Extempore Speaking

Extempore Speaking: What is it?

Extempore speaking is the term used for a non-formally prepared speech. Explaining to your
parents why you arrived home later than your curfew is a form of extempore speaking. When
you watch a beauty pageant on television and the contestants have to draw a question and
answer it for the judges, they are extempore speaking. Every time you speak you are
preparing for extempore speaking. You probably prepare without even knowing it. You have
to read to learn new things for this type of speaking. When doing extempore speaking, you
need to use the knowledge that you have and use a strong delivery.

There comes a time in every one's life when he or she will have to give an impromptu speech.
It may be for anything - a radio interview, a teacher trying to get you to speak up in class, or
even in a casual debate. It happens more often than most people would think. The words we
speak are chosen at the point of delivery and they flow back and forth, with communication
being two-way, three-way or four-way. It is all done without any preparation.

The key to extempore speaking is that the words spoken are chosen as we speak them, and
what is delivered is a stream of consciousness that is fluent, erudite and articulate, while
being unscripted. Effective extempore speaking always has the purpose of the presentation
and the impact on the audience at its heart. In an extempore/impromptu speaking, it is
important to speak to the purpose and to consider carefully what effect you want to have on
your audience, then the notion that it is possible to simply choose the right words at the point
of delivery, without any kind of preparation, is at best naive and at worst disastrous. Even the
few who are capable of it will admit to significant preparation when the stakes are high.

Not only that, you have to consider how long to speak for. Effective speakers, in their
preparation, also consider the audience at all times. They ensure that they speak to the
audience they have in front of them, rather than the audience they would like to have in front
of them.


Topics to expect
Generally, the extempore topics are not very tough. The topics range from something very
personal like hobbies, academic background, a particular or recent incident, a common saying
or proverb or an issue of current affair. So be prepared to speak on anything and everything.

Last year, some of the extempore topics were Dressed to kill, Your Dream Girl, My
Impression of the Panel, The color of my shirt, Properties of Sun, to name a few.

How to go about it?
While you get the topic, do not rush to start even if you feel that you are well versed
with the topic. Take some time to gather your thoughts according to points. And then
start with the first point and carry on with the flow. Since the duration of your speech
will be very less, your time will end before you can actually talk on all the points
which you had arranged. So it would be best to prioritize your points and say
accordingly. It should not so happen that you start your introduction to the topic and
as soon as you think of coming to your main points, you are interrupted by the panel
informing you that the time is over.

There are also possibilities that you may not be able to come up with enough points
and finish in few seconds only. In that case, the panel would ask you to speak more.
So even if you don't have much idea about the topic given to you, or can't gather
much point in the initial few seconds, while speaking, try to think about other related
points.

But make sure that you follow a particular structure of introduction, main body and
conclusion otherwise it will just be a haphazard collection of words. But these should
be absolutely crisp and to the point. Don't drag one point for long.

If you don't have much to say on your topic or can't think of many points, then
arrange your introductory points in a manner which will give you a good start. If you
can recollect some relevant points during your introduction, you can also say that but
keep in mind that you start it in an appropriate manner.

On the day of your extempore, avoid nervousness and be confident. By the time you
will have to appear for extempore, you will be already done with your GD. So your
initial nervousness shall be gone by that time. But in the next stage, you would be
meeting the panel all by yourself; you might face nervousness but remember that you
should be able to do away with that as you have to appear confident in front of the
panel so that they believe in you.

Practice speaking for a minute
Though there can be a varied range of topic and you really cannot presume what your
topic can be, but still you have to practice. The best way to practice for extempore is
to practice speaking for a minute or two every day. Since you can be given any topic,
you can start your practice with a simple topic and move on to a little higher level. For
example, let the topic be your favorite color. Then in front of your friends or seniors,
speak for a minute. Ask them to keep an eye on the watch so that you don't exceed the
time limit. Continue this practice till the day of your personal assessment round.

