1. Selecting Your Topic The Better Speaker Series 274

2. Two Sources 1 Personal Experience  Interests  Career  Family  Education

3. Two Sources 2 Reference Material  Web sites  Books  Magazines  Newspapers

4. Get Inspired 3 Write it down!

5. Narrow Your Selection  How many people will attend?  What is their age range?  Will they already be familiar with the subject or will you need to carefully define basic terms and concepts?  Does your audience have similar education, interests, backgrounds and experiences? 4 Your Audience

6. Narrow Your Selection  Does the event have a theme?  When are you scheduled to speak during the program?  What will happen after your speech? 5 The Occasion

7. Narrow Your Selection  Do you have enough enthusiasm and interest in your topic to capture the audience’s attention?  Do you have the knowledge base required to present such a topic?  Will they accept you as an authority? 6 Your Own Abilities

8. Narrow Your Selection  Is the topic specific enough for the time allotted?  Do the sub-points support the topic and add to the speech?  What can be cut from the body of the speech? 7 Be Specific

9. 8 Conclusion Personal Experience + Resources + Consideration = An Excellent Speech Topic!