how to make a speech last 5 minutes

How to Create an Engaging 5-Minute Presentation

Published: September 15, 2023

A 5-minute speech can feel both incredibly short and infinitely long.

While this short format encourages audiences to pay more attention, presenters often struggle to fit everything into five minutes even as they navigate nervousness that seems to stretch out each second.

As a result, preparation is key for 5-minute speech success.

But how can you ensure your presentation accomplishes everything it needs to within just five short minutes? We’ve put together an (appropriately condensed) guide on five-minute presentations to help you get started.

How many words are in a 5-minute presentation?

A five-minute presentation is approximately 700 words long. The average person speaks 120 to 160 words a minute, which means the average five-minute presentation is 600 to 800 words.

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To calculate your own personal speaking speed (words per minute, or WPM):

• Make an audio recording of yourself speaking for one minute.
• Use a free transcription service to generate a text version of your speech.
• The number of words you spoke in that minute is your personal WPM.

When constructing a longer presentation, you might be more concerned about transitions and keeping the audience engaged with more extensive narrative elements.

In a short presentation, everything you say should directly tie back to your central premise and further advance your main point.

Keeping a tight scope and using your words carefully ensures your time isn't wasted and the audience leaves with a clear, singular takeaway.

How many slides are in a 5-minute presentation?

Five or six slides, or about one per minute, is a good baseline for a 5-minute presentation. Depending on your subject matter, however, you might use up to 20 slides and spend about 10 or 15 seconds on each.

More important than your slide count is what each slide contains. It‘s a good rule of thumb to keep your slides simple and focused on visuals instead of text for a presentation of any length.

This becomes especially important when you’re dealing with a condensed presentation window.

Trying to cram in as much information as possible within a short time frame can be tempting. Resist the urge. Instead, focus on simple, clean visuals that all tie back to your central premise.

You can also use these free presentation templates to arrange your slides in a way that makes the most sense for your delivery and the content of your presentation.

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The 5-Minute Speech and How to Write One

Average: 3 ( 1 vote)

Many people feel nervous before giving a speech, and there is added pressure if you have to get your message across in a short space of time. It is a challenge to be sure to include all the various crucial points that make your speech impactful and engaging. 

To overcome this challenge we suggest that you prepare a speech outline that includes all those points that can illustrate your central idea, but which you can cover in the allotted time.

In this article, we will take a quick look at how to write a 5-minute speech having defined all of your core points. Let’s first understand where these types of speeches are required the most. 

When are 5-Minute Speeches Required?

Here are some specific situations where you may be asked to deliver a 5-minute speech. 

Introducing a new employee in the company and letting everyone know about his designation and experience.

Making a special event announcement in the office where you have to describe the importance of that event.

Pitching a service or product to customers with a simple yet effective speech. 

Offering a short speech at the opening of a business such as a real estate company. In this case, you can deliver a strong 5-minute speech along with catchy real estate slogans .

Describing your favorite personality’s contribution to society at a charity event. 

Giving a speech at a wedding or a funeral to describe some special memories.

Besides these situations, there are a number of other situations where you may have to give a quick speech. Therefore, always try to be prepared with simple, sample outlines to deliver speeches that can grab people’s attention . 

How to Write a 5-Minute Speech?

Here are some important points to remember when writing a short speech for any special event.

Consider Your Audience

Before starting to write a speech, you need to first analyze the audience properly. This is necessary because it will help you to prepare a speech that will engage them specifically. It will simplify your selection of words and tone that fit the audience best. 

Create an Outline

Once you understand your audience , shift your focus to the preparation of a strong speech outline. 

You have to keep various factors in mind while creating an overall outline. You need to consider the time limitation, and how to define your thoughts inside the frame. Create an outline that is short, but covers all the points that need to be described to the audience. Do not include what you will say, just stick to the points you need to make for now.

Start with Powerful Words

Now, it is time to start writing your actual speech, opening it with some thought-provoking words. The start of your speech can really make or break your whole presentation. Therefore, try to come up with those words that will grab your audience’s attention. It could be a factual example, an anecdote,  or an inspirational quote. Choose your opening words to influence the audience that you have identified.

Stay Clear with Your Central Message

The central message of your speech should always be loud and clear. Pick words that simplify your message and enhance your audience's understanding, allowing them to remember your speech for a long time.  

Conclude the Speech with Inspirational Words

End your speech with some lines that will invoke positive thoughts among your audience. As a professional speaker , this is your chance to maintain the interest of listeners even after you have concluded your speech. That could be done by making your conclusion powerful and uniquely attractive. It should also include the central message.

Final Words

Public speaking is not easy. It requires you to have complete confidence in your words and body language. It is even more challenging when you have limited time to get your points across and engage your audience. 

Consider the above tips to ensure that your short speeches are powerful and insightful for your audience. These tips will simplify your speech preparation process, allowing you to deliver a great thought-provoking message in 5 minutes or less.

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How to Write and Deliver a 5 Minute Speech: A Comprehensive Guide

Giving a 5 minute speech can be intimidating. With only 300 seconds to capture your audience’s attention, engage them and deliver your message every second counts.

Crafting and delivering a clear, compelling 5 minute speech takes planning and practice. Follow this comprehensive guide to learn how to write, structure, and rehearse a polished 5 minute talk.

Step 1: Define Your Purpose

Before you start writing think about

What is the goal of your speech? Do you want to inform, persuade inspire or entertain?

Who is your audience? What do they already know about your topic? What misconceptions might they have?

What do you want them to think, feel, or do after your speech? What is the one key takeaway?

Having a clear purpose will help you hone your message and choose the right content.

Step 2: Research Your Topic

Conduct research to uncover interesting facts, statistics, examples, and anecdotes to support your speech.

Good sources include:

• News articles
• Academic journals
• Nonfiction books
• Interviews with experts

Make sure your sources are credible and cite them properly. Gather about twice as much research as you think you’ll need. It will get narrowed down later.

Step 3: Write an Outline

With your purpose defined and research gathered, start structuring your speech with an outline.

Your 5 minute speech should include:

• Introduction – Grab attention, establish your credibility, state your purpose
• Body – Main points and supporting details
• Conclusion – Summarize key points, end memorably

Aim for 2-3 main points in the body elaborated with concise examples.

Step 4: Flesh Out Your Content

Now start filling in your outline with draft speech content:

Introduction – Open with a relevant quote, question, story, or statistic.

Main Points – For each point, include 2-3 sentences explaining/supporting it.

Conclusion – Circle back to your introduction, end with a strong statement.

Shoot for a 1650-1700 word first draft so you have room to refine.

Step 5: Refine and Edit

Once you have a complete draft, you can start trimming and polishing:

Simplify language – Use concise words and avoid jargon.

Cut unnecessary words/sentences – Be ruthless. If it doesn’t directly support your purpose, cut it.

Check timing – Read your speech aloud, making edits until it falls within 4.5-5.5 minutes.

Add visual aids – Charts, photos etc. can enhance your message. But use them sparingly so they don’t distract.

Step 6: Practice for Delivery

To deliver your speech confidently without reading directly from notes, practice it extensively:

Memorize your outline – Know your main points and transitions by heart.

Rehearse out loud – Get comfortable speaking your content. Don’t memorize it word-for-word or it will sound robotic.

Record yourself – Identify areas to improve pacing, volume, filler words (“um”, “like”), etc.

Practice with visual aids – Ensure you can smoothly incorporate charts, slides, or other visuals.

Simulate the event – Practice wearing the clothes and using the equipment you’ll have on the day and get feedback.

Step 7: Prepare for Q&A

Having a Q&A after your speech provides your audience an opportunity to clarify or expand on your message. Be ready for questions by:

• Considering what questions you might get based on your content
• Practice answering likely questions out loud
• Having succinct answers planned for challenging questions
• Preparing to tactfully defer any inappropriate or irrelevant questions

Step 8: Visualize Success

Right before you speak, build your confidence by:

• Doing calming deep breathing
• Imagining yourself speaking smoothly and the audience reacting positively
• Recalling your hard work preparing and why this message is important

With the right speech preparation, 5 minutes is plenty of time to deliver a powerful message.

By following this comprehensive 8-step guide, you can write and successfully present a polished, impactful 5 minute talk. With practice and experience, speaking briefly but effectively will get easier each time.

The key is being ruthlessly selective about your content, rehearsing extensively, and focusing not just on what you say but how you say it. Master these skills and any audience will be hanging on your every word, even if you have only 300 seconds.

How to give a 5-minute speech in English

How to write a 5 minute speech topic?

Before coming up with a 5-minute speech topic for your speech, you must understand what the topic should look like so as to grab everyone’s attention and instill enough curiosity in them. 1. Short Keep your title short. Very lengthy titles are challenging to recall and can be very boring for the audience members.

How hard is it to write a 5 minute speech?

Writing a short speech is often much harder than writing a long one. Because you only have a small amount of time, it can feel like a lot of pressure to deliver important information. Writing a five-minute speech doesn’t need to be a complex task.

How long does it take to prepare a 5 minute speech?

If you want only a five-minute speech, it will take me two weeks to prepare.” Delivering presentations and speeches can be challenging, especially if you have a short time. Covering the essential information you wish to convey and making an impact in these 5 minutes requires much backend work.

How to give a 5 minute speech?

Choose a relevant and exciting topic, organize your thoughts, use supporting materials, and rehearse your delivery. Improving your public speaking skills and making an impact are great reasons to give a five-minute speech. With the proper preparation, you can deliver a powerful message that achieves your goals.

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How to Write a Great Five Minute Speech

by Anam Ahmed

Published on 8 May 2019

Writing a short speech is often much harder than writing a long one. Because you only have a small amount of time, it can feel like a lot of pressure to deliver important information. Writing a five-minute speech doesn’t need to be a complex task. Even if you are asked to speak at the last minute, you can outline the speech quickly in your head by relying on a few important speech writing techniques.

