always have a home base and clear story path.

I love using a method I teach in my Mic Drop Workshop course called WISH. W- What's possible for the future? I- Invite them to join you. S- What does the SKEPTIC need to hear? H- What's the HEADLINE takeaway? This helps speak "off the cuff" but in a structured way to get your point across.

STAR tool is another way of adding structure to your impromptu conversations. It stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result. This tool works the best while narrating stories and examples.

Pause before sharing a key statistic or insightful comment. This builds anticipation. Pause after making an important point. This emphasizes it and allows it to sink in. Pause after asking a question. Give people time to reflect before answering. Pause to make eye contact with your audience. Connect with them. Avoid filling silence with "ums" and "uhs". Instead, embrace strategic pauses.

Pauses help you in conveying your message better! Let's take an example: Read this > I love to eat pizza and ice cream and go to the movies and play video games. Now read this with Pause> I love to eat pizza. And ice cream. And go to the movies. And play video games. The pause gives the listener time to process and understand what you're saying. It encourages active listening.

I tell clients, the only way to respond thoughtfully is to stop and think! It is ok to say, "I really want to give your question a thoughtful answer. Thank you for the grace you are extending to me while I take a moment to think." We are all human and have been in situations like this before. I think it is something we can all relate to. Who knows? If you try this, you might be giving someone else a good tip of what they can do when speaking off the cuff.

Only a few things convey confidence in a conversation more than a long pause prior to delivering your thoughts. This shows that you are crafting a thoughtful response and respect the audience enough to not just give them the first answer that comes to mind. Adding a pause in your storytelling not only provides your audience with time to reflect on what you said, but it also gives you a chance to breathe and strategize your next thought. For me, the pause is always a reminder to slow down and make eye contact with those whom I'm speaking to.

We often speak slower than we think we are speaking. It’s okay to take a pause, even if it feels to you like the pause lasts “forever.” Pause to breath and recollect your thoughts, and get back into the conversation with more structure and confidence.

Use your natural tone and style. Don't try to sound like someone else. Your unique perspective is valuable. Focus on your message and connecting with your audience rather than perfection. Draw on your own experiences and stories. This makes you more relatable. Don't be afraid to show your personality. Let your humor and passion come through.

Always be yourself in every interaction and relationship. Being authentic yields positive outcomes. Stay genuine and true to yourself always.

From my experience, I advise everyone to just be themselves and genuine. I remember being asked a surprise question during a meeting. I froze for a moment, but then I remembered "just be me". Then I shared a story from my childhood that related to the topic. Everyone laughed and nodded. It wasn't a perfect answer, but it was genuine. When you're caught off guard, it's okay not to have all the answers. Just share a bit of yourself. People connect with real stories and real emotions. It's like sharing a fun secret with friends!

This is critical to remain authentic. You can also mirror body language to show agreement and reduce friction especially with persuasive messaging. If they are leaning in, you can slightly lean in. If they take a drink, you can follow and take a drink. Don't be an exact copy cat but do use subtle gestures to create cohesion in the communication back and forth.

Authenticity is priority #1. Just be yourself. But as short and sweet as that advice is, it takes time. A lot of people aren’t actually comfortable with themselves. A lot for people don’t ACTUALLY know themselves. A lot of people don’t actually take time to sit alone with themselves. Take time to get to know YOU. Who are you? What excites you? Upsets you? Makes you nervous or anxious? What makes you sad? Angry? Etc. Knowing yourself makes speaking off the cuff easier… maybe even normal or natural. And then of course, you definitely need to know what the heck you’re talking about and know your audience :)

Start by practicing alone. Speak out loud on a topic for 1-2 minutes without any notes. As you get comfortable, practice with a friend or in a small group. With regular practice, you'll feel less anxious and more confident in expressing yourself clearly. You'll be able to quickly organize thoughts and present ideas coherently without relying on notes. Practice builds the skill and poise needed for engaging, effective off the cuff speaking. Focus on clear structure and smooth delivery. Open with an introduction stating your key points. Transition smoothly between ideas. Wrap up with a summary. Modulate tone and vary speed for emphasis.

I used to get really nervous talking without any notes. Then, I discovered this Toastmasters club. In these meetings, they have this cool game. You pick a random topic from a hat and just start speaking. The first time, my hands were shaking! But each time after, it felt a bit easier. Sometimes, I'd talk about a funny school memory or my favorite holiday. The friendly faces around me cheered, making mistakes feel okay. Going to Toastmasters felt like training my voice muscles. Now, unexpected talks? They're more like exciting puzzles, not big fears! Practicing this way makes those surprise speeches feel like a breeze!

'Practice' isn't the same as rehearsing. You absolutely will get better the more you do it but that doesn't mean going over and over the same script again and again. Because, as Gary says, you'll sound like a robot. And 'Ted Talks' are only a very narrow form of public speaking anyway. Neither are they 'off the cuff'. Give it a few years and they'll go out of style. Instead, pop the voice recorder on your phone and just start speaking. Then play back and listen. Talk and talk and talk and talk at every opportunity. But always playback and self critique. Then listen and learn from others. Make that commitment and you'll make progress. Oh - and you need something to say. Something that burns within. Without that - no point.

Most of the "how to deliver a Ted Talk" books and advice constantly bang the drum about Parctice, Practice, Practice. The problem with that approach however, and learning an entire script word for word, is that a) You can easily sound robotic, and 'scripted', and b) if you lose your place, it can be difficult to get back on track. Don't rely on 'learning' the talk, instead just learn and know your subject, and through your passion and love for what you're talking about - the talk will take care of itself, and any diversions, and lost trains of thought are not 'anxiety moments', but instead opportunities to add value to the talk, with new ideas and themes that will scream authenticity.

Practicing is absolutely important and supportive……being able to talk and think quickly gets easier and more comfortable with experience…..and stepping into action

Stick to key points rather than trying to cover too much. Depth over breadth. If you get stuck, rephrase or summarize to get back on track. Start with a strong opening statement to ground your thoughts. Avoid rushing your thoughts. Make eye contact to connect with your audience. This builds trust.

Read more in order to gain insights, improve messaging and vocabulary in your subject. Reading gives you more perspectives and you will be able to articulate a better response. Pause and structure a response in your head before speaking.

I think the main point we are forgetting is confidence. When you are overall confident and comfortable with yourself, the other elements fall automatically in sync. A confident person will know how to prepare, read the audience, and deliver without worrying about the consequences. This basically happens because there are no self-limiting beliefs stopping them from inaction.

During the years of political activism, I'd often have to speak on very sensitive topics with little preparation, appear in debates where I'd know slippery topics might be brought up, and participate in press releases where the wrong tone or word choice would impact many people. My small list of key points to stay prepared is: - employ a network of support(information supply, narrative preparation, people to help during the speech delivery by signalling, filling etc.); - have a default answer for troublesome questions; - know your dos and don'ts topic-wise; - never let the conversation stray, bring it back to what you know and what you are prepared for best; - use an answer template to keep you from rambling.

I try to take the following mantra to heart: “good preparation covers for lack of deep knowledge.” Researching and understanding the “qualitative” (anecdotes/stories) and the “quantitative” (facts/figures) related to the topic you’re presenting on ahead of time gives you a lot to pull from when speaking off the cuff. As a bonus, you can then involve your audience in collaboratively teasing out insights together! ??