Don't forget to take feedback from your friends or seniors who are judging you. Keep
a check on your body language, diction and speaking. Don't be too conscious while
speaking. Utilize the first few seconds in collecting your thoughts and get going about
it.

In this way, you can choose a topic everyday based on your profile, the subject you
studied, your interests, person who inspire you and anything you can think of which
might appear in your extempore.




Here's some advice on how to give a good impromptu speech:
Know your direction. You've got to know how you want to deliver your speech
before you actually speak. Should you go the serious, awe-inspiring route, or the
hysterical, laugh-a-minute path? The best way you can make a decision is to get a
quick feel for your audience. What type of people are they? What direction would
they most accept? Your speech will be praised significantly more if you speak in a
language that works with those listening.

Prepare some backup. It isn't uncommon to forget what you were going to say.
What separates a good speech from a disaster is how well you can catch yourself. It's
good to have a backup plan for the times when your mind suddenly blanks. That way,
if you're caught without something to say, you can maneuver yourself out of that
situation gracefully instead of gibbering and shaking in a nervous sweat. In serious
situations, you can bail yourself out with a polite way of excusing yourself. If you're
going for laughs, it's okay to be candid about your mental block.

Plot a course. Before you speak, try to make a quick mental outline of what you want
to say. Some of the worst speeches came out of people who didn't take a moment to
organize their thoughts before opening their mouths. Your outline doesn't even have
to be in-depth; all you really need is a guide to help keep your thoughts on track.

Keep it short and sweet. Impromptu speeches aren't expected to be long, epic
narratives. In fact, the more concise you get the better. A lot of people tend to hide
their nerves and their being unprepared by using a lot of words. The problem is - they
tend to miss the point when they do this. Speaking clearly and with as few words as
possible shows confidence in your own opinions and that makes you a much better
public speaker than those who just seem to rely on their wide vocabularies.

Watch your words. Lastly, you've got to listen to yourself. You do not want to say
something you'll eventually regret. Some things might be private matters to others in
the audience, or certain words can be offensive to others. Even the tone in which you
speak affects the reception of your speech. Listen to the words that are coming out of
your mouth to make sure you're saying what you want your audience to hear.

Flow of an Impromptu or Extempore Speech:
Grab a pen and a piece of paper
Hijack the topic & make it your own
Jot down interesting or significant points
Feel free to acknowledge that you have not prepared for a speech
Begin with your introductory sentence, elaborate it, then start working your way to
your ending sentence
As you deliver your speech, concentrate on diction and tone

What if You Draw A Blank?
If you have time before your speech, create an outline of the major themes or points and
commit it to memory with a memorization trick, like an acronym. Don't try to remember the
entire speech in detail; just remember the order of important points.

If you suddenly lose your train of thought or draw a complete blank, there are a few you can
do to keep from panicking.
Pretend like you're pausing on purpose. Walk back and forth slowly, as if you're
letting your last point sink in.
If you still can't remember what to say, make up a reason to pause the speech. You
can say, "I'm sorry, but my throat is very dry. Can I please get a glass of water?"

If these tricks don't appeal to you, think of your own. The trick is to have something ready
ahead of time.
The Beginning: Ask for Ten Seconds
The start of any presentation is vital, since it is when you establish your credibility with the
audience and begin to get into a rapport with them. Any type of opening can be used in any
presentation, but you have to be aware of the context of the presentation (analysis) when
thinking about the opening.

Although, the best presenters often break the rules regularly and combine his own analysis
with what is there as written protocol.

The following are explanations of how you can start a speech or presentation.
The Questioning Opening
To be or not to be? Now that's a good question. Starting with a question and going on to
either answer it or give a discourse on the many facets that might go to making an answer, is
another technique for opening a presentation.

Be sure when considering the 'questioning' opening that you are not merely doing it to start
your speech, rather you should be trying to get them interested, engaged or inspired by what
you are going to say.

The Factual Opening
This technique involves playing it pretty straight, telling in advance what you are going to
cover in the proceeding minutes.

