Communication Studies eBook - Public Speaking Exposed - How to Deliver the Speech ....

How to Pick the Right Topic


Working with Restrictions
In some cases, you will have a great deal of leeway when it comes to topic
selection. That is, you might be going into the speech with no set topic and few
restrictions on the length and subject matter, so that you can do almost anything
you want to.

In other cases, you may be working with significant restrictions. For instance, if
you’re delivering a speech at a wedding as the best man, you will have both time
restrictions and content restrictions.

With this said, the fact that restrictions exist shouldn’t worry you. But you should
be careful to pin down the extract restrictions before you get started. Here’s a list
of some things you should consider that might place restrictions on your speech:

i. The Subject Matter. Are you delivering a eulogy? Are you giving an
academic presentation? Are you delivering a speech at a wedding? Or
are you giving a presentation to your coworkers, clients, or boss about
your area of expertise? All of these will place different restrictions on
the content of your speech. Make sure you know exactly how this will
restrict your presentation, so that you can take this into the account in
the writing stage.


Table of Contents

Introduction
How to Pick the Right Topic
Working with Restrictions
Narrowing Down Your Topic
Appealing to a Large Group
Keeping Things Simple
Know Your Audience
Research Your Audience
Speeches to Coworkers and Bosses
Academic Speeches
Seminar Speeches
Interact with Your Audience
Use an Adaptive Approach
How to Write Your Speech
Do Your Research
Pick Quotes
Writing an Intro
Using Ice-Breakers
Think of Your Introduction as an Instrument or Tool
Make your introduction interesting
Drawing a Powerful Conclusion
Practice
Deliver the Speech to a Friend
Make Modifications as You Go
Time Your Practice Sessions
Ask for Criticism
How to Deliver the Speech
Get Comfortable with the Crowd and Room
Don’t Dwell on Mistakes
Stay Calm
Deviate from the Notes if Needed, But Not Too Far
Don’t Get Intimidated by Questions
Conclusion