5-Minute Speech Topics

In business, there are many situations where you may be asked to give a five-minute speech. Some situations where you may need to give a short speech include:

• Introducing a new employee to the staff
• Speaking to staff about key company updates
• Motivating employees before an important event
• Providing investors with key business updates
• Pitching services to customers and prospects

Regardless of what your five-minute speech is on, it’s important to take the time to carefully craft what you’re going to say. You don’t want to go off-topic and risk wasting your allotted time talking about something that isn’t relevant to your audience.

Create an Outline

A simple outline can make a 5-minute speech on anything more effective. Start your outline by creating minute-long sections of your speech. The middle three minutes are reserved for the key points you want to make in your speech. For example, if you’re speaking to employees about company updates, you can use those three minutes to talk about your sales numbers, organizational updates and new offerings.

The last minute of your speech is to sum up the main point of your message. If there is only one thing your audience takes away from your speech, what should it be? That is what you want to focus on in your last minute. For example, you can close by talking about how proud you are of your employees and recognize the hard work they have put in.

The first minute of your speech is reserved for the introduction. It’s often easier to write this section last after you’ve written the rest of your speech because you have a good idea of the themes you’re going to be touching on. Many strong orators start their speeches with a question or a personal story because it helps to make everyone feel at ease. For example, ask the staff whether they have a favorite moment from the last quarter, and share your favorite moment.

Stay Focused on the Topic at Hand

The key to writing a great five-minute speech is to cut out any unnecessary information . Use the time you have wisely by only focusing on the topic at hand. Resist the urge to go on tangents that don’t directly relate to your topic.

For example, when updating employees about the progress of the company, don’t start talking about the exciting marketing plans you have for the next quarter. Reserve that information for a different speaking opportunity as you won’t be able to cover everything in those five minutes.

Rehearse Your Five-Minute Speech Out Loud

Once you have written down your five-minute speech, practice saying it out loud. Time yourself to see how long it is. If you’re going over time, it means you need to cut out some details. If you’re way under five minutes, you have the opportunity to add in more information. If you’re coming in right at five minutes, you’ll still want to cut out some information. It’s always best to have about a 30-second buffer in case you spend more time on a section than you planned for.

Once you’ve got just the right amount of content for your speech, highlight the salient points of each sentence with a highlighter pen to give you visual cues about the speech. This way, you won’t need to read your speech word for word. You can just focus on the highlighted sections to jog your memory about that section and then you can extrapolate the rest. This appears much more natural than reading the entire speech.

• Games, topic printables & more
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How to write a good speech in 7 steps

By:  Susan Dugdale  

- an easily followed format for writing a great speech

Did you know writing a speech doesn't have be an anxious, nail biting experience?

Unsure? Don't be.

You may have lived with the idea you were never good with words for a long time. Or perhaps giving speeches at school brought you out in cold sweats.

However learning how to write a speech is relatively straight forward when you learn to write out loud.

And that's the journey I am offering to take you on: step by step.

To learn quickly, go slow

Take all the time you need. This speech format has 7 steps, each building on the next.

Walk, rather than run, your way through all of them. Don't be tempted to rush. Familiarize yourself with the ideas. Try them out.

I know there are well-advertised short cuts and promises of 'write a speech in 5 minutes'. However in reality they only truly work for somebody who already has the basic foundations of speech writing in place.

The foundation of good speech writing 

These steps are the backbone of sound speech preparation. Learn and follow them well at the outset and yes, given more experience and practice you could probably flick something together quickly. Like any skill, the more it's used, the easier it gets.

In the meantime...

Step 1: Begin with a speech overview or outline

Are you in a hurry? Without time to read a whole page? Grab ... The Quick How to Write a Speech Checklist And come back to get the details later.

• WHO you are writing your speech for (your target audience)
• WHY you are preparing this speech. What's the main purpose of your speech? Is it to inform or tell your audience about something? To teach them a new skill or demonstrate something? To persuade or to entertain? (See 4 types of speeches: informative, demonstrative, persuasive and special occasion or entertaining for more.) What do you want them to think, feel or do as a result of listening the speech?
• WHAT your speech is going to be about (its topic) - You'll want to have thought through your main points and have ranked them in order of importance. And have sorted the supporting research you need to make those points effectively.
• HOW much time you have for your speech eg. 3 minutes, 5 minutes... The amount of time you've been allocated dictates how much content you need. If you're unsure check this page: how many words per minute in a speech: a quick reference guide . You'll find estimates of the number of words required for 1 - 10 minute speeches by slow, medium and fast talkers.

Use an outline

The best way to make sure you deliver a perfect speech is to start by carefully completing a speech outline covering the essentials: WHO, WHY, WHAT and HOW.

Beginning to write without thinking your speech through is a bit like heading off on a journey not knowing why you're traveling or where you're going to end up. You can find yourself lost in a deep, dark, murky muddle of ideas very quickly!

Pulling together a speech overview or outline is a much safer option. It's the map you'll follow to get where you want to go.

Get a blank speech outline template to complete

Click the link to find out a whole lot more about preparing a speech outline . ☺ You'll also find a free printable blank speech outline template.  I recommend using it!

Understanding speech construction

Before you begin to write, using your completed outline as a guide, let's briefly look at what you're aiming to prepare.

• an opening or introduction
• the body where the bulk of the information is given
• and an ending (or summary).

Imagine your speech as a sandwich

If you think of a speech as a sandwich you'll get the idea.

The opening and ending are the slices of bread holding the filling (the major points or the body of your speech) together.

You can build yourself a simple sandwich with one filling (one big idea) or you could go gourmet and add up to three or, even five. The choice is yours.

But whatever you choose to serve, as a good cook, you need to consider who is going to eat it! And that's your audience.

So let's find out who they are before we do anything else. 

Step 2: Know who you are talking to

Understanding your audience.

Did you know a  good speech is never written from the speaker's point of view?  ( If you need to know more about why check out this page on  building rapport .)

Begin with the most important idea/point on your outline.

Consider HOW you can explain (show, tell) that to your audience in the most effective way for them to easily understand it.   

Writing from the audience's point of view

To help you write from an audience point of view, it's a good idea to identify either a real person or the type of person who is most likely to be listening to you.

Make sure you select someone who represents the "majority" of the people who will be in your audience. That is they are neither struggling to comprehend you at the bottom of your scale or light-years ahead at the top.

Now imagine they are sitting next to you eagerly waiting to hear what you're going to say. Give them a name, for example, Joe, to help make them real.

Ask yourself

• How do I need to tailor my information to meet Joe's needs? For example, do you tell personal stories to illustrate your main points? Absolutely! Yes. This is a very powerful technique. (Click storytelling in speeches to find out more.)
• What type or level of language is right for Joe as well as my topic? For example if I use jargon (activity, industry or profession specific vocabulary) will it be understood?

Step 3: Writing as you speak

Writing oral language.

Write down what you want to say about your first main point as if you were talking directly to Joe.

If it helps, say it all out loud before you write it down and/or record it.

Use the information below as a guide

(Click to download The Characteristics of Spoken Language  as a pdf.) 

You do not have to write absolutely everything you're going to say down * but you do need to write down, or outline, the sequence of ideas to ensure they are logical and easily followed.

Remember too, to explain or illustrate your point with examples from your research. 

( * Tip: If this is your first speech the safety net of having everything written down could be just what you need. It's easier to recover from a patch of jitters when you have a word by word manuscript than if you have either none, or a bare outline. Your call!)

Step 4: Checking tone and language

The focus of this step is re-working what you've done in Step 2 and 3.

You identified who you were talking to (Step 2) and in Step 3, wrote up your first main point.  Is it right? Have you made yourself clear?  Check it.

How well you complete this step depends on how well you understand the needs of the people who are going to listen to your speech.

Please do not assume because you know what you're talking about the person (Joe) you've chosen to represent your audience will too. Joe is not a mind-reader!

How to check what you've prepared

• Check the "tone" of your language . Is it right for the occasion, subject matter and your audience?
• Check the length of your sentences. You need short sentences. If they're too long or complicated you risk losing your listeners.

Check for jargon too. These are industry, activity or group exclusive words.

For instance take the phrase: authentic learning . This comes from teaching and refers to connecting lessons to the daily life of students. Authentic learning is learning that is relevant and meaningful for students. If you're not a teacher you may not understand the phrase.

The use of any vocabulary requiring insider knowledge needs to be thought through from the audience perspective. Jargon can close people out.

• Read what you've written out loud. If it flows naturally, in a logical manner, continue the process with your next main idea. If it doesn't, rework.

We use whole sentences and part ones, and we mix them up with asides or appeals e.g. "Did you get that? Of course you did. Right...Let's move it along. I was saying ..."

Click for more about the differences between spoken and written language .

And now repeat the process

Repeat this process for the remainder of your main ideas.

Because you've done the first one carefully, the rest should follow fairly easily.

Step 5: Use transitions

Providing links or transitions between main ideas.

Between each of your main ideas you need to provide a bridge or pathway for your audience. The clearer the pathway or bridge, the easier it is for them to make the transition from one idea to the next.

If your speech contains more than three main ideas and each is building on the last, then consider using a "catch-up" or summary as part of your transitions.

Is your speech being evaluated? Find out exactly what aspects you're being assessed on using this standard speech evaluation form

Link/transition examples

A link can be as simple as:

"We've explored one scenario for the ending of Block Buster 111, but let's consider another. This time..."

What follows this transition is the introduction of Main Idea Two.

