Many people ask this question-

 “ Do I need to prepare my speech? Can’t I just have pointers and go speak on stage “

To this question there are many professional speakers who recommend in the affirmative.

I have heard many of them saying “ You don’t need to by-heart or ‘mug’ your speech. You can have pointers and ‘speak your mind’. I would however not entirely agree with them and here is why:

1. The primary difference between speaking and a speech is that a speech is structured. Words need to be used with precision. In plain terms, what would take you 200 words to express while speaking, the same should be conveyed in an effective manner in about 100 words and for which preparation is a must!
2. It is only when you put down your words on paper/document, will you be able to organise the finer points effectively.
3. English is not our native language (assuming the speech is in English or if you are delivering a speech in a less proficient language). There are many who struggle with language/grammar, especially with past/present tense. The only way to get it right is to write it, have it mentored, practice and deliver it before an audience. I keep saying this to my mentees “Your tongue needs to get used to the pronunciation/words and the only way is by practice”. Now yes, some may argue that perfect language or grammar is not necessary to establish a connect with your audience. I totally agree. However, that cannot be a reason for poor language in the long run. A good speaker learns and improves with time, and the only way to do it is by preparation.
4. The next area of concern for many is the need to ‘by-heart’ or ‘mug’ your speech. Most feel that it may not come across as natural. It is a valid point. However, you would only need to ‘mug’ your speech when the content isn’t written with conviction or has been written by someone else. A speech which lacks conviction will anyway fail. So, the key to delivering a terrific speech is to write with conviction and then ‘internalize’ it, keeping in mind the flow. This way you will be able to remember most of the speech and it wouldn’t seem like you are ‘vomiting’ content on stage.  

The one practice I follow when I need to deliver an important speech/address is that

 I WRITE IT IN A BOOK and then learn from it.  With technology, our old habits of writing have drastically reduced and this also contributes for the need to ‘mug’ a speech. I generally maintain a notebook, where I write the important speeches. Once I write it, I’m able to remember the speech at ease.  There are times when I need to deliver the same speech months later, a quick revision and I am ready to deliver. Trust me, learning content written in your own handwriting is easier than learning printed text. Maintain a book or dairy of your speeches. It may turn out to be a treasure trove in the years ahead.

To summarize, I believe, a speech of up to 15 mins can be prepared in detail and internalized. For a speech of more than 15-20 minutes, it would be challenging for a speaker to remember the entire content. In this case it is advisable to split your speech into 3-5 key-takeaways and prepare the content accordingly. The other option is to use a power-point presentation to organize your content (will deal with the art of handling a power-point presentation in a separate article).

Preparation is the key to success and there is no substitute for it. When you already know that you would be delivering a talk a few days prior to an event, there is no excuse for the lack of preparation. The audience is looking to hear the most articulate and terrific speech from you, and it is imperative that we respect their time as much they value our thoughts!