Write an Icebreaker Speech

An icebreaker speech is any kind of speech that introduces yourself to an audience. You can give an icebreaker speech in a lot of different contexts: when you’re accepting an award, toasting a couple at their wedding, or making a business pitch. Choosing the topic of your icebreaker, carefully drafting and editing your speech, and practicing it before you give it can help you write a successful icebreaker speech.

Steps

Choosing the Topic of Your Icebreaker

  1. Give a chronological account of your life. If you’re delivering your icebreaker in a context where people will want to know who you are like, you can focus on giving a chronological account of your life. You won’t be able to talk about every single life event, but you can choose a few milestones.[1]
    • For example, if you’re accepting an award, you’ll want to introduce yourself to the audience. A chronological account of your life tells your audience where and when you were born, the first memory you can remember, and where you went to college.
  2. Try a topical approach. You can write an icebreaker speech that focuses on the events in your life that share a theme. This is an especially good approach if you’re giving your speech in a context that focuses on a specific issue or theme..[1]
    • For example, if you’re giving your speech at a business meeting, you might want to focus on your most impressive business-related accomplishments.
    • If you’re giving your speech in an academic setting, you might want to highlight your academic accomplishments, including degrees and certifications.
  3. Focus on a common thread in your life. You can also structure your speech around a common thread in your life. This approach allows to focus on the things you love, rather than just a list of your accomplishments.[1]
    • For instance, if you are a veterinarian, you might talk about your Pick out Your First Pet, your first job caring for animals, your decision to become a veterinarian, your current practice and your current pets.
    • This is also a great approach if you’re writing a wedding toast. Focus on your friendship with the couple (or just one of them) and how it has influenced your life over time.
  4. Concentrate on one key event that defines you. You can also focus on one moment or one decision that has defined or shaped your life. Then you can talk about the decision that brought you to that moment and how it’s influenced your life since.[2]
    • For example, if you're a surgeon, you might talk about your most difficult case and how it led you to pioneer a new technique. If you're a Observe Veterans Day, you might talk about being in combat and how it changed you.

Drafting Your Icebreaker

  1. Keep it short. You might have a lot that you want to say during your icebreaker speech, but it shouldn’t really be longer than 4 to 6 minutes. This really means you only get about two double-spaced pages for your speech. A good way to start is to write down everything you want to say and then work on editing it into two double-spaced pages.[1]
  2. Begin with an introduction. You should start your introduction by telling your audience your name and a sentence or two about you. You should also include an attention-getting tidbit, like a joke or a quote that you can relate to the theme of your speech.[1]
    • For example, if you’re giving your speech at a business gathering, you could start with a quote from the company’s founder.
    • If you’re giving a wedding toast, it’s generally best not to joke – what you think is funny can sometimes come across as mean or embarrassing to the couple getting married.
  3. Write 3 to 5 body paragraphs. Each of your body paragraphs should somehow connect to the theme of your speech. You shouldn’t use the body paragraphs to cram as much information as possible into your speech. Instead, use them to provide examples of the thing you want your audience to know about you.
    • For example, if you’re giving a speech that focuses on when you became a doctor as a key moment in your life, your first body paragraph might talk about how you liked helping people as a kid, the second paragraph might talk about your decision to go to medical school, and the last paragraph might talk about what it felt the first time someone called you “doctor.”
  4. End with a conclusion. Your conclusion, like your introduction, should last about 30 seconds. Use it to repeat the main point of your speech, and then thank the host of the event where you're speaking, or offer some parting words of wisdom.
    • For example, if your icebreaker speech has been about how you became a doctor, you could end by saying something like "Little girls who help clean up their friends' 'booboos' on the playground grow up to be doctors. Thank you so much for having me. Have a great day."
    • You could also say something like "If you want to be a doctor, remember that there is nothing more important than a passion for helping people and a commitment to hard work."

Preparing for Your Icebreaker

  1. Re-read your speech. Once you’ve drafted your speech, re-read it to make sure that you didn't leave out anything important or that you haven’t unnecessarily repeated information.
  2. Practice giving your icebreaker at home. The more you practice saying your speech out loud, the more comfortable you’ll be giving it in front of others. You can practice by reciting your speech in front of a mirror, or by asking a friend to listen to your speech and give you feedback.
    • You don’t have to memorize the speech, but it should be clear that you know what’s coming next while you’re speaking.
  3. Time your speech. Four to six minutes will fly by when you’re actually giving your speech, so you should time yourself before you give it for real. You can use a clock, your watch, or your phone to time yourself, or you can ask someone else to time it for you. If a friend helps you, they can also listen for filler words like "you know," "so," and "um.” An icebreaker speech doesn’t have to be super formal, it should still sound prepared.[1]

Tips

  • Don’t forget to introduce yourself! This seems like the most obvious thing to include in your speech, but a lot of people forget when they’re nervous. Your audience needs to know who you are!

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 https://icebreakerideas.com/writing-icebreaker-speech/
  2. ↑ http://toastmastersd17.org/resource/icebreaker-speeches/

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