Here's a summarizing link/transition example:

"We've ended Blockbuster 111 four ways so far. In the first, everybody died. In the second, everybody died BUT their ghosts remained to haunt the area. In the third, one villain died. His partner reformed and after a fight-out with the hero, they both strode off into the sunset, friends forever. In the fourth, the hero dies in a major battle but is reborn sometime in the future.

And now what about one more? What if nobody died? The fifth possibility..."

Go back through your main ideas checking the links. Remember Joe as you go. Try each transition or link out loud and really listen to yourself. Is it obvious? Easily followed?

Keep them if they are clear and concise.

For more about transitions (with examples) see Andrew Dlugan's excellent article, Speech Transitions: Magical words and Phrases .

Step 6: The end of your speech

The ideal ending is highly memorable . You want it to live on in the minds of your listeners long after your speech is finished. Often it combines a call to action with a summary of major points.

Example speech endings

Example 1: The desired outcome of a speech persuading people to vote for you in an upcoming election is that they get out there on voting day and do so. You can help that outcome along by calling them to register their support by signing a prepared pledge statement as they leave.

"We're agreed we want change. You can help us give it to you by signing this pledge statement as you leave. Be part of the change you want to see!

Example 2: The desired outcome is increased sales figures. The call to action is made urgent with the introduction of time specific incentives.

"You have three weeks from the time you leave this hall to make that dream family holiday in New Zealand yours. Can you do it? Will you do it? The kids will love it. Your wife will love it. Do it now!"

How to figure out the right call to action

A clue for working out what the most appropriate call to action might be, is to go back to your original purpose for giving the speech.

• Was it to motivate or inspire?
• Was it to persuade to a particular point of view?
• Was it to share specialist information?
• Was it to celebrate a person, a place, time or event?

Ask yourself what you want people to do as a result of having listened to your speech.

For more about ending speeches

Visit this page for more about how to end a speech effectively . You'll find two additional types of speech endings with examples.

Write and test

Write your ending and test it out loud. Try it out on a friend, or two. Is it good? Does it work?

Step 7: The introduction

Once you've got the filling (main ideas) the linking and the ending in place, it's time to focus on the introduction.

The introduction comes last as it's the most important part of your speech. This is the bit that either has people sitting up alert or slumped and waiting for you to end. It's the tone setter!

What makes a great speech opening?

Ideally you want an opening that makes listening to you the only thing the 'Joes' in the audience want to do.

You want them to forget they're hungry or that their chair is hard or that their bills need paying.

The way to do that is to capture their interest straight away. You do this with a "hook".

Hooks to catch your audience's attention

Hooks come in as many forms as there are speeches and audiences. Your task is work out what specific hook is needed to catch your audience.

Go back to the purpose. Why are you giving this speech?

Once you have your answer, consider your call to action. What do you want the audience to do, and, or take away, as a result of listening to you?

Next think about the imaginary or real person you wrote for when you were focusing on your main ideas.

Choosing the best hook

• Is it humor?
• Would shock tactics work?
• Is it a rhetorical question?
• Is it formality or informality?
• Is it an outline or overview of what you're going to cover, including the call to action?
• Or is it a mix of all these elements?

A hook example

Here's an example from a fictional political speech. The speaker is lobbying for votes. His audience are predominately workers whose future's are not secure.

"How's your imagination this morning? Good? (Pause for response from audience) Great, I'm glad. Because we're going to put it to work starting right now.

I want you to see your future. What does it look like? Are you happy? Is everything as you want it to be? No? Let's change that. We could do it. And we could do it today.

At the end of this speech you're going to be given the opportunity to change your world, for a better one ...

No, I'm not a magician. Or a simpleton with big ideas and precious little commonsense. I'm an ordinary man, just like you. And I have a plan to share!"

And then our speaker is off into his main points supported by examples. The end, which he has already foreshadowed in his opening, is the call to vote for him.

Prepare several hooks

Experiment with several openings until you've found the one that serves your audience, your subject matter and your purpose best.

For many more examples of speech openings go to: how to write a speech introduction . You'll find 12 of the very best ways to start a speech.

That completes the initial seven steps towards writing your speech. If you've followed them all the way through, congratulations, you now have the text of your speech!

Although you might have the words, you're still a couple of steps away from being ready to deliver them. Both of them are essential if you want the very best outcome possible. They are below. Please take them.

Step 8: Checking content and timing

This step pulls everything together.

Check once, check twice, check three times & then once more!

Go through your speech really carefully.

On the first read through check you've got your main points in their correct order with supporting material, plus an effective introduction and ending.

On the second read through check the linking passages or transitions making sure they are clear and easily followed.

On the third reading check your sentence structure, language use and tone.

Double, triple check the timing

Now go though once more.

This time read it aloud slowly and time yourself.

If it's too long for the time allowance you've been given make the necessary cuts.

Start by looking at your examples rather than the main ideas themselves. If you've used several examples to illustrate one principal idea, cut the least important out.

Also look to see if you've repeated yourself unnecessarily or, gone off track. If it's not relevant, cut it.

Repeat the process, condensing until your speech fits the required length, preferably coming in just under your time limit.

You can also find out how approximately long it will take you to say the words you have by using this very handy words to minutes converter . It's an excellent tool, one I frequently use. While it can't give you a precise time, it does provide a reasonable estimate.

Step 9: Rehearsing your speech

And NOW you are finished with writing the speech, and are ready for REHEARSAL .

Please don't be tempted to skip this step. It is not an extra thrown in for good measure. It's essential.

The "not-so-secret" secret of successful speeches combines good writing with practice, practice and then, practicing some more.

Go to how to practice public speaking and you'll find rehearsal techniques and suggestions to boost your speech delivery from ordinary to extraordinary.

The Quick How to Write a Speech Checklist

Before you begin writing you need:.

• Your speech OUTLINE with your main ideas ranked in the order you're going to present them. (If you haven't done one complete this 4 step sample speech outline . It will make the writing process much easier.)
• Your RESEARCH
• You also need to know WHO you're speaking to, the PURPOSE of the speech and HOW long you're speaking for

The basic format

• the body where you present your main ideas

Split your time allowance so that you spend approximately 70% on the body and 15% each on the introduction and ending.

How to write the speech

• Write your main ideas out incorporating your examples and research
• Link them together making sure each flows in a smooth, logical progression
• Write your ending, summarizing your main ideas briefly and end with a call for action
• Write your introduction considering the 'hook' you're going to use to get your audience listening
• An often quoted saying to explain the process is: Tell them what you're going to tell them (Introduction) Tell them (Body of your speech - the main ideas plus examples) Tell them what you told them (The ending)

TEST before presenting. Read aloud several times to check the flow of material, the suitability of language and the timing.

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How to Add Length to a Speech

Last Updated: April 22, 2024 References

This article was co-authored by Lynn Kirkham and by wikiHow staff writer, Aly Rusciano . Lynn Kirkham is a Professional Public Speaker and Founder of Yes You Can Speak, a San Francisco Bay Area-based public speaking educational business empowering thousands of professionals to take command of whatever stage they've been given - from job interviews, boardroom talks to TEDx and large conference platforms. Lynn was chosen as the official TEDx Berkeley speaker coach for the last four years and has worked with executives at Google, Facebook, Intuit, Genentech, Intel, VMware, and others. This article has been viewed 19,028 times.

When you’re giving a speech, it often feels like it happened in a flash—so what do you do if you need to slow things down? Adding length to a speech is something many speakers and presenters have to do, and, thankfully, they’ve provided quite a few tips. In this article, we’ll share with you the best tricks to make any presentation longer.

Things You Should Know

• Prioritize speaking slowly and clearly, and state your key points multiple times throughout your speech.
• Add length by including stories, examples, facts, and quotes in your speech to back up your main points.
• Use a visual aid like a powerpoint or a handout to add time and audience engagement.

Speak slowly and clearly.

• Try not to sacrifice enthusiasm for speed. [1] X Trustworthy Source American Psychological Association Leading scientific and professional organization of licensed psychologists Go to source You can still be ecstatic and passionate while speaking clearly.

Repeat your important points.

• Although repetition is good, try to avoid repeating things back to back. This could tire out your audience.
• Key ideas and themes are great words and phrases to recap throughout.
• An excellent example of repetition is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s I Have a Dream , where he reiterates the famous lines, “ I have a dream that my four little children will… I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia… I have a dream today!”

Pause for dramatic effect.

• Think of your speech as a performance. If it were a play or movie, where would you see a dramatic pause?
• Count out your pause in your head or tap your finger at your side.
• Emphasize your pause by saying something like, “Now, think about that.”
• Mark in your speech where you’d like to pause dramatically. This will help you while practicing and can be a physical reminder during your speech if you're using cue cards.

Add an extra story or example to your speech.

• Write your story out on paper outside of your speech to flesh it out. [4] X Research source
• The story or example doesn’t have to be personal. It could be a metaphor, allegory, or even a reiteration of a well-known tale.
• Make your story extra dynamic by tapping into the feelings and senses of the moment. What was the weather like? Was there air blowing into the open window? Make your story as descriptive as you can so it sounds rich and interesting.

Use facts and quotes in your speech.

• If you’re directly quoting someone else, say “quote” before stating the quote and “unquote” after the quote’s final word.

Connect with the audience during your speech.

• Ask members of the audience to raise their hands if they’ve done X, Y, or Z.
• Toss in an energizing stretch break or audience-participation activity during the middle of your speech (this is great for a younger audience).
• Practice audience connection techniques in front of friends or family to test what works best for your speech.

Sync a slide presentation to your speech.

• Make sure to practice with your slideshow before presenting your speech, noting when you need to click over to another slide.
• Try to avoid reading directly from the slides. Your speech should already explain what’s on the screen. [7] X Research source

Play a video during your speech.