Mahatma Gandhi, on 24 February 1916 in Benares, used a measured, factual opening in one
of a series of speeches that strove for independence for India. A few simple facts, established
inside a minute or two and a devastating final two sentences set out his thesis that there was
no salvation for India under the then present governing structure.

This opening is appropriate when you understand that the situation demands you to get to the
point quickly, you want your audience to immediately know where you are going, or you
want to make sure they get the structure of your presentation right at the beginning.

It could be useful when you have to speak on a very technical matter and there is a real
necessity that the audience know where you are going and you will then give signposts along
the length of your presentation that refer back to the opening.

The Surprising Opening
Shocking or surprising the audience at the beginning is an excellent way of gaining attention
at the start, though it is obviously a bit riskier than the factual opening.

The surprising opening can be a visual experience, through a picture on a slide, a sensory
experience or simply be spoken by the presenter. It has the effect of juxtaposing what the
audience expects with what they receive.

An example of a surprising opening would be the speaker saying "I have two passions in my
life: communication and making soup!" and then going on to explain the trials and
tribulations of soup-making, recipes included.

This has the effect of engaging those who do make soup, and intriguing those who don't. The
link is made when they speaker say- 'it is important to know not only what to put into your
soup, but also what to leave out - just like creating a presentation.'

Be aware of the risk of trying too hard with the surprising opening. Also, putting all your
eggs in this one basket means that if it is unsuccessful you will have work to do in creating
rapport.

It is possible to create a surprising opening that has no connection whatever with the topic of
the presentation (it could be about the venue, about yourself or how you got there) but it is
better if the connection is eventually made with the topic at hand, and runs as a theme
through the presentation.

The surprising opening may also be a bald, bold and bluntly stated opening statement that
gets right to the point, with no preamble or beating about the bush.

The Reveal Opening
Rather than give all the facts in a summary right at the beginning, the reveal opening toys a
bit with the audience and has them guessing what you might be going to talk about, peeling
back a few layers about the subject as you begin.

Stanley Baldwin's speech on 6 May 1924 in London is a gradual peeling back from beginning
to end of what it is like to be English. The final line is "We still have among us the gifts of
that great English race." Everything leading up to that was a sentimental journey, through an
England that never existed outside the mind of the speaker.

Baldwin speaks of "the anvil of the country smithy, the corncrake on a dewy morning, the
sound of the scythe against the whetstone, and the sight of a plough-team coming over the
brow of a hill." He continues in that vein, revealing an England that evokes nostalgia as it
peels back the layers towards the peroration that talks of "brethren, justice and humanity" of
the English race.

Peppering the first few minutes with clues for the audience can draw them into your talk in a
seductive way, and in a completely different way from the factual or surprise opening. You
will have to ensure that your pace of delivery is right. If used effectively you can gradually
draw the audience into your way of thinking.

The Oblique Opening
Setting a false trail and having your listeners' guess where you might be going to say can
engage and captivate an audience, especially if they have turned up expecting something
fairly mundane and staid.

A good, and if you like, standard way of creating an oblique opening is to start by telling the
audience all of the things you might have included, but have decided not to include on this
occasion.

This can be an interesting and enjoyable journey and allows you to home in on your topic
without doing the obvious of simply starting with what you are going to tell them.

Salman Rushdie spoke in 1991 about the value of his life. The opening takes us up in a hot air
balloon that is careering towards the ground. He then describes a Balloon Debate, a form of
entertainment that has individuals defending the merits of famous people in a balloon to save
them from being jettisoned.

He returns to the balloon theme at the end, stating simply that "the balloon is sinking into the
abyss", a powerful metaphor for his own situation and that of the democratic world.

This is a classic oblique opening, where an audience is expecting, and eventually gets a very
serious speech on a life and death topic but is treated to an entirely different journey at the
outset.

Usual evaluation criteria
Content 10 (Topic Clarity; and Logic 5 each.)
Expression 10 (Pitch and Voice Modulation; and Accuracy 3 each, Language 4)
Body Language 5 (Eye Contact and Gestures 2 each, Facial Expressions 1)