Übung Kommunikation Flashcards
Think of/write down THREE FAVORITES and ONE LEAST FAVORITE for each topic (when applicable): For example, my three favorite dinners:
- Corned Beef & Cabbage, 2. Pizza, 3. BBQ Pulled Pork Lease favorite dinner: Greek Salad. Dinner: Books: Authors: Phone Apps: Technological Devices: Clothing Brand/Store: Cars: Movies: Movie Lines: Actors/Actresses: Current TV shows: Older TV shows: Hobbies: Artists: Sports Teams: Athletes: Stores: Games: Desserts: Drinks: Breakfast: Fast Food: Current Bands: Older Bands: Musicians: Motivational Songs: Sad Songs: Fun Songs: Pets: Vacation Spots: Restaurants: Bars: Plants: Junk Food: Radio Station: Local Attractions: Political Leaders: Newsworthy Figures: Historical Figures: Historical Events: Friends: Celebrity Crushes: Days: Websites: Gifts Received: Fictional Characters: Daytime Activities: Nighttime Activities: Parties: Advice: Hypothetical Occupations: Places to Live: Human Behaviors: Physical Traits (self): Physical Traits (in others): Bonus Section: Things Three things I despise: Three things I love: Three things I’m good at: Three things I’m bad at: Three things I wish I could do: Three scariest things: Three coolest things: Three funniest things: Three grossest things:
Think of/write down THREE FAVORITES and ONE LEAST FAVORITE for each topic (when applicable): What would be needed to create something outstanding: For example, my three favorite dinners: 1. Corned Beef & Cabbage, 2. Pizza, 3. BBQ Pulled Pork Lease favorite dinner: Greek Salad. Dinner: Books: Authors: Phone Apps: Technological Devices: Clothing Brand/Store: Cars: Movies: Movie Lines: Actors/Actresses: Current TV shows: Older TV shows: Hobbies: Artists: Sports Teams: Athletes: Stores: Games: Desserts: Drinks: Breakfast: Fast Food: Current Bands: Older Bands: Musicians: Motivational Songs: Sad Songs: Fun Songs: Pets: Vacation Spots: Restaurants: Bars: Plants: Junk Food: Radio Station: Local Attractions: Political Leaders: Newsworthy Figures: Historical Figures: Historical Events: Friends: Celebrity Crushes: Days: Websites: Gifts Received: Fictional Characters: Daytime Activities: Nighttime Activities: Parties: Advice: Hypothetical Occupations: Places to Live: Human Behaviors: Physical Traits (self): Physical Traits (in others): Bonus Section: Things Three things I despise: Three things I love: Three things I’m good at: Three things I’m bad at: Three things I wish I could do: Three scariest things: Three coolest things: Three funniest things: Three grossest things.
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IT Choose one of your favorite monologues from a TV series or movie. Find one with good vocal inflection and range. Spend time memorizing it. Memorize not just the words, but learn how to say every word in the exact same way.
Top 100 table topic questions for practice After a certain amount of practice, you will notice some patterns in topics and genres of questions. The number of completely different questions you may be asked is limited and by practicing you may exhaust all of them. In this section you will find 100 interesting questions and statements that you can use for practice in a group of fellow impromptu speakers. Your goal is either to answer a question or to share your opinion about a statement in the form of a short speech.