• Pick a video that has something to do with your speech. You want the video to add to your speech, not take away from it.
• Place your video at a point in your presentation where it’s natural. For example, don’t stop in the middle of a story to show the video version of what you’re describing. Play the video before or after you’ve said something important.

Walk around while giving your speech.

Time your speech while you practice and present.

• Practice your speech using different rhythms and pauses, and note what helps you stretch the time without awkward pauses.

Give the audience a handout during your speech.

• Try to walk and talk while you do this, so there isn’t an awkward silence drawing out the time.
• Hand out your resource during a lull in your speech or towards the end before a Q&A.

Take questions from the audience.

• Aim for leaving about 15 minutes at the end of your presentation for questions.
• Try bringing up your key points again if no one has any questions right away.

How Do You Change The Pace Of Your Speech?

Expert Q&A

You might also like.

• ↑ https://www.apa.org/monitor/2017/02/tips-speaking
• ↑ https://mannerofspeaking.org/2019/11/12/pauses-in-a-speech-why-when-and-how/
• ↑ https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/316145
• ↑ https://www.fau.edu/honors/undergraduate-research/documents/general-guidelines.pdf
• ↑ https://hbr.org/2013/06/how-to-give-a-killer-presentation
• ↑ https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2018/07/26/12-public-speaking-tips-to-make-your-speech-more-impactful/

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5-minute speech topics: Everything You Need to Know (With Examples)

Hrideep barot.

• Presentation , Public Speaking , Speech Topics

Coming up with 5-minute speech topics is a more tedious task than researching, framing, and delivering your speech altogether.

It is a general rule that having a fantastically written and presented speech adds less value when the speech topic isn’t interesting and effective enough.

In 5-minute speeches, your topic becomes more crucial as the length of your speech increases compared to any 1–2-minute speeches which are very brief.

How long are 5-minute speeches?

When we talk about how long 5 minutes speeches should be, we are essentially answering the question,

How many words are there in a 5-minute speech?

With an average individual speaking about 130-150 words per minute, 5-minute speeches are usually 650-750 words long .

But to gauge the exact number of words you should speak for your 5-minute speeches, try to understand your pace of speaking. Your pace of speaking is the number of words you can talk in a minute. And then frame the speech accordingly.

How many slides are there in a 5-minute speech?

As a general rule, adding 5-6 slides for your 5-minute presentations is ideal . However, there are compulsions which means you can add as many slides as you wish as long as you are able to present your topic effectively.

What do 5-minute speech topics look like?

Before coming up with a 5-minute speech topic for your speech, you must understand what the topic should look like so as to grab everyone’s attention and instill enough curiosity in them.

Keep your title short. Very lengthy titles are challenging to recall and can be very boring for the audience members. Keeping the title of your article within the limit of 50 characters is usually a good idea.

2. Informative

After reading the above point, you might be tempted to cut down words and that is okay but try to make sure that it doesn’t steal the very essence of the speech. The title should give a brief idea to your audience so that they know what they can expect to gain from your speech.

3. Relevant

Make sure that your topic is relevant to the occasion and preferences of your audience.

How to go about selecting a 5-minute speech topic?

There are 2 ways to find a topic for your 5-minute speech:

• Research and elimination : When you try to come up with a topic yourself by conducting research about your audience, your own interests, and knowledge areas and then narrow it down to a specific topic, it is the process of research and elimination.
• Picking a topic from the internet : A very convenient way to choose 5-minute speech topics is to find one on the internet!

Research and Elimination

To find a perfect 5-minute speech topic for yourself, you will have to take into consideration a couple of things while researching. Here is a list of things to consider before selecting a 5-minute speech:

1. Audience

Before selecting a topic for your 5-minute speech, ask yourself “who is my audience?”

The idea is to understand what the majority of your audience would comprise. Are you giving a speech to college students? Or working professionals? Which gender makes the majority of your audience? What ethnicity do they come from?

Answering all these questions will give you an idea of what your audience would likely prefer to hear.

For example, if you have to give a speech on future financial planning, you can focus on retirement planning in case your audience is made up of mid to senior-level working professionals. Or you can focus on the trending investment options like cryptocurrencies and small cases if your audience comprises a young crowd.

2. Occasion

Understand the occasion for which you will be giving the speech. Is it a wedding toast or for a product launch? In both cases, your language, humor, and the same content of your speech would be very different.

A speech for a wedding toast for example would sound more like,

“To all those who know Nisha, I am her best friend. We have been friends since the 2nd grade and have been inseparable since. On this wonderful day, if I am happy to see her as a beautiful bride, I am equally saddened to see her leave all of us behind. But as she always says, She will just be a call away”

On the other hand, a speech for a product launch would look like this,

“Hello and good evening, everybody. We are excited and elated to have you here with us today to experience the magnificence of a new powerful gadget that would be the future of hair drying: Stylion ”

3. Interests

No matter how good a speaker may be, if he or she isn’t passionate about a topic, it will be visible to their audience. This is where the interests of the speaker come into the picture.

Having an immense interest in the topic you would like to speak on is important because it helps you reach the audience and makes the entire process of researching, formatting, and delivering the speech very enjoyable for you!

4. Knowledge

You could be very interested in astrology but if you have no idea how these planetary movements affect individuals’ lives, then giving an effective speech could be challenging.

Besides interest, you also need to have enough knowledge about the topic that you’ll be speaking on so that you have some credible content to deliver passionately to your audience.

The last and the most important factor to take into consideration is the purpose for which you are giving the speech.

Are you trying to educate your audience or sell a product or give them a different perspective on a topic?

Whatever your purpose is, it needs to be taken into consideration so that you can narrow down your topics and select one that perfectly fits your requirements.

Some purposes of 5-minute speeches could be:

Informative speeches are where the speaker tries to inform his audience about the topic. It doesn’t focus on tweaking the audience’s perception in any way. Rather the idea is to share with the audience some facts and statistical figures or events in history with as detailed speech as possible.

An example of an informative speech would be a speech on the Indian freedom struggle.

To Persuade

Persuasion is an act of asking others to behave a certain way or do a certain thing. Oftentimes, politicians and salespersons are famous for using persuasion techniques like rhetoric and metaphors to persuade the crowd to do something.

To celebrate

Wedding toasts are the best example of celebratory speeches. The purpose of these speeches is to s hare an emotional or fun memory or tell stories to the audience in an attempt to enjoy and celebrate the event.

How can I talk for 5 minutes straight?

5 minutes is actually a very convenient time to give an effective speech. However, it can seem very daunting to talk for 5 minutes straight if you are trying to memorize your speech by heart.

So the first thing to effectively talk for 5 minutes straight is to avoid memorizing it by heart. You can use various interactive methods like storytelling , using props, or dividing your speech into points to make it easier for you to give your speech for such an extended time.

Create a well-defined outline for your speech and practice it a couple of times in order to make the task of giving 5-minute speeches a little easier for yourself!

All this discussion would suggest that 5-minute speeches are tricky but is that really the case?

Is a 5-minute speech hard?

While from the audience’s perspective, 5-minute speeches are nothing but a blessing; for you as a speaker, 5-minute speeches could actually be a little too less or too much. Thus making it a tad bit difficult to give effective and engaging 5-minute speeches.

If for instance, you are to present your research proposal, then 5 minutes would not do justice to years of your dedicated efforts. While on the other hand, if you are giving a speech on some generic topic like climate change then even 2 minutes would be sufficient to get your point across.

So whether 5-minute speeches are hard or not would depend completely on how you perceive them.

If you do feel that they are difficult then remember the old saying “Practice makes the man perfect!”

5-minute speech outline

Once you come up with a topic for your speech, the next step is to look at its outline. The outline of any speech refers to the way in which you plan on structuring it.

Usually, 5-minute speeches are structured in the format given below:

1. Opening the speech

For a 5-minute speech, you can spend about a minute introducing yourself and the topic you will be speaking about.

Make sure to give the audience a glimpse of what you’ll be talking about so that they get a clear idea of what to expect from your speech.

It is also recommended to start with a very effective and attractive opening line so as to grab the audience’s attention quickly.

A few ways you can open your speech are:

• Proactive Statements : Provocative statements are the ones where you try to break the audience’s long-held views and later provide an alternative through your speech.

An example of this is

I want to discuss with you this afternoon why you are going to fail to have a good career Larry Smith

• Imagination : Imagination is a great tool to give your audience a chance to relate to you.

You can begin your speech with the word “imagine” and then proceed to narrate an incident that is relevant to your speech. An example of this is given below.

Imagine a big explosion as you climb through 3000 feet. Imagine a plane full of smoke. Imagine an engine going clack, clack, clack. Rick Elias

Check out the video below to get a more detailed idea about the opening lines.

2. Main body

The main body of any speech is where the main essence of your speech lies. You can structure this segment in 2 ways:

a. Pointer format

In the pointer format, the idea is to divide the main content into smaller parts or points. This helps in allocating specific time to each topic. It also helps in easy recall for the audience members.

b. Flow format

A flow format is one wherein two ideas are not separated by points. Rather there is a flow maintained throughout the speech.

3. Conclusion

It is necessary to summarise your speech in the last one minute. This is also the time wherein you will have to restate your takeaway.

Ending any speech on a high note is always recommended. You can do that by quoting a famous personality or calling for action from the audience members.

Check out the short video below to understand more about closing lines in a speech.

Examples of 5-minute speeches

1. the danger of silence.

Clint Smith has done a great job with his 5-minute TED speech wherein he begins by quoting Martin Luther King Jr . He further establishes credibility when he states that he is a teacher and how the quote inspires him to challenge his students to embrace silence in their life.

