As a member of Farnham Speakers, and in turn a member of Toastmasters, I help out with mentoring newer members in giving their first few speeches. This is incredibly rewarding as the mentoring and evaluation process, combined with the hard work of the speaker, allow a journey of improvement that is visible to all involved.
The first speech in the Toastmasters system is ‘The Icebreaker’. I gave my own one over a year ago now and have certainly never looked back.
The purpose of this first speech is very simple: Show us what you can do! It is a starting point for the continued Toastmasters learning experience. No matter what level you currently are, there are always going to be things you are doing well, and things that could do with being improved.
My latest mentee gave her Icebreaker recently. She comes from a teaching background so getting up in front of an audience is not new, but giving an actual speech was. She had been involved in other roles prior to giving a speech, such as running the ‘Table Topics’ session in a previous meeting. This allowed us to see the areas that should be worked on.
As part of working with her on the speech writing and preparing for actually giving it…. what did we learn?
- SLOW DOWN! It was obvious early on that nerves led to speaking quickly and rushing through. This was easy to work on as it was self-acknowledged by my mentee. Relax, take your time. We ensured that the speech length was never going to be close to the maximum time so that there would be no additional pressure (“I’d better hurry up before the red light comes on!”).
- THE AUDIENCE IS SELFISH! When I was reviewing the speech, I suggested putting in questions to the audience and also the use of a very powerful word: “You”. Speeches which are “Me, me, me!” will ‘lose’ an audience. Finding a connection is important and “You” is a great way of doing this. Included in this is that when asking a question to the audience, care about the answer!
- DON’T TRY AND BE TOO CLEVER! A tendency with the Icebreaker is to try and write the best speech in the world, with clever tricks, twists and turns. Stick to the basics for the first one. Pulling off some of those tricks is hard and it is a real downer if you feel it hasn’t quite worked afterwards.
- READ IT ALOUD! Perhaps obvious but so very important. A speech which looks good on paper may not work when read aloud, due to the difference in impact between written and spoken language. For example, you may need to repeat a key point to make it ‘stick’ in the audience’s mind. On paper, they can just go back and re-read things they are not sure about.
- NOTES STRATEGY. Notes are absolutely fine for an Icebreaker. Just have them prepared and know you can work with them. My mentee decided to go with the whole speech printed (in a big font) on the lectern as a memory aid. It worked well. I was especially proud when she remembered to set up the stage with the lectern to one side, instead of hiding behind it!
I hope you find this useful. Have you got any advice you would give to someone giving their first speech? Have you ever received any advice that has really stuck with you? I’d love to hear it!
I too joined Toastmasters a year ago and now working on my first ACB (Advanced Communications Bronze). Looking back on my Icebreaker it was a nervewracking experience putting the speech together, but once in front of the crowd, I seemed, to my surprise, at home. I first typed “at ease” but that wasn’t necessarily the case 😉 You tips will help me with my first mentee when that time comes. Thank you!
Hi PeggyLee. Thank you so much for your comment. I’m only given one speech towards my ACB so far (working on the Storytelling manual) so a long way to go. I bet you will make a great mentor! Do you like evaluating?
Those are all very good tips for any (and every)speech! I have the pleasure of helping out a new club with 20 new members. That’s a lot of nervous people. I just keep it simple for them. Tell us something about yourself, a few anecdotes, a bit of your history. What I hope to leave with them is that it should be something that is important to them, that they want to share. In a timely fashion, I use the quotes from the King’s Speech. “…Why should I listen to you? Because I have a voice! ” That’s what I want them to learn. They have a voice and should be heard and the IceBreaker is a great first step to realizing or improving that voice. Showing them their inner courage and pride to speak is a great way to start.
I love public speaking, and I agree with all of your tips. I myself just like to speak from the heart, letting it flow, while making sure I cover the main points from my very abbreviated notes. I also like to be down-to-earth, not using a lot of jargon or big words. It’s also very important, I’ve found to tell stories that are compelling. It will make it more real for the audience. I keep a journal of stories with brief notes that I can use when I need it for speaking engagements. Thanks for the tips here too.
Great ideas for any discussion with another person. Have the person feel included. Don’t rush your words.