Before you present your speech, take stock of your speechmaking situation.
| Find a Topic | Clarify the goal of your speech. Use search tools to browse for topic ideas. Check out special sources for policy and judicial speechmaking. |
| Online Forums | Go to the sites for national newspapers and magazines to discuss current topics. Also, check out the Allyn & Bacon Public Speaking Forums that deal with public speaking topics. |
| Usenet and E-zines | Join an online discussion through Usenet or Listserv as you assess what you want to say. (Part of the Research module.) |
| Be a Virtual Audience Member | Be a virtual audience member in a type of speaking situation pertinent to your topic or the type of speech you are planning. |
| The Archive | Check out historic examples to see how speakers assessed their speechmaking situation. |
 | Interactive Exercises 5W's and How for Informative Speeches Persuasive Speaking on Legislative Topics |
The audio examples in this module are in RealAudio format. To listen to them, you need to download the RealPlayer plug-in from Progressive Networks. The plug-in is free and works with most browsers.
