PRACTICAL SPEAKING GUIDE

Open a presentation with a clear purpose

You have five minutes to present a proposal.

2026-09-27 · Original teaching notes by SpeakBEC

Start with the situation

You have five minutes to present a proposal. The audience already knows your team. A long company introduction would consume the time they need to consider the decision. Your opening should orient them to the issue and what you need from them.

A possible exchange

Today I’m asking for approval to test a shorter onboarding process.

I’ll show where new starters currently get stuck, explain the proposed change, and finish with the decision we need.

The main issue is the delay between account setup and the first supervised task.

Why this works

The purpose comes before the agenda. A list of sections is more useful when listeners know why those sections matter. “I’m asking for approval” identifies the action; “to test” limits the size of the commitment. The final sentence then moves into the actual issue, so the opening does not become a speech about the speech.

Match the opening to the occasion. A briefing may need “By the end, you’ll know what changes on Monday” rather than a request for approval. A research update may state a question the evidence addresses. Avoid promising “everything you need to know” when your scope is narrower. Clear boundaries help the audience ask better questions.

Change the condition and try it

Prepare a twenty-second opening for a briefing about a new booking process. The audience does not need to approve it, but must use it from Monday. State what will change, what you will demonstrate and what they should be able to do afterwards.

Try a spoken or written response before checking it. Did you address the changed condition? Could the listener identify the next step? The model is not the only acceptable answer.