Speak Better on the Spot: 6 Proven Steps to Clear Thinking & Confident Communication

Couple of years back, I was to start a huge entrepreneurship conference, 120 foot stage, 500+ eager audience, and well prepared me.

I entered the stage, hooked the mic and before first word came out of my mouth…boom…. electricity failure. I realised 500 pairs are starting at me in pitch dark. I knew, I had to run the show till generators starts. Something kicked in and I immediately started with an funny anecdote about me and even without mic people listened and had a good laugh. Time saved.

What about you, have you ever felt your mind go blank right when you needed to speak?

Your heart races, your mouth dries up, and suddenly forming coherent sentences feels impossible.

Key takeaways from this article:

• Managing anxiety is about addressing both symptoms and sources
• Stopping self-judgment unlocks your natural speaking abilities
• Using simple structures makes spontaneous speaking easier and more effective

The Mindset Category: Preparing Your Brain

Speaking well in the moment isn’t just about what you say—it’s about how you prepare mentally. Let’s explore the first four steps that focus on your mindset.

Step 1: Manage Anxiety

Nearly 85% of people experience nervousness in spontaneous speaking situations. When we appear anxious, our audience often becomes uncomfortable too—a phenomenon called secondhand anxiety.

Managing speaking anxiety requires addressing both symptoms and sources:

Symptoms: These are physical reactions your body produces:

• Blushing
• Perspiring
• Dry mouth (what experts call “plumbing reversal”)
• Brain freeze
• Pounding heart

Strategies for managing symptoms:

• Deep belly breathing with longer exhales than inhales
• Drinking warm water or sucking on lozenges for dry mouth
• Holding something cold in your palms to reduce blushing and sweating

Sources: These are the triggers that cause anxiety:

The main source is worrying about future outcomes—either achieving desired results or avoiding negative ones.

Strategies for managing sources:

• Engage in physical activity before speaking
• Listen to music that calms or energizes you
• Have conversations with others before your speaking moment
• Count backwards to focus your mind
• Practice tongue twisters to bring yourself into the present moment
• Warm up your voice with simple exercises

Step 2: Maximize Mediocrity

Many of us struggle with spontaneous speaking because we judge our thoughts while trying to express them.

Consider your brain like a computer with limited processing power. When you evaluate yourself while speaking, you reduce your cognitive bandwidth and make speaking harder.

Evaluation has its place—but not during spontaneous communication. Turn down the volume on self-judgment and give yourself permission to simply answer without critique.

When you release yourself from perfectionism, you often end up speaking very well. Your natural abilities emerge when self-judgment steps aside.

Step 3: See Opportunities

Many people view questions and spontaneous speaking situations as threats or challenges. This defensive mindset leads to withdrawn, minimal responses.

Shifting your perspective changes everything. View these moments as opportunities to:

• Connect with others
• Learn something new
• Find common ground

Tools for developing an opportunity mindset:

• Not Yet Mindset: View challenges as temporary learning experiences
• Yes And: Look for areas of agreement even in disagreement
• Next Play: Move forward after missteps rather than dwelling on them
• Missed Takes: Reframe “mistakes” as opportunities to try again differently

Step 4: Listen Well

Most people listen just enough to get the gist before focusing on their response. Effective spontaneous communication requires deeper understanding.

Better listening strategies:

• Listen Intently: Focus on identifying the core message or question
• Pace, Space, Grace:
  • Pace: Slow down your responses
  • Space: Create mental room for processing what you hear
  • Grace: Pay attention to how something is said and trust your intuition
• Ask clarifying questions or paraphrase: These techniques provide thinking time while ensuring understanding

The Messaging Category: Structuring Your Response

Once your mindset is prepared, focus on how you structure and deliver your spontaneous communication.

Step 5: Structure

Our brains are wired for structure and story—not random lists of information. Good structure:

• Orients your audience
• Sets expectations
• Helps you prioritize what to say
• Makes your message memorable

Effective structures for spontaneous speaking:

1. Problem-Solution-Benefit
   • Identify the issue
   • Present your solution
   • Explain the advantages
2. What-So What-Now What
   • What: Explain your idea or position
   • So What: Why it matters
   • Now What: Next steps or actions

A study by Stanford University found that structured messages are retained up to 40% better than unstructured ones, according to communication research.

Transitions between points are crucial—they connect ideas and prevent losing your audience.

Step 6: Focus

Being concise is a kindness to your audience. Avoid taking people on the journey of your discovery process.

As the saying goes: “Tell me the time, don’t build me the clock.”

Strategies for maintaining focus:

• Relevance: Center your message on what matters to your audience
• Goal clarity: Define what you want listeners to:
  • Know (information)
  • Feel (emotion)
  • Do (action)

For pitching ideas spontaneously, try this focused four-sentence structure:

1. “What if you could…” (introduce the possibility)
2. “So that…” (explain the benefit)
3. “For example…” (provide concrete illustration)
4. “That’s not all…” (add additional value)

Research from Harvard Business School shows that executives rate focused, concise communicators as 12% more effective and 17% more likely to advance professionally.

Final Thoughts

For becoming better at spontaneous speaking requires repetition, reflection, and feedback.

Practice these six steps: manage anxiety, maximize mediocrity, see opportunities, listen well, structure your thoughts, and maintain focus. And you’ll notice gradual improvement.

Speaking better is about communicating authentically and effectively when it matters most.

Try working on both your mindset and messaging and I know, you’ll find yourself more confident and capable in any speaking situation.

Keep in mind that even the most polished speakers continue to work on these skills.

Give yourself grace during the learning process, and celebrate small improvements along the way.