Think Faster, Talk Smarter: How to Speak Successfully When You're Put on the Spot

Research in cognitive neuroscience supports the importance of orienting audiences when communicating. Scholars like to talk about “processing fluency”—how easily and smoothly information gets encoded in our brains.

Some Classic, All-Purpose Structures18 What–So What–Now What Discuss the topic, why it matters, the practical implications. Prep (Point, Reason, Example, Point) Make a point, give the rationale behind it, offer some illustrations, wrap up by returning to the point. Problem–Solution–Benefit Evoke an issue, offer a solution, and end by discussing the

information. In researching this book, I spoke with Myka Carroll, editorial director of the For Dummies brand and author of New York City for Dummies.14 As she relates, the popular For Dummies franchise follows a very clear format that contains cues and guideposts for readers. The franchise’s objective is to assist readers with a process called “wa

A second way structure helps with spontaneous speaking is by helping both us and our audience to remember important messages.

Now turbocharge your message by leveraging the Comparison–Contrast–Conclusion road map (reflect on how the events are similar, then on how they’re different, then come to some conclusion based on the analysis).

When others put us on the spot, we experience affective symptoms, those relating to our mood or how we feel. People under the spotlight often feel stressed, pressured, or lacking in agency. They feel vulnerable, overwhelmed, and frightened. We also experience symptoms that are behavioral or physiological in nature. We sweat. Tremble. Stutter. Our h

I spend that fifteen seconds choosing a structure and then very cursorily applying it to the topic. Considering the topic and audience, I ponder whether I might use a persuasive structure like Problem–Solution–Benefit, a chronological structure like Past–Present–Future, or a comparative structure like Comparison–Contrast–Conclusion. To my students’

By sketching out a basic road map at the outset and by then executing on that plan, I made it easier for visitors not merely to stay with me but also to relax, pay attention, and absorb what I was saying. If visitors hadn’t known what to expect, a little voice in their minds might have continued to wonder about what they would later experience. Set

Comparison–Contrast–Conclusion.