Candid or Impromptu?

My blogging colleague Wenbin at Better Interpersonal Communication has a new post up about public speaking (obviously one of my favorite topics). He provides four good suggestions for people who find themselves having to give a speech.

All of his four tips relate to the delivery of the speech (as opposed to the research or preparation of the speech). The first three tips are nonverbal in nature. Of those three, the first two are vocal (1. Speak in a loud and clear voice, and 2. Speak at a reasonable pace and use appropriate pauses. Actually that's four tips not two!). The third tip is: Use hand gestures.

All of these tips are great and I will probably discuss them someday on this blog at length. Today, however, I want to hone in on Tip #4: Talk candidly (if possible). Wenbin says: "The truly great speakers do not speak from a memorized script. They just speak from the top of their head. Speak just as if you were talking to a friend."

I'm with Wenbin on this fourth tip--with some reservations. First, what do we mean by the word "candid"? To me, candid refers more to honesty. There are times when a speaker should be candid and times when a bit more discretion is required.

I agree in general with Wenbin about the dangers of speaking from memorized scripts--for the vast majority of speeches memorization or reading is DEATH. However, there are certain situations when a speech must be read. For example, a speech that must be presented accurately for posterity (such as the State of the Union Speech or diplomatic speeches to the United Nations) or speeches that must, of necessity, be extremely long, will probably need to be read. There really is no good reason, I think, to memorize a speech (the speaker's fear is not a good reason).

I don't agree with Wenbin when he says that good speakers should just speak "from the top of their head." We public speaking teachers call this type of speaking, impromptu. Yes, there are times when speakers are forced to give impromptu speeches. They have no time to prepare and they must "wing it." Some times it can't be helped and speakers have to do the best they can. However, when speakers have time to prepare--they should. They should research their topic, find good support, and organize their ideas. They should practice, practice, practice--many times until they can present their speech comfortably from just a few notes. We public speaking teachers call this type of speaking--extemporaneous. Most speakers will be far more successful if they give an extemporaneous speech rather than an impromptu speech.

I do agree strongly with Wenbin's final sentence: "Speak just as if you were talking to a friend." That is, talk to the audience as if you were having a conversation with them--don't lecture them. Look at them. Notice how they respond. Care about their reactions. Treat the audience as you would treat a friend with whom you were talking.

That's my candid opinion about giving a candid speech. What's yours?

(graphic from http://www.ctbizblogs.com/category/blogging-issues/)