Impromptu

8Lay the Groundwork

In April 2016, just months after Justin Trudeau had been sworn in as Canada's twenty‐third prime minister, he visited the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics in Waterloo, Ontario, to announce $50 million in funding. After touring the facilities, Trudeau held a press conference, and a journalist jokingly asked him to explain quantum computing. To everyone's amazement, Trudeau launched into a clear and concise explanation.¹

His words went viral and stunned even his admirers because, as Vanity Fair put it, “Man of Your Dreams Justin Trudeau Casually Drops Quantum Computing Lecture in Press Conference.”² Why the accolades? Quite simply, because he had prepared extraordinarily well by mastering a highly technical subject. Doing so gave him credibility.

The six chapters that make up this section of the book discuss how to craft scripts for impromptu speaking. This chapter explores why preparation has been a fundamental for great impromptu speakers over the centuries. It also discusses the importance of knowing your subject and having a storehouse of key messages. In short, you will learn how to create a strong foundation for your script.

Great Speakers Prepare for Impromptu

When the term “off the cuff” first appeared in print in 1936, it already denoted preparation. It referred to the practice of writing notes on the cuffs of shirt sleeves and reading from these notes when speaking. Politicians, actors, and poets had long used this approach to write ...