Choosing a Topic

So, you've got your assignment: present a ten-minute, informative speech to your class. Sounds scary, yet simple all at once...until you start to think about the gazillions of topics you could choose. Or, maybe you are dead-set on a particular topic already and don't know how you could possibly keep it to ONLY ten minutes. Here are some guidelines to follow when you are in the process of choosing a topic:

• Choose a topic that will interest you (don't close your eyes and open the encyclopedia to a random topic)
• Make sure your topic will also be interesting to your audience. For instance, it probably wouldn't be too interesting for you to speak on "The Process of Hip Replacement" to your freshman class in college even if you do find the topic interesting. Keep your audience in mind!
• Choose a topic that is not going to be impossible to research and source. Don't pick something so obscure that you will not find any books or articles written on the topic.
• Choose a topic that will be easily covered within your time limit (don't try to cover the entirety of World War II in a 5 minute speech, but you could consider covering maybe one battle).
• Choose a topic that will provide you with opportunities to present some interesting or interactive visual aids and/or stories to keep it interesting for your audience.
• Have fun! Remember, even if this speech is for a grade, don't forget the fact that you will have your peers' undivided attention for a number of minutes - don't waste that opportunity.
  

Persuassive Speech

One of the most daunting speeches to write is a persuasive speech. It's a scary thing to take on the taste of changing the hearts and minds of your audience. I want to take a bit of time to give you some tips that will help you construct a sound argument:

• Who will your audience be?
• When constructing an argument on any certain topic, you need to take into account to whom you will be speaking. For instance, if you will be speaking on the importance of cord blood banking, your examples will differ depending on if you are speaking to a room full or senior citizens or a room full of young parents. If you are speaking to young parents, you will be trying to persuade them that they absolutely need to get their next newborn's cord blood banked and list out several recent stories of how cord blood has saved lives, but if you are speaking to a group of senior citizens that argument will not work because they are past child-bearing age.
• Write an outline that is well-organized and follows a logical progression.
• Start out with a grabbing true story that has to do with your argument or startling, well-sourced, statistics that correspond with your argument. Define your topic up front (there may be people in your audience who are unfamiliar with your topic). Make sure your points build in a way that makes sense - maybe have a friend who is not in the class look over your outline and have them give you feedback - does it make sense to them? Do the points build on each other?
• Construct an argument that is free of logical fallacies:
• If you are unfamiliar with what logical fallacies are, a quick Google search will present plenty of results (I will be doing a video on fallacies soon as well). This point deserves pages of material, but I will put this in a video to keep it interesting and making sense.
• Don't ignore the opposing view.
• Make sure you study the opposing view and it's strongest arguments - this will make a great guide for the most popular lines of thinking you need to address and defend. Doing your research on the opposing view will only aid in making your argument stronger. Know the "enemy." :)
• Keep a positive tone.
• If there are audience members who disagree with you to begin with, if you keep a cordial tone, they will listen easier. If you are hostile, they will "turn off their ears" and only become angry as you speak.
• Provide lots of well-sourced statistics.
• Don't take anything you read on the web and quote it - there are lots of made-up stats out there. Make sure you are gathering information from credible sources (ie, news articles, books, interviews with professionals, encyclopedia articles, etc). Also, make sure you let your audience know where you are getting your information from so they will know it's credible - this will increase your rapport with the audience and make them more open-minded regarding your argument.
• Appeal to your audiences' minds and hearts.
• Don't just stuff your presentation full of stats and nothing else. Audiences love to be moved emotionally. You need a good balance - keep your argument interesting by adding true stories, but don't forget facts and sound stats. Focusing only on emotion will not permanently change anyone's mind, there must be a balance of brain and heart appeal.
• Don't underestimate the power of your conclusion.
• Make sure your closing words are well thought-out and sum up your main points. Maybe consider ending with a touching story of how the point your are arguing has changed someone's life.

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If you are presenting this speech for a grade, One helpful tool to use to see how successful your persuasive efforts is to hand each audience member a piece of paper that reads:

• Please circle the corresponding emotion as to how you feel about (your speech topic) before hearing the presentation:
• Strongly Disagree   
• Somewhat Disagree    
• Neutral    
• Somewhat Agree   
• Strongly Agree

• Please circle the corresponding emotion as to how you feel about (your speech topic) after hearing the presentation:
• Strongly Disagree   
• Somewhat Disagree    
• Neutral
• Somewhat Agree   
• Strongly Agree

STAGE FRIGHT!

Let's face it, it's a problem we all have to deal with.



Ever wished you could shake those butterflies and get rid of those sweaty palms? Well, the reality is, stage fright is something we all face and there is no cure, but you can learn to use those nerves to actually aid your performance. Here are a few tips I have found helpful for myself and in teaching high schoolers and college students how to better handle those butterflies we all find unsettling.

Back to the Basics When You're Not Sure How to Start

When you're writing a speech, whether it's a persuasive speech, informative, demonstration, or any other kind, it's easy to get overwhelmed and end up staring at a blank screen for an hour wondering where to start. You probably have an idea of your topic, but are not sure where to start. Here are some basics things to keep in mind - basic things that your audience will notice and the person grading your speech will most likely be adding or deducting points for:

* Effective introduction and conclusion.
* Clarity of ideas.
* Your poise as you speak.
* Personal appearance.
* Neatness and appropriateness of the visual aids you use.
* Time (too short, too long)
* Energy in presenting the material(Get the audience interested in what you are talking about.)
* Well-organized, well-written and well-presented Outline

Free Speech and Drama Tutorials

Hi, I'm the Speech and Drama Lady. Need help/advice/direction for that upcoming demonstration speech, or play tryouts? Look no further. I'm here to help. What makes me qualified to help? I have a degree from Northland International University in Speech Education (specializing in dramatic production) and have directed and assistant directed dramas for teens, children and even on the college level. I have a passion to help people become better communicators whether that's in a public speaking setting or on the stage. Please, if you are seeking specific direction, feel free to leave a comment and I'll be happy to consider posting an information post or video to help answer your question.