He speaks as if it were spoken word poetry , emphasizing events that happened in his life and how they changed him to perceive silence in a different light.

2. 3 Things I learned while My Plane Crashed

Ric Elias has used the most effective technique to get the audience to relate to you, the technique of imagination . He begins his speech by asking the audience members to imagine being a part of a plane crash and to feel all the things that he felt when he experienced a similar incident.

There is the use of good humor as well in his speech, taking a dig at how he didn’t have to ask the flight attendant for anything as they clearly knew they were all about to die. He further jokes about his daughter when he says,

About a month later, I was at a performance by my daughter. First grader, not much of an artistic talent…Yet!

Lastly, He very effectively divides the main content of the speech into 3 points or things that he learned from his experience.

3. Being an Introvert is a Good Thing

Crystal Robello has given this amazing 5-minute speech on How being an Introvert is a good thing.

The speech is worth taking a look into as her speech provides a great argument in favor of introverts and tries to break the long-held view against them by society. She shares her own story adding a personal touch to her speech.

Further, she makes use of rhetorical questions which are questions that do not necessarily require an answer from the audience. Check out the rhetorical questions she uses below:

• ..and I have opinions. I just didn’t want to share them, but is there anything wrong with that?
• (mentions famous introverts) Do you think being an introvert has stopped them from achieving their goals or being happy?

Lastly, she ends her speech on a very powerful note by quoting a line from the book Quite and saying,

So the next time you see that quiet kid in the back of the class who doesn’t participate very much, I want you to think “I wonder what wonderful things they are going to come up with next?”

5-minute speech topics

In case you don’t have enough time to go through the entire topic selection process, the second-best option is to select a topic that is available on the internet.

Don’t worry, you don’t have to do another google search.

We have curated a list of 5-minute speech topics so that you can take a look at it and select a topic that suits you!

General 5-minute speech topics

• Climate Change
• Domestic Violence
• Environment
• Importance of Cleanliness
• Women’s Day Speech
• Teachers’ Day Speech

5-minute speech topics depending on the type of the speech

The purpose of your speech defines the type of your speech. A few broad speech types are

• Informative speech
• Demonstrative Speech
• Persuasive speech

Informative Speech Topics

Informative speeches focus on educating or introducing the audience to new concepts or ideas. thus, it provides information about a topic to the audience and doesn’t try to make them believe in a particular viewpoint or opinion., 5-minute informative speech topics:.

• The reality of adoption in India
• Technological developments in organ transplantation
• The freedom struggle of any country
• History of body art
• Women warriors who made a difference
• The Indian freedom struggles
• Story of the greens
• Side effects of Anti-depressants
• The rise of Adderall uses among college students
• Impact of diet on Mental health
• Impact of sleep deprivation on productivity
• The great resignation
• The reality of beauty pageants
• All about sustainable traveling
• The efficiency of ayurvedic medicine
• Western influence on traditional yoga
• Impact of music on mood
• Why does playing musical instruments keep you healthy?
• Evolution of the electric guitar
• COVID restrictions around the world

Demonstrative Speech Topics

The only difference between an informative speech and a demonstrative speech is the use of visuals.

In a demonstrative speech, the speaker tries you help you understand a new topic or information by demonstrating a few fundamentals of the topic to you.

For example, a salesperson trying to pitch his product through his speech would make use of the product to show his audience how that product can make their lives easy.

A few verbs or phrases that you can use in your demonstrative 5-minute speech topics are:

• N ways to..
• Structure..

Examples of Demonstrative 5-minute speech topics

• How to ace a test in 5 days
• How to make mac n cheese
• How to Organize a party
• How to prevent a financial loss
• How to stop procrastinating
• How to learn a new language in 30 days
• How to start a successful business from home
• How to use chopsticks
• How to wear a scarf in 5 ways
• 10 steps to writing a blog
• 20 ways to add protein to your diet
• 4 ways to motivate yourself every morning
• 5 ways to calm your anxiety
• Top 3 ways to deal with stress
• 5 ways colors can elevate your mood
• 3 tips for studying abroad
• 5 ways to know if someone is lying to you
• Top 3 tips to take care of your white shoes
• 10 reasons why people prefer online shopping
• How to revive a dead plant?

Persuasive Speech Topics

Persuasive speeches are the ones wherein the speaker aims to persuade the audience to do something or act in a certain way. as discussed, it is a very common speech type used by salespeople and politicians., examples of 5 -minute persuasive speech topics.

• How advertisements trick you
• Why money can’t buy happiness
• 21: the only legal age to get married
• Being vegan and sustainable
• Why wearing sustainable clothes should be a norm
• Fast fashion: A compromise on the quality of clothes
• Why reality TV shows need to stop
• Impact of online classes on poor grades
• Why investing early is necessary
• Dogs over cats
• Private colleges are not fair
• Why do schools need to start late
• Cults need to be banned
• Global warming is not real
• We can save our planet
• Endangered species need to be saved
• Rainwater harvesting should be mandatory in all houses
• Why xenotransplantation is unethical
• Depression is overrated
• Legalizing prostitution

5-minute speech topics for college students

• Implications of online dating
• Are movie reviews an accurate indicator of the movie?
• Teen depression and suicides
• Should uniforms be compulsory?
• Academic stress
• Moving abroad for education
• Dangers of substance abuse
• 5 tips for finding the perfect major
• Can poverty be eradicated?
• How can world hunger be curbed?
• Are electronic vehicles a solution to the pollution problem?
• Legalizing same-sex marriages
• Brain drain
• Impact of meat production on the environment
• Importance of communication
• Offers and Benefits of being a college student
• Cashless economy
• Need for gun control
• Is school really a safe place?
• The dangers of Artificial Intelligence

Motivational 5-minute speech ideas

• Not giving up: A guide for anyone with depression
• How I overcame my anxiety
• You are more than your thoughts
• 3 Reasons why you need to stop comparing yourself to others
• 4 techniques to beat procrastination
• Being a great leader is more than the position
• Importance of positive thinking
• Breaking societal stereotypes
• More than my skin color
• Embracing everybody
• Failure: A way to learn and grow
• Time management and self-growth
• Self-development: a key to self-growth
• Consistency over motivation
• The joy of being in nature

General 5-minute presentation ideas

• The future of communication
• Population problem
• Climate Crisis
• The melting glaciers
• Pollution and its solution
• Changes required in the education system
• Discrimination and hate crimes
• The rise in migration and poor housing facilities in urban areas
• Advantages of Artificial intelligence
• Everything you need to know about the metaverse

5-minute presentation topics for a job interview

• The future is cashless
• Data is the new oil
• Dangers of data privacy
• women empowerment
• Gender equality
• Importance of communication skills
• The education system in India
• My biggest accomplishment
• My role model

5-minute funny presentation ideas

• How to memorize notes for exams without studying
• How to pretend to be interested in the conversation?
• If your boss was honest with you
• Tips to handle a bridezilla
• How to prepare a presentation you forgot about?
• Way to steal your boyfriend’s sweatshirts
• 4 tips to be the center of attention
• How to Get a Toddler to stop talking in 383 Easy Steps?
• How to Live in Your Mom’s Basement?
• Ways to ruin a date
• The perfect way to lie
• When is it okay to give up?
• 5 things That Are Better Than Doing the Dishes
• Where to find your missing sock?
• How do you win in life?
• Why being a millionaire is overrated?
• How to bathe a dog?
• How to order at the subway?
• How to ask for directions?
• Top pick-up lines ever used in history

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Finding the right 5-minute speech topic can be a task, but ensuring the audience’s preferences, your own interests, and knowledge areas can help in narrowing down the range of topics to a large extent.

If you do not have enough time to research and narrow down on one topic, you can pick out one topic from a plethora of topics available online.

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Public Speaking Tips & Speech Topics

169 Five-Minute Topics for a Killer Speech or Presentation

Jim Peterson has over 20 years experience on speech writing. He wrote over 300 free speech topic ideas and how-to guides for any kind of public speaking and speech writing assignments at My Speech Class.

There are pros and cons to giving a 5-minute presentation. One good thing is the length. Long presentations can easily become boring, and you have a much better chance of keeping your audience engaged from beginning to end than with a 5-minute speech.

In this article:

Food & Drink

Relationships, social media, supernatural, list of topics for a 5-minute speech or presentation.

Choosing a topic is extremely important. To help you getting started, here is a list of some killer topics for 5-minute speech or presentation.

