Toastmasters Speech 2: Organize Your Speech

by Andrew Dlugan
Apr 29th, 2008

When you speak, does your audience get it?

If your audience doesnt grasp your message (even though your topic is one
you know they are interested in), you need to rethink the way you present it. You need
toorganize your ideas to promote understanding.
The second Toastmasters speech project addresses organizing your speech. This article of
theToastmasters Speech Seriesexamines the primary goals of this project, provides
tips and techniques, and links to numerous sample speeches.
The Toastmasters Speech Series
1.

The Ice Breaker

2.

Organize Your Speech

3.

Get to the Point

4.

How To Say It

5.

Your Body Speaks

6.

Vocal Variety

7.

Research Your Topic

8.

Get Comfortable with Visual Aids (coming next)

9.

Persuade With Power

10.

Inspire Your Audience

Why is This Speech Important?

There are four aims for this speech:
Use an outline which aids understanding.

I previously discussed several speech outline examples in detail.

Transition smoothly from one point to the next.

Craft an effective speech opening.

Craft an effective speech conclusion.

These are fundamental skills that you apply to every speech youll ever deliver, whether it
is a 2 minute off-the-cuff speech, a 15 minute business proposal, or a 60 minute
keynote.

Transitions are the Key

Of the four elements, appropriate transitions are most lacking in the majority of
presentations that I have seen. Most speakers have an introduction and conclusion,
with supporting material arranged in some form of outline. But, there is often little in the
way of transition phrases that link the speech together in a cohesive unit.
In a written piece (like this article), headings, bullets, and punctuation provide

cues to the reader that help them understand the macro-organization.

In a verbal speech, use pauses and transition phrases to achieve this effect so

that the audience knows when one point ends, and the next begins.

What I Did for Speech 2

For my second speech topic, I chose The Open Directory Project (ODP). Heres a brief
outline and the key transitions I used:
1.

Opening State topic: the what, who, and why of ODP.

2.

What is ODP?
1.

Large 4.5 million sites

2.

Internet Directory (compared to a telephone book to aid

understanding)

3.

Transition: Something this large doesnt just spring out of the earth.
Someone has to build it. (this leads naturally into the who)

3.

Who builds ODP? 67,000 volunteers!

1.

Volunteer demographics

2.

Volunteer roles

3.

Transition: What inspires 67,000 people to volunteer their time?

(this leads naturally into the why)

4.

Why is ODP important?

1.

Anyone can join

2.

Data is free

3.

Data complements results of Google and other search engines

5.

Conclusion Summary of 3 main points, and a call-to-action to check it out.

1.

I hope this talk has whet your appetite to find out more. This was a
reference back to the speech title: A Taste of ODP.

Topic Ideas for Toastmasters Speech 2

Select a straightforward outline to organize your speech:
1.

The Classic Three Supporting Points

2.

Chronological

3.

Geographical

Idea #1: The Classic Three Supporting Points

In this outline, you begin by stating a premise in your introduction, support it with three
reasons or three supporting points in your body, and then summarize in your conclusion.
It doesnt need to be 3 points, but this is a convenient number that fits well with a five to
seven minute speech.
Example: Maile provides an excellent example of clear and parallel structure for a
speech with How Dance has Helped Me In the Real Estate Business (video). Her basic
structure is:

Opening: 20 pounds and nine years ago, I was a dancer which leads into
stating 3 dance principles which help in real estate.

Principle 1: Practice Perfect Performance

Principle 2: Visualize the Result You Desire

Principle 3: Get Out and See the People

Conclusion: restate three principles

This speech was especially strong because of a consistent pattern that was used for each
of the three points, along with a parallel structure. The pattern applied was:

Transition: the second principle Id like to share[name principle]

Lesson from dance: as a dancer [explain principle in dancing context]

Relate to real estate: this technique has also served me well in the real
estate arena [explain principle in real estate context]
Maile used this parallel pattern for all three points, and the speech is very easy to
understand. The Toastmaster evaluation of this speech (video) is also available.
Example: Tanya Huang also demonstrates this classic method in a speech
titledCougarlicious (written). Her basic structure is:
Open with a surprising revelation: she wants to be a cougar when she grows

up.

Definition of a cougar.

Reason 1: Fashion.

Transition: So, why do I want to be a cougar when I grow old? My

first reason is
Reason 2: Confidence

Reason 3: Aggression

Transition: Confidence is another quality

Transition: Aggression is another cougar characteristic

Conclusion: Sums up speech by reiterating the three reasons, and explicitly
saying These are the cougar qualities and the reason I want to be a cougar.

Idea #2: Chronological

A chronological outline is appropriate for many speeches that describe a sequence of
events. It is also appropriate for describing a process or a step-by-step technique.
Example: Brian demonstrates this technique with a speech about Six Sigma(video).

Introduction to Jack Welch and origins of Six Sigma

Definition: What is six sigma?

List the 5 Stages: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control (and then
stepped through each stage with explanation)

Conclusion to reinforce importance of Six Sigma

Note his transition phrases which give a direction or imply a sequence ( from there,
we or after analyzing, we).

Idea #3: Geographical

A geographical outline is a convenient method to organize a speech about travels, or

where you are contrasting your topic (e.g. pastries) across many locations (e.g. French
pastries vs. German pastries vs. Dutch pastries).
Example: Elizabeth Mitchell uses this method in Seven Lessons from Seven Continents.
Of note, the introductory words for each segment (My first continent, My second
continent) clearly mark the boundaries for each of the seven segments of the speech.

More Examples of Organize Your Speech

Here are a few more sample written and video speeches which may provide inspiration
for you.

Written Speech Examples

Scotch by Chris Lee

Democracy! God help us by Seamus McInerney

Whats in a Name? by Amit Bhatnagar

The Toastmasters Speech Series

1.

The Ice Breaker

2.

Organize Your Speech

3.

Get to the Point

4.

How To Say It

5.

Your Body Speaks

6.

Vocal Variety

7.

Research Your Topic

8.

Get Comfortable with Visual Aids (coming next)

9.

Persuade With Power

10.

Inspire Your Audience

Video Speech Examples

Videoblogging by Stephanie Bryant

37.5 Hours by an unknown speaker