Impromptu

Overview

Impromptu is the purest test of a speaker. You draw a prompt — a quote, a word, an abstract idea — and have two minutes to build a structured, persuasive, often funny speech from scratch. Everything you've ever read, watched, or lived through is your evidence locker.

A clean impromptu speech has the same skeleton as a polished TED talk — just built in 120 seconds.

• •Hook (15–20s) — story, joke, vivid image, or a sharp restatement of the prompt
• •Thesis (10s) — your interpretation of the prompt in one sentence
• •Roadmap (5s) — two or three points you'll prove
• •Point 1 + example (60–90s)
• •Point 2 + example (60–90s)
• •Optional Point 3 + example (60–90s)
• •Conclusion (20–30s) — tie back to the hook, restate thesis, land the mic

Stop trying to think of the perfect speech. Use a fixed routine so your brain doesn't freeze.

• •0:00–0:20 — Decode the prompt. What does it really mean? Literal vs. metaphorical.
• •0:20–0:50 — Brainstorm 3 buckets of examples: history, pop culture, personal life.
• •0:50–1:20 — Pick the 2 strongest examples that prove the SAME thesis.
• •1:20–1:40 — Write your thesis in ONE sentence. Write your hook in 3 words.
• •1:40–2:00 — Mental walkthrough: hook → thesis → P1 → P2 → callback.

When you're stuck mid-speech, run H.E.A.R. for each point.

• •H — Headline. State the point in one punchy sentence.
• •E — Example. Tell a specific story with names, dates, and stakes.
• •A — Analysis. Why does this example prove the thesis?
• •R — Relink. Tie it back to the prompt before moving on.

• ✕Spending 90 seconds picking the 'perfect' interpretation
• ✕Using three weak examples instead of two strong ones
• ✕Forgetting to restate the prompt — judges literally forget what you drew
• ✕Speeding up when nervous; slow down on the punchlines
• ✕Ending on the last example with no callback

• →Hook drill: give yourself 30 seconds to write 5 different hooks for the same prompt.
• →Two-example drill: pick a random word and force yourself to find one historical and one pop-culture example.
• →Mirror reps: deliver a 4-minute speech to a mirror, no notes, every day for two weeks.
• →Stopwatch trim: record yourself, then re-deliver the same speech 60 seconds shorter.

Sample prompts