Impromptu

1The Rise of Impromptu Speaking

The way leaders communicate in organizations has undergone a remarkable transformation in the last half century. No longer is leadership delivered primarily by C‐Suite executives standing behind podiums reading words written for them. Today, individuals at every level are leading with impromptu remarks. How and why that transformation has occurred provides the foundation for this book.

The Glory Days of the Formal Speech

Back in the 1980s when I entered the business world, CEOs and top executives in every organization regularly delivered formal speeches and rarely spoke spontaneously—nor was anyone else encouraged to communicate. The law of the land was for managers and junior executives to keep their mouths shut. In fact, when a group of engineers heard that we in the corporate communications department were about to introduce a program that would teach managers how to communicate, one senior engineer wrote an email, “How can we shut this program down?”

My first job as a speech writer was supporting a group of senior executives. It felt like I was joining a secret society. My boss looked me in the eye on that first day of work and said: “I'm going to turn you into a speech writer.” I was a novitiate—and he was the old master passing on the secrets of this sacred craft. He sent me to New York where I took a course with one of the greats: a man who had crafted remarks for Nelson Rockefeller. When preparing a major address, there were elaborate ...