Three Techniques to Remember Your Speech
- Victoria Hogg
- 5 days ago
- 3 min read
Hello! Now, what was I going to say? |
Ah, the pain of forgetting your speech. How many times have you walked into a room and forgotten what you came in for? It’s worse for talks and speeches, right? That sinking feeling when your mind goes blank isn’t just embarrassing; it can derail your confidence and credibility. Right there. And get this, research shows that even well-prepared speakers forget and lose up to two-thirds of their content within hours if they rely solely on rote memorisation, as captured in Psychology Today.
“Stories are memory's best friends” Richard Branson, Virgin founder Hold up - we have good news. Here are our three top practical tips to make your memory work for you and help your message stick... |
Three Techniques to Remember Your Speech
TRY IT OUT! 💘 Our weekly tip, from applied improv to you.
Anecdote Accelerator
Objective: Quickly create a short anecdote from a single word prompt.
Time: 2–3 minutes (online or in-room)
How It Works:
Setup: Pair participants or run in a small group.
The host offers a single trigger word to the participants.
One of the participants steps forward (or puts their hand up) and shares a short anecdote triggered by that word.
Begin with, “That makes me think of…”
Keep the anecdote to one minute if possible. Rotate so each player has a go.
The anecdote doesn’t need to be funny, wise, or profound; just spontaneous.
Debrief: Ask participants how the prompt helped unlock ideas. Ask how telling the anecdote without a script felt. Highlight that we all can create or recall short anecdotes and the ability to pull content forward memorisation.
Download: Anecdote Accelerator
Tip 1: Messaging – Anchor Your Talk
The Problem: Without a clear message, your talk becomes a blur of disconnected points, making it harder for you, and your audience, to remember what matters and to follow your call to action.
How to Implement: Define one core takeaway your audience should leave with and map your talk into logical sequences: such as an opening hook → 3 main points → call to action. Avoid overcomplication; clarity beats complexity every time.
Why It Works: Brains recall information better when structured and tied to a theme.
Tip 2: Ask Yourself – The Power of Rhetorical Questions
The Problem: When you freeze, your brain needs a cue to unlock stored content.
How to Implement: Sprinkle rhetorical questions like “Why does this matter?” or “What do I mean by that?” throughout your talk. These act as mental triggers to release ideas from memory.
Why It Works: Questions activate retrieval pathways in the brain, prompting recall.
Tip 3: Build Anecdotes – Stories Stick
The Problem: Facts fade fast, stories linger.
How to Implement: Replace rigid scripts with short, vivid anecdotes that illustrate your points. Use conversational language and emotional hooks.
Why It Works: Storytelling improves memory retention by up to 22% compared to isolated facts, suggests cognitive psychologist Jerome Bruner.
Techniques like rhetorical prompts and storytelling add stronger emotional and contextual cues, making recall easier under pressure.
One last thought… forget memorising every word. Focus on messaging, mental triggers, and stories that stick. These techniques don’t just help you remember, they will make your talk more engaging, authentic, and impactful… oh and they’ll help your audience remember too!
Something recalled...
We talk to ourselves all the time. Often in questions; “What was I doing?”, “What was I just thinking about”, “What do I need to take with me?”… “shall I have a coffee?”
I was watching back a routine I did at the Guildford Comedy Festival, and I wondered off-piste a bit with the audience and naturally I lost my way in my routine… Then you can hear me say out loud to the room “where was I?” as I desperately try to backtrack. Ironically, I was talking about a summer job I had working in Lost Property.
And having retraced the mental steps to where I was, I let the room know with a louder “YES, that was it” and I was back on track ready to deliver a line about getting stuck in my job at the glue factory.
Paul n Vic