- Who was your hero when you were a child? 2. Which historical figure do you find the most interesting? 3. Do you think we should have censorship? 4. Do you support the death sentence? 5. What is your view on gun control? 6. You should always tell the truth because … 7. Is marriage an outdated institution? 8. Females make better bosses. 9. Do prisons serve a useful purpose in our society? 10. Money can buy anything and everything. 11. To me, success in life means … 12. Why are people afraid to fail? 13. What does Christmas mean to you? 14. The best thing about our nation … 15. The worst problem facing our nation today … 16. Are prisons the answer for reducing crime? 17. What can we do to improve the education system? 18. The world seems to be getting smaller because … 19. Is it important to know a second language? 20. Is TV worth watching? 21. Are politics and honesty incompatible? 22. The Olympic Games – how important are they? 23. Is it OK for men to cry? 24. Should the budget for the space program be increased? 25. Should all nuclear weapons be eliminated? 26. What is your biggest regret? 27. The thing I’m most proud of. 28. What makes you happy? 29. What is your favorite travel destination? 30. What is the best movie you have ever seen? 31. What was your favorite subject at school? 32. What is the best meal you ever ate? 33. What has been your most interesting journey? 34. What was your most frightening experience? 35. Who has been the main role model in your life? 36. If I could only accomplish one thing in my life, I would like to … 37. If I were an author, I would write about … 38. If you could be an animal, what would it be? 39. If you had to be a zookeeper for a week, which animals would you prefer to look after? 40. If the world were going to end next week, what would be the last 3 things you do? 41. The best job in the world is… 42. If you didn’t need to sleep, how would your life be different? 43. If you had to choose between being smarter or better-looking, which would you choose? 44. Suppose you could go back in time and talk to yourself at the age of 10. What advice would you give yourself? 45. Imagine you have just won the Mr. or Miss Universe pageant, a beauty and talent contest. You need to give a speech on television, expressing how happy you are, saying what the award means to you and thanking everyone. 46. If you were given one million dollars and had to spend it in a month, what would you do? 47. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. 48. If you consult enough experts, it is possible to confirm any opinion. 49. The journey is more important than the destination. 50. A smooth path might get you there faster, but a rough trail teaches you more. 51. If a penguin entered the room, what would you say? 52. Do you think professional athletes are overpaid? 53. If you could do something dangerous just once, without any risk, what would you do? 54. If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be? 55. If you had 6 months with no obligations or financial constraints, what would you do with the time? 56. Is it more fun to be a parent or a child? 57. Who did you want to become when you were a child? 58. Who has been an inspiration to you? 59. Wealth is a means to happiness. 60. Courage is … 61. Where would you choose to live if you had to leave this country? 62. What is your most prized possession? 63. If you had to choose one word to describe yourself, which would you choose and why? 64. Describe a time when you felt really happy about yourself. 65. What excites you? 66. What is the best book you ever read? 67. What is your favorite sport? 68. My most memorable holiday is … 69. Which country would you most like to visit? 70. What do you do for fun and why? 71. I plan to retire early so that I can … 72. Would you like to have an identical twin? What about it would be best? 73. If you could turn back time, what age would you want to be, and why? 74. If I could be president for a day, I’d … 75. Knowledge is power. 76. When you cease to dream you cease to live. 77. Things that are easy are seldom worthwhile. 78. Why do you think Mona Lisa was smiling? 79. Where does the road less traveled lead? 80. You’re 15 years old. Convince your parents to let you get a tattoo. 81. Home is where the heart is. 82. The best things in life are free. 83. You can if you think you can. 84. Time and tide wait for no man. 85. Less is more. 86. Imagine the world as a single country. Would it be good for humankind? 87. Which difficulty in life made you stronger? 88. What is the key to happiness? 89. If you were selected to go to the moon with a companion of your choice, who would you choose? 90. If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do? 91. You live next to a nuclear power plant. Defend the place as a nice place to live. 92. Success is a process, not a destination. 93. Your worth consists of what you are and not what you have. 94. The person who says that something can’t be done should never interrupt the person who is doing it. 95. If you could meet any celebrity, who would it be? 96. If you could witness one event in history, which would it be? 97. If I were the opposite gender, I’d … 98. Are demonstrations a waste of time? 99. What is the best or worst present you ever received? 100. Is it crazy living in this science age?
Scariest childhood memory? Happiest childhood memory? Best place to visit as a child? A story about your favorite place to visit as an adult? A story about someone you’d call an enemy/adversary? A funny story from high school? A funny story from college? Ever moved far away? An interesting/funny story about a relative? A sad story about a relative? A funny story that occurred, in the past week or month? An interesting story from the past week or month? An interesting story about one of your hobbies? A story about a time you got in trouble? A story about a time you were late for a major event? An embarrassing/regretful event? A story about how you won something? A story about how you lost something? A story about an animal/pet? A story about how you were really sick? An interesting/funny story about a friend? Something unusual from your childhood? Something unusual about your childhood home? Something unusual about where you lived as a teen/young adult? Something unusual about a friend? An interesting/funny story related to food/eating? An interesting/funny story about a music or sporting event? A story about a time you were embarrassed? A story where you overcame some challenge? A story about an injury? Ever been or hosted a great/horrible party? Have you had any life-changing moments? Have you ever had an alien/ghost encounter? A story about your first/worst date? A time you regretted buying something? A time you made a costly mistake? A time you got lost? A time you really lucked, out? Stacy wants to know other personal information. Can you answer the questions below? What’s your oldest/most sacred, possession? What’s your favorite possession? What do you want to own? What is something you’re embarrassed to tell most people? What’s something you want to accomplish in the next year, five years, and ten years? What are you most proud of? What would you write a book about? If you had a million dollars to spend, what would, you spend, it on? Something interesting you did. last week? Yesterday? Today? Something interesting you’re planning on doing this month? Year? I strongly encourage you to start a story journal. Try to maintain a log of stories as they occur.
