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At Toastmasters, Impromptu Speaking is the ability to speak "off the cuff", without preparation and without notes, on a topic you have just been given. This is a regular part of a Toastmasters meeting, and everyone who does not have a major speaking role at the meeting usually participates in "table topics", or impromptu speaking.
This page has table topics ideas for when you are Table Topics Master, and tips for table topics speakers.
Templates
Download and print Table Topics Master Worksheet, and Table Topics Evaluator Form.
Magazine Articles
The February 2010 issue of "The Toastmaster" magazine has a fascinating article called "Turning the Tables on Table Topics" which explains many success strategies for the tongue-tied talker!
Fortune Cookies
Buy a bag of fortune cookies. Each Table Topics speaker breaks the cookie and speaks for their allotted time on the contents of the fortune cookie. Each Cookie has a proverb or a suggestion of something good happening to the person breaking the cookie open. They then eat the cookie.
Ram Iyer CTM, Confidently Speaking Toastmasters, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Newsgroup Ideas
- Look - no gestures! Describe how to do something without the use of hand gestures.
- Pick a prop - Pick a prop and do something creative around/using the prop. Use common household or kitchen items.
- Yesterday's News - Read out yesterday's horoscope and ask the speaker to say whether it turned out to be true or not!
- Pick a number - Choose a number and say how it relates to you, your life, your work etc.
- Let's debate it! - Split the audience into two teams. Speakers debate either for or against the topic. Those who have not spoken vote for the winning team based on the strength of the arguments.
- Pick a picture - Speakers are given a picture title, and asked to describe the picture and their motivation for taking it, without having the picture to refer to.
- The topic is "tables" - Speakers talk about various types of tables - tax tables, multiplication tables, kitchen tables, turning the tables, coffee tables etc.
Source: Toastmasters newsgroup discussion
View lots more table topics ideas here:
District 21: http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/3558/ideas.htm#story
District 31: http://members.iinet.net.au/~astech/ttopics.html
The Toastmaster Magazine, April 2006, page 22: "Conquer Table Topics Phobia" - 11 tips on making the most of the two minutes you have for table topics" - including buying yourself time, cultivating a passionate opinion, working your imagination muscles and roasting a fellow club member.
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Contributions to this list are welcome.
Please email webmaster@toastmasters.org.nz with your ideas and suggestions, or challenging topics you have used or been asked to speak on. |
Ideas from clubs:
- Yellow Pages - Open the phone book at any page and the speaker has to "sell" the selected product or service
Table Topics can be the most challenging and frightening portion of a Toastmaster's meeting - but with a little preparation, everyone can be a pro at Table Topics. There are a number of ways to tame table topics. Listed below are some strategies you can practice and use.
Give The 411
We have all heard that when describing an event, we should give the basic facts - who, what, when, where, why and how. For example, given the question "Describe your most memorable sporting event," you could respond with what (soccer world cup), when (last summer), where (a party at my best friend's house), why (my first soccer party), and how (rented a big screen TV). By the time you fully described all those parts, you've given a concise 1-2 minute response.
Divide & Conquer
Organization is important because prevents communication from turning into word soup. Clear divisions are essential to an orderly arrangement. Some of the classic two or three way divisions are: past, present, future; that was then, this is now; low, medium, high; cost, benefit; financial cost, social cost; civil law, moral law; problem, solution; thesis, antithesis; thesis, antithesis, synthesis; us, them; ideal, real; what we want, what we can get; mind, body. The list can go on forever. So, pick a division as quickly as possible and stick to that one.
Narrow the Focus
Sometimes the topic is just too big to tackle as a whole. Take this example, "Describe your most memorable birthday?" Some related, narrower, topics are most memorable party or gift or card or date. To begin, acknowledge the original question and then use a bridge device to get to your narrower version. For example, "There are a lot of things that make a birthday memorable. My most memorable gift was..."
Divert Attention
This is the quintessential politician's response. Take, for example, a very controversial subject: "What is your stance on abortion?" Divert attention to a related question. "My personal views are not as relevant as why this is a divisive issue." Then talk about the related question. Sometimes, you may want to avoid the original topic entirely. You could respond, "Your question is very important, however, today I am much more interested in education." And there is always, "A very good question which reminds me of ..."
