Principles of Public Speaking, 21st Edition

7 Generating Ideas

DOI: 10.4324/9781003414926-7

CHAPTER OUTLINE

Selecting and Narrowing the Subject

Step 1 Brainstorm

Step 2 Grouping

Step 3 Editing

Step 4 Creating Purpose and Direction

Step 5 Developing Your Central Idea

Step 6 Analyzing Your Audience

Step 7 The Occasion

Think About Mindfulness

Track the Room

1. Begin to look around the room.
2. Find an item and describe it to yourself.
3. If you find the item appealing, linger on it for a while.
4. Move around the room with your gaze to ground yourself in what you are surrounded by.
5. At the end of a few minutes, you should begin to find calm that removes you from potentially anxious thoughts.

Looking at the blank paper when writing the speech is a frustrating and anxiety-causing activity. Let’s ...