• Why it’s better to adopt a pet from a shelter
• Choosing the perfect leash for your dog
• What is the best food for your pet?
• How much exercise does your pet need?
• The horror of puppy mills
• Bringing back endangered species
• How long are giraffes in labor
• Domestication of horses
• Picking the right vet
• Sleeping with your dog
• Why should you get goats in pairs
• Ethics of zoos
• The domestication of dogs
• How to keep a goldfish alive for a long time
• How to choose the right pet
• Why cats are so independent
• When to get a dog
• What kind of dog is best for a household with children
• Why therapy animals work
• How to find the money to go to college
• How much control should the federal government have over curriculum design?
• How to choose a college
• Ideas for narrowing down a career choice
• When to declare a major
• Benefits of charter schools
• Why charter schools are bad
• Negative effects of school vouchers
• Attracting the right people to the teaching profession
• Discipline in the classroom
• Memory tricks that work
• Why homework is bad
• Should students still have to use the books in the library?
• Why cursive should still be taught in schools
• Textbooks vs. tablets
• Benefits of going to a trade school
• Are there positives to taking a gap year?
• The problem with low teacher pay
• Social media in the classroom
• Benefits of integrating apps into the classroom
• The importance of attachment
• How to compromise on names for your kids
• What is the ideal age to start a family
• How important are grandparents
• Traveling with children
• Strategies for potty training
• How to help a child with nightmares
• Middle child syndrome
• How many kids should you have?
• How to recognize a gifted child
• When your child doesn’t like to eat
• How to encourage good eating habits
• When to intervene with a bully
• Being active in your child’s school
• The benefits of aunts and uncles
• When family falls apart
• The first days with a new baby
• When to call the doctor
• Caring for an ailing parent
• Balancing home and career
• When to start saving for retirement
• IRA vs. Roth IRA
• When should you start saving for your children’s college education?
• Crowdfunded loans vs. the bank
• How Kickstarter changed everything
• Using your HSA
• How to apply for a mortgage
• Improving your credit score
• How to negotiate a raise
• Renting vs. buying
• How does compound interest work?
• How to ask for a promotion
• When is it time to get a new job?
• What to do when you find out a coworker makes more than you
• How much of a down payment on a house do you really need?
• Living on minimum wage
• Is it better to lease or buy a new car?
• How to budget for a new car
• What to do when you lose your job
• Using credit cards responsibly
• Is rare meat safe?
• Vegan vs. vegetarian
• Microbrews vs. standard brewing
• How to make your own wine
• What are hops?
• Best plants for a backyard garden
• When to transplant sprouts
• Bananas and plantains
• How to make a brine for pickling
• Where did brunch begin?
• Why pineapple belongs on a pizza
• When to order in
• Planning a menu
• Meal planning and grocery lists
• Is free range really better?
• The perfect macaroni and cheese
• Growing your own herbs
• How to make your own pasta
• How to make cookies that are softer
• Benefits of drinking black coffee
• Benefits of a gluten-free diet
• Is the paleo diet accurate?
• Effects of not getting enough sleep
• Are meal subscription services worth it?
• Downsides to Crossfit
• Benefits of yoga
• How to meditate
• Can therapy change the way your mind works?
• Are GMOs really dangerous?
• The truth about diet soda
• Importance of hydration
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• Do essential oils really work?
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• Historical lies
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• Why it’s bad to use your smartphone right before bed
• Apple vs. Android
• The best age to get married
• How to get an amicable divorce
• Finding a roommate
• Splitting financial responsibilities evenly among the household
• How to have a happy marriage
• Choosing your family
• How to fight effectively
• Signs of an abusive relationship
• What to look for in a spouse
• When to let it go
• How to overcome self-doubt
• Faking confidence
• Becoming comfortable with yourself
• How to say no
• Relaxation techniques
• Controlling anxiety
• Qualities of a leader
• The importance of self-care
• Identifying triggers
• How to eliminate negativity
• Making new habits
• Ethics of posting pictures of your children on social media
• How Internet ads are tailored to you
• How to advertise your business on Facebook
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• How to protect your personal information
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• Why you shouldn’t post your location on social media
• How to use a hashtag
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• Proof that aliens exist
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Good 2-Minute Speech Topics for Students

13 All-Time Best TED Talks

23 thoughts on “169 Five-Minute Topics for a Killer Speech or Presentation”

Ideal Teacher

is life really a blessing?

This has helped me so much for my English class thank you!

Why personal (private) rules are helpful

I got an A!!!!!

Risks of abortion Wage gap How social media impacts education/mental health Why it’s important to have a good stable mental health Do teenagers really spend all their time on their phones Gsce requirements unfair or reasonable

Here is a kind of a dense topic, domestic abuse. Why does it happen? What are some ways to identify a abusive relationship? How does it affect families? Why is the abuser abusive?

We have presentation next week. I can’t think about the topic. Please help me!

i want a topic that involves supernatural: HELP

Is water wet?

death, what if the earth loses air entirely for five minutes, what is the most common death.

I have presentation next two day concerning with my classroom. I must choose five topics but i can’t think how to choose these topics. Please! help me

Tanks for giving me an A in drama

so helpful thank you

thanks this helped with my speach at school

i need a best topic to present on that is educational to consumer science and food nutrition students. can i please be assisted

what if the earth stopped spinning pros and cons of being an artist how Gen Z affected slang why people are afraid of the dark why knowing how to play an instrument is beneficial/not needed

Here’s a controversial one: are trans, intersex and non-binary people getting the same right as every else?

I have a presentation this week I don’t understand how to find a good title please help me I’m a diploma student the speech must have more than 10 minutes

How do create presentation for famous place in Sri Lanka

i need something for my oral communication class. it must be attention grabbing and not an argument. please help

I need ideas on a slide show presentation, a kid appropiate topic.

Pls I need more ideas on self help

hi lol i like these topics but i need a trendy one like something new or like a natural phenomene or someth like that… 🙂

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Inspirational Guide to Writing a 5-Minute Speech

Table of Contents

How to write a five minute speech  is a task that involves precise delivery, detailed planning, and intelligent drafting.

Preparing to deliver a powerful speech in only a few minutes might seem impossible, but it is possible. Writing a compelling and memorable five-minute speech is easy if you understand what makes one work.

Here, we discuss tips and tricks professionals use to write an effective and engaging five-minute speech. With these simple steps and guidelines, you can craft a captivating speech quickly and easily.

Why You Might Need to Give a Five-Minute Speech

A five-minute speech might be necessary for specific situations. Where you’re limited by time, you’ll still need to effectively communicate your points and accomplish your objectives within your allotted time.

Here are some reasons why you might need to give a five-minute speech.

Time Constraints

Giving a five-minute speech allows you to convey your message within the allotted time frame effectively . One reason to give a five-minute speech is that you may be required to do so due to time constraints. You may be given a specific time slot if you are asked to speak at a conference or event where multiple speakers are scheduled. 

Limited Attention Span

Another reason to give a five-minute speech is that it allows you to capture and maintain your audience’s attention . Studies have shown that the average attention span of an adult is around eight seconds. This means making your message clear and concise to keep your audience engaged is important. A five-minute speech lets you do just that by presenting your ideas concisely and straightforwardly. 

Practice and Improvement

Giving a five-minute speech can help you improve your communication skills. It is also an excellent opportunity to practice and improve your public speaking skills. Focus on delivering a clear and compelling message within a shorter period, so you can build confidence and improve your speech. 

Impact and Persuasion

Finally, giving a five-minute speech can be an effective way to make an impact and persuade your audience. By presenting your ideas clearly and concisely, you can more easily convey your message and persuade your audience to take action. It’s possible to win your colleagues’ hearts and minds by giving a short speech.

How to Write a Five Minute Speech

Writing an effective five-minute speech can be a daunting task. After all, you want your audience to stay engaged and not become bored or disengaged. It’s crucial to organize your speech as well as possible to make sure that your message gets across to your audience.

The following tips will help you create a five-minute speech that will leave your audience wanting more!

Choose an Interesting Topic

The first step in writing a successful five-minute speech is choosing an interesting and relevant topic. Try to think of something timely or engaging that your audience would find helpful or entertaining. You could also research popular topics from other speakers or news outlets to get ideas. Once you have chosen a subject for your speech, make sure to narrow its scope to fit within the time limit. 

Research Your Topic

Become knowledgeable about the subject by reading related articles, watching videos, and listening to podcasts. Once you’ve identified your topic, start researching it in depth. This research process should help inform your opinion and give you new perspectives on the issue. Additionally, try to pick out key points that may bolster or strengthen your argument. 

Gather Supporting Evidence

When crafting a persuasive five-minute speech, having compelling evidence is essential. Just make sure that any evidence you use is reliable and accurate.

Include examples and facts to back up your statements whenever possible. This will make your arguments more convincing and give your audience a stronger impression. 

Outline Your Speech

Before starting to write, take some time to plan out what you are going to say. Writing an outline helps break down the information into smaller chunks, making it easier to organize when composing the actual speech.

The outline should include the main ideas you plan to discuss as well as any other supporting points during your presentation. Plus, creating an outline beforehand will also save you time in the long run. 

Craft Your Introduction

Your speech’s start should draw the audience in and establish the general tone for the remainder of it. Keep it short, sweet, and memorable. What you say in the introduction will resonate with your audience. Your introduction serves as a good bargaining chip for great content.

Write the Rest of the Speech

Since you have already conceptualized your structure and created a rough outline, it’s time to start filling in the blanks with real content. Make sure the introduction flows seamlessly from your introduction to your conclusions. 

Five-Minutes Speech Example

Good morning, everyone! Today I’m here to talk about the importance of cultivating a collaborative work environment in our office. As we all know, teamwork is integral to any successful business venture. We must foster cooperation and mutual respect to reaching our desired objectives.

I have plenty of professional experience working collaboratively. From facilitating negotiations between stakeholders to encouraging colleagues to unite under common goals, I understand how important it is to nurture cooperation within teams. Furthermore, while working in high-pressure situations, I’ve seen firsthand how camaraderie can help alleviate stress and bring out the best in people.

So let’s start by discussing ways we can increase collaboration amongst ourselves:

First, we must actively listen to each other instead of rushing to judgment or being overly critical. This will ensure that everyone feels comfortable speaking up and sharing their ideas without fear of judgment.

Second, we must always strive to be open-minded and welcoming towards new perspectives as they often present solutions that would otherwise not be considered.

And finally, we should practice respecting one another’s time and workloads. This way, we can ensure that everyone gets their tasks done on schedule without impeding others.

These simple actions can create a workplace culture characterized by harmony and synergy rather than competition and antagonism. So let’s commit to making this happen together – thank you very much for your time!

Learn how to write a five minute speech that captivates your audience. Careful preparation and practice are essential.

Choose a relevant and exciting topic, organize your thoughts, use supporting materials, and rehearse your delivery. Improving your public speaking skills and making an impact are great reasons to give a five-minute speech. 

With the proper preparation, you can deliver a powerful message that achieves your goals. The key is writing with emotion, ensuring each sentence contains at least one uncommon word. This will add interest and uniqueness to your presentation.