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Exercises for thinking on your feet Exercise 1: Flow of consciousness The goal of this exercise is to develop the ability to begin a speech on any topic at any place. If you are sitting in a room, driving a car or walking somewhere, just talk about everything you see, feel and think. This is perhaps one of the most important exercises in the entire book. Once you are able to consistently fill 2-3 minutes with flow of consciousness, you can give an impromptu speech on any topic.
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. When you experience a tough situation in finding what to say, just say what you really are thinking about. The audience loves speakers who show their vulnerability and tell the truth. Be sincere and just say what is going through your mind. Imagine that you are asked a question, “If you could make only one wish and you knew it would come true, what would it be and why?” Using the skills acquired in the “flow of consciousness” exercise, I might start with the following, “Once I heard a question I almost answered with, ‘I want peace everywhere in the world.’ If I said that, I believe you guys would think well of me. But my inner voice screamed, ‘I want a billion dollars. Oh, better yet I want to become the mayor of a city like New York.
Exercise 2: Talk about an object for 5 minutes The goal of the “talk about an object” exercise is to develop ease in associative speech. First, pick any object you see. Second, talk about this object to your partner for about 5 minutes. Describe its history, functions and applications, and say what you think about it. After some time, you will realize that you can speak for several minutes about any object. This skill will help you significantly in impromptu speaking.
Exercise 1: Linguistic pyramids The goal of this exercise is to develop a skill of making quick analogies and generalizations. Pick any object that you can see, for example a cup. An object can either be generalized to the higher class or be split into subclasses. The higher class for a cup is dishes. Dishes may include plates, glasses or bowls. Let’s split a cup into several different subtypes. For example, there can be a coffee cup, a teacup, an aluminum cup or a porcelain cup. Now pick different objects and play with raising or lowering the class
Exercise 2: How a donkey is similar to a table The goal of this exercise is to learn how to create analogies between completely unrelated objects. First, pick an animate being and an inanimate object. Then explain how this animate being is similar to the inanimate object. For example, both a donkey and a table have 4 legs
3: Creative associations Choose any object or term and explain what it associates with in your mind. For example, if I were doing this exercise, it might look like the following: money-banker, coffee-mother or vacation-beach. Don’t spend too much time thinking. The first association that comes to your mind is the best one. Let’s see how it could be used in the impromptu speech, “When I think about coffee, I remember my mother because she makes the best coffee I have ever drunk.” With such a transition, you can easily change a topic from coffee to your mother or mothers in general
Craft a fictional story on the go Create an imaginary story to support your point. There is no limit to how creative you can be. You can say, “Imagine that” or “What if …” and let your imagination go wild. Some of the best impromptu speeches I have ever heard used this approach. Try it. It’s extremely effective and fun. Audiences love it. For example, your speech may begin with, “I have never gone fishing, but I imagine that …” Let your audience know that your imagination went wild and tell a tall tale. You don’t necessarily need to tell the truth
This jotting of words doesn’t need to be written as a bit, per say. All this exercise is supposed to do is get the creative juices flowing. Not working? Try this trick: Grab an item. Any item in the room. Put the item in front of you. 1. Write down 5 observations about the item. 2. Then write 5 things that you would think if you were the item. 3. Then write 5 things that you think the first person to ever see this item thought 4. Lastly, write 5 things that other people would say about the item if that item showed up unexpectedly at a party.
An exercise I have been utilizing lately is pretending I am something I’m not. I just take the first thing I think of or see and pretend I am that thing. For example, if I’m drinking coffee I will write what life would be like if I was a cup of coffee. How I’m loved in the morning but ignored in the evening. How i am all jittery. I would list all my characteristics and personalize coffee. Then I would do this with another object
Number 5 People watch. Go to a mall, park, coffee shop, outdoor event, casino or any place where you can sit and watch people go about everyday life. Bring a notebook. If any ideas come to mind from what you see or where your mind wanders, jot it down. Comedians are reporters on observations of everyday life. So, take time to observe. .