Tell a Lie
What happens when you have no experience at all with the subject of the question? You can give up and sit down or use the question as an opportunity to stretch your imagination. If you are given the question, "What is the biggest fish you have caught?," and you have never been fishing, you could just make up a fishing trip. Or notify your audience that you are letting your imagination run wild, "I've never caught a fish, but I imagine that ... " Be descriptive and detailed.
Ramble On
Sometimes, you can discover something very interesting about the topic at hand by using a brainstorming or stream of consciousness approach. Start by restating the question. Then make the first comment that comes into your mind. Then say the next thing that you are reminded of. As you approach the end of your time, restate the best point you made the original question.
Elaborate
Sometimes the subject isn't the problem, it's the time. One sure-fire way to put more interest in your speech and to extend the time is to give more elaborate descriptions. Instead of "the bird" try "the green and yellow bird that took delight in singing at the first sign of dawn."
Most of the talking we do on a daily basis is impromptu speaking, and so if we can learn how to assemble knowledge and thoughts on any topic at a moment's notice, we will benefit by:
- Being able to think on our feet in meetings, conversations, and many other settings
- Having greater confidence when giving prepared talks, because we know that if we 'lose our place', we can talk intelligently on an impromptu basis for a short while till we're back on track
- Being more skilled in social situations
Be Mentally Prepared
When you are in a meeting keep on top of what is going on, and every now and then think 'What would I say now if called on to give my views? What aspect would I cover? How would I phrase it?' This will help you be calm and collected when you are called on, because you will have mentally practised many talks you've never given.
Take Time
Take some time to get your ideas together - you don't need to give your reply immediately. This not only gives you a few seconds to work out your response, but also gives the impression you are making sure you'll say something worthwhile.
Start with an Example
You may want to talk about an incident from your life that relates to the topic and has a human-interest angle. The advantages are:
- It's something familiar to you, and it can reassure you when you most need it - during your first few moments
- You won't have to think so hard about your next sentence as experiences are easy to remember
- You'll get into the swing of speaking and reduce your nerves
- You'll get the audience's attention
Be Animated
If you are externally animated, it has a beneficial effect on your mental processes, as physical activity and the mind are closely related.
If your body is animated, your mind functions at a lively pace.
Practice
The best way to improve is to practise regularly. Effective impromptu speaking, like most skills, requires some work and practise. This is why Table Topics is such a valuable exercise!
In addition I offer a free Daily Impromptu Topic email service (DITTY) which allows for regular practice. Practising impromptu speaking on a regular basis, even for a minute a day can help improve your speaking skills. If you subscribe to the DITTY service you receive two topics a day during weekdays (so you can practise with someone else, should you wish) on a wide variety of subjects. Just email me to be included on the list: kim@successfulspeaking.co.nz
Kim Chamberlain
A club in Canada held its third annual mall demonstration meeting by putting on a series of four fast-paced and visually-oriented humorous table topic sessions.
They said the key is to set things up in advance, and notify the local media. Ideally it should be done during Toastmasters Week, and a personable and talkative MC is a definite advantage. The topics should be both funny and visual. A sound system is an absolute must.
Make sure chairs and tables are provided, set up in auditorium or theatre style. This entices shoppers to sit down and enjoy the action.
Table topics are interspersed with various 2-3 minute promotional talks and testimonials from various Toastmasters in attendance. Have Toastmasters giving passers-by a brochure about Toastmasters.
Examples of topic themes which work well:
Funny costumes
The speaker is asked to put on a costume (eg fairy godmother, holding magic wand) and they have to talk about who they are. The speaker is required to say a specific phrase, ie "You only get one wish!" Or dressed in a hunting outfit - "You should have seen the one that got away!"
Selling or praising items
Bicycle helmets, feather dusters, or other suitable large objects that passing shoppers can see.
Non-verbal - acting out a scene, eg getting a computer virus.
Interactive
Two people in a conflict resolution scenario, eg husband in car impatiently wants to get to a holiday destination as soon as possible, while wife wants quality vacation by stopping frequently. They argue, but must come to agreement before time is up.
Source: Toastmasters newsgroup discussion
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