Abir Ghenaiet

Abir is a data analyst and researcher. Among her interests are artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing. As a humanitarian and educator, she actively supports women in tech and promotes diversity.

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How to Write an Amazing 5-Minute Speech Quickly

Posted 5 years ago

Public speech – these 2 words are enough to make even the best and the brightest at any company get sweaty palms and shaky knees. It is easy to understand why – we are definitely not all born natural public speakers. It takes A LOT of confidence to get up in front of a room full of people and carry the spotlight. In this week’s story, professional speaker Patricia Fripp offers tips on how to put together a fabulous 5-minute speech. With Patricia’s tips, this should help ease the pressure of any public speaking you may have to participate in.

by Patricia Fripp

Want to deliver a memorable 5-minute presentation? Want to put it together fast? If your goal is to create an incredible 5-minute presentation and put it together quickly, I suggest you look within the body of your longer presentations and pull out one well-developed idea.

For example, most speakers tell stories in their presentations, and many speakers tell great stories. What world-class speakers understand is that when you tell stories about people, you need to let those people speak. World-class speakers use dialogue in their storytelling. They don’t simply report on what people have said. Instead they actually include people’s spoken words. Do that, add a good opening, and close with a call for action. And voila! You have a memorable presentation.

Don’t report on the dialogue; use the dialogue. Don’t say, “I had a conversation with my boss and we were talking about . . .” That’s reporting on the dialogue. Instead, deliver the dialogue. Pat Wynn called and said “Patricia, as you know we are a 2 billion dollar software company with aspirations of being 20 billion. We have just bought our major competitor and are having a very important kick-off sales meeting with 1500 sales people at the Bellagio. 40% of them were acquired. They did not choose to work with us, so this a very important meeting. We want them to know they are at the right company at the right time, and the strategy is sound. The work you’ve done with our engineers and leaders has been fabulous. Now we want you to work with our president.

“He’s not a bad speaker. He’s an engineer, a little shy, brilliant, but we don’t have any corporate rock stars. We want you to write him a speech and turn him into a rock star. And you have 4 hours.”

Bernard was a magnificent gentlemen who charmed me from the moment we met. I started by saying, “How do you do? If you had time for one sentence rather than 45 minutes, what would you say?” He said, “This is a brand new company.” I said, “Good, write that down. ‘Welcome to our brand new company.’ Now, whose idea was it to be a company?” As we informally talked through his speech, people came around saying, “It’s been 5 1/2 hours, and Bernard’s still with Patricia.” That was because he had started to realize the impact he could have. And then we began talking about corporate citizenship. There had been a tsunami recently. The sales people had donated $360,000 to help, and the company had matched it. It was obvious that Bernard was passionate about this. He believed in corporate responsibility and corporate citizenship. Unfortunately his speech was beginnning to get boring.

If we had aleady developed a deeper relationship, I would have been quite comfortable saying, “Your speech is getting boring.” But this was the first time we had worked together, and I wanted to boost his confidence. He didn’t realize he could be a rock star. So I asked, “Bernard, how do you explain corporate citizenship to your children?” He said, “It was the day after Christmas, and I sat both of my children down and said, ‘You are very lucky children. You have generous parents, and you have even more generous grandparents. Perhaps you would like to give us one of your gift certificates or one of your presents, and we’ll take the money and give to the children who no longer have homes.'” He said, “I was so proud of my 14-year-old son. He came back the next day and said, ‘Papa, how much do I give? I could give you all of my savings, all of my pocket money, and all of my Christmas presents, and it still wouldn’t be enough to make a difference. What do I give?’ And Bernard said, “I told him, ‘Oh, you never give it all. You just give enough that it hurts a little.'”

By now I hope you agree that adding dialogue to your stories makes them come alive and helps you add emotion. I challenge you to revisit every story and make your characters speak. This is Patricia Fripp with my best suggestion for how to put together a 5-minute presentation.

Patricia Fripp is known as THE Presentation Skills expert! Companies hire Patricia when they want to gain the competitive edge that comes from perfecting conversations and presentations.

Named “One of the 10 most electrifying speakers in North America” by  Meetings and Conventions  magazine, Patricia delivers high-content, entertaining, dramatically memorable presentations. She has won and been awarded these designations by the National Speakers Association: Certified Speaking Professional (CSP), CPAE, Hall of Fame keynote speaker, and the Cavett Award (considered the Oscar of speaking). Patricia is a past president, and the first female president, of the over 3,500-member National Speakers Association. She is a member of the highly prestigious Speakers Roundtable, an invitation-only group of highly regarded professional speakers, authors, and consultants. Patricia teams up with her brother, legendary guitarist of King Crimson, Robert Fripp, for  Fripp and Fripp presentations on “How to Be a Hero for More Than One Day” and “Beginner to Master.” She is the author of  Make It So You Don’t Have to Fake It!  and  Get What You Want!  and co-author of  Speaker’s Edge ,  Speaking Secrets of the Masters  and  Insights Into Excellence .

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How to Organize Your Five-Minute Impromptu Speech: Building Your Introduction (Part 1)

What do five minutes feel like to you? You could tell us that it’s made of up 300 seconds, in which time corn on the cob could be microwaved, a round of commercials could be played, and one kilometer be could run – at least for some of us. But the experience of five minutes is relative. It feels a lot longer if you’re waiting in traffic, than if you’re running late for class. So in this article, you’ll learn what five minutes should feel like when making an impromptu speech, by breaking down the different parts of your speech in order to create a structure that’s both organized and timely. All organized speeches have a beginning, middle, and end, also known as the introduction, body, and conclusion. Knowing how to plan the content of these parts is key to reaching a five-minute impromptu speech, especially because of the limitations you’re under with only two minutes of prep time. Why is this important? Two reasons. One: without keeping track of your time, you may end up finishing early and leaving out essential analysis. Two: many of us have a tendency to ramble and go off-topic, confusing both you and your audience in the process. So, as you map out the structure of your speech, you’ll learn how much time to allow for each part, and what content should be included to reach that timing. Let’s start with impromptu introductions, which require five key ingredients. First, the hook. All good speeches should create a strong first impression. For impromptu, hooks generally come in the form of a personal or well-known anecdote that’s related to the meaning of your prompt and thesis. If you choose a famous story, consider picking something simple that you know well, like the plot of a fable you’ve been taught or a movie you’ve watched. These anecdotes are the quickest to think of and can often be told smoothly without much preparation. For instance, if we suddenly asked you to retell the tale of Snow White, or your vacation last summer, you probably remember quite well what happened. In total, you should spend approximately 40 seconds on your hook, which is about six sentences. Second, the transition sentence or sentences. It’s important to link your hook to the prompt so the audience can see how they relate together. This link should be approximately one to two sentences, no more than ten seconds. For instance, let’s say the last sentence of your hook is, “The story of Snow White ends as a happy one, as the princess wakes up after true love’s kiss from her Prince Charming.” You wouldn’t want to immediately follow it with, “This quote by Stephen King says, “The trust of the innocent is the liar's most useful tool.” Why? Because the audience wouldn’t understand how Snow White is related to “innocence” or “liars.” So, ask yourself, what do the story and the quote have in common? Well, if you recall, Snow White was too innocent, trusting the old lying granny who sold her the apple. Let’s try to use this information to link the hook and the quote together. Your transition might be: “Fairytales such as these don’t exist, with innocent people often getting hurt rather than living out their ‘happily ever after.’” Notice how this sentence makes the connection between the hook and prompt by comparing how fairytales are different from real life. Third, the prompt and your interpretation. Even with a transition sentence, it’s helpful to add a dependent clause before you present your prompt. A dependent clause is a group of words that cannot be used alone; they instead provide additional information for the independent clause, which in this case, is your prompt. Avoid directly saying things like, “the prompt I got today is…” Be a little bit more subtle in your language. You could do this one in of two ways. One: link specific parts of the hook directly to the prompt. You could say something like this: “Snow White’s trusting actions are exactly what Stephen King described in his quote…” Two: If your transition sentence is already clear, use a conventional phrase like: “This brings me to today’s quote…”, or “Which is why we see in today’s quote…”, or “This story is fitting with today’s quote…” You can of course replace the word “quote” with proverb, word, or picture, depending on what type of prompt you’re given. Now for your interpretation. If your prompt is a quote or proverb, spending a sentence to explain its meaning is enough. Elaborate on who or what the prompt refers to and what kind of tone it sets. If there are any hidden meanings, then you might add an extra sentence or two. For word prompts, take more time to describe or define it, giving an example of how this word is commonly used. For picture prompts, read off any text, and describe the picture and its purpose. In total, introducing the prompt and your interpretation of it should take about 20 seconds. Fourth: the thesis statement, which its main objective is summed up in one clear, concise, and debatable sentence. This should take no more than five seconds. Finally, your roadmap (also called the preview), which outlines your speech’s three main points. Usually, in other speeches, your roadmap would include your three claims. However, because most impromptu speakers don’t have time to fully brainstorm these claims during prep, it’s common practice to simply introduce the three stories you plan to talk about in two or three sentences, which is your final 15 seconds. The best way to make this short and simple is to create story titles for each example or to refer to the names of the people or groups you plan to talk about. And there you have, five key parts and their timeline for building a one-minute and 30-second introduction. In the second part of this article, you’ll see an example of a good introduction, and then we’ll break down body paragraphs and conclusions.

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How to Persuade Your Audience in Five Minutes (or Less).

• “Read my lips… No new taxes.”
• “I did not have sexual relations with that woman…”
• “Saddam has weapons of mass destruction.”
• “If you like your plan you can keep your plan.”

