How to Deliver an Extemporaneous Presentation or Speech

Tips for how to deliver an extemporaneous presentation or speech. Great public speaking has that smooth conversational delivery style that we all admire. This video shows you how to do it.

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It's called extemporaneous speaking or extemporaneous delivery, where (a) the speaker knows the material (b) speaks in a conversational style, (c) from limited notes (d) in a structured way.

In other words, it's not memorized but you're not reading either. It may sound and look comfortable and easy when great speakers do it, but it takes work to get there.

Follow this advice for that smooth conversational delivery:

1. Commit to a structure. The backbone provided by a clear structure will help you stay on track and give you the confidence to express yourself. It gives you a roadmap to follow but provides flexibility. When learning how to delvery an extemporaneous speech, you simply must follow a clear structure.

2. Practice 10x or more. That sounds like a lot and it is but with practice comes comfort. Most speakers I know who sound conversational, practice many times beforehand. Most speakers who sound stiff or look at their notes a lot don't practice this many times.

3. Limit your notes to key words only. Each 2 to 3 times you practice, pare down your notes so you are eventually speaking from an outline with just single words or brief phrases for point and sub-point. Even a single word or phrase on your notes should be enough to keep you talking for about 30 seconds or so.

The fewer notes you use, the easier it will be to connect to your listeners comfortably. When done right, extemporaneous public speaking sounds like the presenter is "just talking" from the heart about the subject. It sounds personal in ways that you just won't get when using lots of notes or by memorizing very specific wording.

4. Use a variety of words to express yourself each time you practice. In other words, don't try to say it the same way each time you practice. That will lead to a memorized and stiff sounding presentation. Each time you practice, express your ideas in slightly different words and phrases. When it's time to present, you have that fresh conversational delivery you admire in high-level speakers.

5. Keep your practice realistic. You might consider practicing the last few times with the TV or music on. Practice in front of a roommate or even your dog! The more realistic your practice conditions, the more prepared and comfortable you will be.

Extemporaneous public speaking or presenting is a skill that you can build on and will help you excel for years to come in virtually any context or industry.

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[nextweek]

I'm watching this because tommorow I will have an extemporaneous speech. Im so nervous because I have a stage fright. What if because of so much nervousness I'll get mental-block? I hope it won't happen. 😯😔

[alibasheracampong]

i have 2 days before my extemp speech and i think im gonna have a seizure

[casiplexynna]

I'm going to have an extemporaneous speech today and I'm really fcking nervous 😭

[jimvanallan]

Public speaking teacher here...definitely sharing this video with my students...thank you

[DrJonTam]

Timestamps:
1:21 Extemporaneous Delivery
1:47 Commit to a structure
2:28 Practice up to 10x
3:30 Limit your notes
4:54 As you practice, say it in a variety of ways
5:47 Practice Realistically

[preetiparomita]

I have my extempo tomorrow and I have a terrible stage fright. Pray for me 😵

[gwenalhambra]

I was lowkey expecting to use different accents when he said "say it in a variety of ways" 😂

[iceaisbaby]

i have an extemporaneous speaking contest today and it's safe to say that i am nervous as hell

[johnanselalcantara]

I'm looking for some tips for my extempo tomorrow and found this, thanks coach alex, i'm hoping to be more confident on delivering my speech.

[chrisslotten]

Masters always make it sound easy. I'm greatful that it is learnable. 3, 600 words to end up with 600. Printed 4 times because of little changes. Practiced 30 times. Almost there. For me, mastering the process has been more important than making videos. It's like mastering the ground strokes in tennis before playing a game. Thank you coach.

[sassysassy]

I'm a senior high school student and I'll be representing my strand in the extemporaneous speech and I'm seriously

[CarlKwan]

Such great information in this one, Alex!

[noelsyguia]

10 times to practice huh? I just saw this video and my extemporaneous speech contest in tomorrow. Help me :(

[crispinjrtocama]

1 minute before extemporaneous speech 🙂

[meatsuu]

you are a bloody legend, i needed this for my speech class because my professor didn't teach us what extemporaneous style of speech is. thank you :D

[BhagwanSingh-pgqn]

Next month will be my first extemporaneous speech contest and i dont know how to organized my ideas yet i used to say a lot that i go beyond the topic any tips sir?

[sapphire_siren]

my professor recommended this video for a high-percentage speech we have due in a couple weeks, and although I don't consider myself especially bad at presenting, this video has the most amazing tips I have ever seen for public speaking! I, more often than not, have a harder time actually starting a speech rather than presenting or even fully writing one, so that speech layout at the beginning is going to come in handy. Thank you so much!

[Glaikitz]

Im a contestant for a Extemporaneous Speech at my school and this helped me so much! :3

[mind]

our extemporaneous speech tomorrow only has a 2 min preparation tho 💀

[JoshKaufmanstuff]

Great points Alex!
It would be very instructional if you included your actual presentation notes to view, can you do that please?
The full outline is listed in the description, but what did you have as notes during this presentation?