So, I guess that the statement is not the most ridiculous statement that I’ve ever heard, but it is in the top five.

The way that I know that this statement is ridiculous, though, is two-fold. First, because I am a married man. If this statement were true, then I and about 95% of all men would never, ever get married. (Most proposals take way less than five minutes.)

Second, for the last 20 years, students in the Fearless Presentations ® public speaking classes have put together thousands (cumulatively) of persuasive speeches that all lasted about five minutes or less. In fact, we create these presentations dozens of times each week. Here is the process that we use.

The Secret to Persuading Your Audience is to Show them How They Will Get What They Want, If They Do What You Want.

One of the first real self-help book that I ever read was How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. Early in the book, Carnegie mentions that he loves strawberries and cream. He talks about how wonderful this dessert is. He then says, though, that when he goes fishing, he doesn’t put strawberries and cream on the hook. Fish are much more into a wiggly worm. When we are trying to win over our audience, we often focus on what we want — not what they want. This is a huge mistake.

So, the first step, when designing a persuasive speech, is to find some way to synchronize what you want with what your audience wants. Then, focus your presentation on the latter. For instance, you may want your budget increased. However, the people creating the budgets don’t want to increase your budget. So if you create a presentation called, “You should increase my budget,” then the presentation coach that I mentioned earlier is absolutely right. You won’t persuade anyone.

However, if we stop and ask, “How will the organization benefit if my budget increased?” then your presentation content changes dramatically. For instance, let’s say that I am a loss-prevention manager, and I need a bigger budget. Then I might focus my presentation on how to decrease shoplifting or employee theft. If I’m in human resources, and I need a bigger budget, I might focus my presentation on how attract a higher level of employee or how to decrease employee turnover.

Although I love Carnegie’s strawberry and cream analogy, it doesn’t fit exactly. (In that analogy, the fish is going to get eaten.) A better analogy might be to feed a milk-cow hay versus strawberries and cream. The cow gets what she wants, and the farmer gets milk to make the cream.

The first step is to determine the following: What Does My Audience Want?

Provide Three Ways that the Audience Can Get What They Want.

Once we have the want of the audience in mind, now determine a few easy ways that the audience can get those things. For instance, the loss prevention manager can show how investing $50,000 in video surveillance can reduce theft by $80,000 per year. That would be a no-brainer. A one-time investment gives us a return year after year.

The technique that I use is to ask, “If I could only do one thing that will help the audience get this thing that they want most, what would be the absolute best way to do it?” Then, “What would be the second best way?” Finally, “What is the third best way?”

A question that I am often asked about the process is, “Why three?” The answer is simple. It is hard to know exactly what the audience really wants. As a result, we have to do a little educated guessing. If we only put a single item, we run the risk of misconnecting with our audience. For instance, if one of the decision-makers is really anti-surveillance camera, we better have at least another option available.

It’s kind of like getting flowers, candy, and a nice piece of jewelry for your wife/girlfriend if you are in the doghouse. One will likely do, but your chances are better with a few different items.

Prove to the Audience that They Will Get these Things.

This is where many persuasive speeches fall apart. We lay out how the audience can get what they want, but then they don’t believe us. I like to use car dealers as the example here. Go to three different car dealers and look at three different cars. If you ask the three salespeople about each of the car’s warranties, you’ll likely hear then say something like, “This car has the absolute best warranty in the industry.” The fact that each of the three salespeople are saying the same thing about three different cars means that at least two (and probably three) of them are lying.

However, if one of the salespeople pulled out a copy of Motor Trend and opened it to an article about the great warranty on that particular car, there is much more credibility in the statement.

My favorite way to prove a point is to use anecdotal evidence. If you ever watch TV court drama, you will see attorneys objecting with “anecdotal!” That just means that the example given is just one, single situation that doesn’t prove the conclusion every time. Why do judges not allow anecdotal evidence? Well, because it works. It is very persuasive. If you give just one real-life example, the audience will think… “ Well, if it happened once, it is likely to happen again .”

So, a good car salesperson might say something like, “I just sold this same model to a realtor and her husband, and they traded in a five year old version of the same car. She mentioned to me that she puts over 30,000 miles a year on her car. She wanted the model because in the last five years, she only had to get the oil and filters changed.

Of course, when you can back up the anecdotal evidence with additional proof, it works even better.

“In fact, Motor Trend listed this model in their top five of most reliable cars this year.”

All that you have to do is give at least one piece of proof for each of your statements, and you will likely win over your audience.

Need Help Writing Your Persuasive Speech?

Need some help writing your persuasive speech? We have a free speech creator where all you have to do is answer a few questions, and the website will send you a quick outline of your persuasive speech. Click here to access the Online Speech Creator .

For additional details, see Sales Presentation Example .

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200 Topics for 5-Minute Presentations

As a presenter, having a variety of brief yet captivating topics is key to engaging your audience effectively. Explore these 200 topics for 5-Minute Presentations to ensure your next speaking engagement is both dynamic and memorable!

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The 7 Stages of Dementia: What to Expect

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Dementia is marked by a severe decline in cognitive functions, such as thinking, reasoning, and remembering, to the extent that it interferes with the person's daily life.

Dementia typically affects older adults, but it is not a normal part of the aging process. While some amount of forgetfulness is normal with age, dementia is a severe disorder that can affect the person's ability to function on a daily basis.

According to the National Institute on Aging, about one-third of all people above the age of 85 have some form of dementia. Dementia can stem from various causes, the most common being Alzheimer's disease . Some of the other causes include Parkinson's disease , Lewy body dementia , and frontotemporal dementia.

Dementia progresses in stages, ranging from mild to severe. In 1982, Dr. Barry Reisberg created the Global Deterioration Scale (GDS), which consists of seven stages, to help clinicians categorize the progression of dementia.

This article explores the seven stages of dementia so you know what to expect if you or a loved one has been diagnosed with it.

The stages are as follows:

• No cognitive decline
• Very mild cognitive decline
• Mild cognitive decline
• Moderate cognitive decline
• Moderately severe cognitive decline
• Severe cognitive decline
• Very severe cognitive decline

Stages 1 to 3 are the pre-dementia stages , whereas stages 4 to 7 are the dementia stages . Clinicians typically compare the person's symptoms to the criteria listed for each stage and use their judgment to determine which stage the patient is at.

The 7 Stages of Dementia

The seven stages of dementia are outlined below.

Stage 1: No Cognitive Decline

At this stage, the person can function normally and exhibits no signs of memory loss, confusion, or cognitive impairment.

However, the structure and functioning of their brain may have started to deteriorate as the neurons (nerve cells) in their brain start to lose connection with other brain cells and die.

Stage 2: Very Mild Cognitive Decline

The person starts to experience occasional lapses of memory , such as:

• Forgetting where they keep familiar everyday objects
• Forgetting names they once knew very well

At this stage, the symptoms are unlikely to affect the person’s work or social interactions. 

In fact, the symptoms may even be too mild to detect in a clinical interview with a healthcare provider, as the person may be able to adequately perform memory tests during the interview. 

Stage 3: Mild Cognitive Decline

This is the stage at which cognitive impairment starts to become more noticeable to the patient, their friends, family members, and colleagues.

The person may start to show symptoms such as:

• Getting lost while walking or driving, particularly in unfamiliar places
• Reading something and retaining very little of it
• Forgetting the names of people they’ve just met
• Losing items of importance or value
• Having trouble concentrating and performing complex tasks
• Experiencing increasing difficulty in social settings
• Frequently forgetting words and the names of loved ones
• Performing poorly at work to the extent that it becomes evident to colleagues

The person may start to feel anxious as their symptoms begin to become apparent and interfere with their ability to function. 

Stage 4: Moderate Cognitive Decline

In this stage, the person will exhibit a definitive decline in cognitive ability in a clinical interview.

Some of the symptoms of this stage may include:

• Lack of knowledge of current and recent events
• Difficulty remembering parts of their own personal history
• Trouble with organizing, planning, traveling, and managing finances

At this stage, the person will likely still be able to recognize loved ones’ names and faces and navigate familiar places. However, they may start to avoid challenging situations to prevent anxiety and hide their distress from others.

Stage 5: Moderately Severe Cognitive Decline

From this stage onward, the person may no longer be able to function without some assistance. 

These are some of the symptoms of this stage:

• Difficulty recalling a vital detail such as their address, phone number, or high school
• Disorientation in terms of place and time, such as confusion regarding the season, date, day of the week, or time of day
• Difficulty counting backward from 20 by 2s or from 40s by 4s (provided they are educated and were once able to do this calculation)
• Trouble with making decisions

In this stage, the person can likely still remember their own name and the names of their spouse and children, but they may struggle with recalling their grandchildren's names. They may be able to eat and use the bathroom without assistance but may need help with tasks such as deciding what to wear.

Stage 6: Severe Cognitive Decline

At this stage, the person may require a high degree of care , as they may have symptoms such as:

• Difficulty remembering the names of their spouse, children, or primary caregivers
• Lack of awareness regarding all the recent events and experiences in their life
• Patchy or skewed recollection of their early life
• Difficulty counting backward or forward to 10
• Lack of awareness regarding their surroundings as well as the time and place
• Inability to travel alone without assistance
• Tendency to wander

The person is also likely to experience emotional and personality changes, such as:

• Paranoia , hallucinations , and delusional behavior , such as talking to themselves or believing their caregivers are trying to harm them
• Obsessive symptoms, such as repeatedly performing cleaning activities
• Agitation, anxiety, and even violent behavior
• Loss of willpower due to being unable to carry a thought long enough to complete the action

During this stage, the person is likely to still remember their name and distinguish between familiar and unfamiliar people in their environment. They will probably need assistance with daily living activities and may experience incontinence and sleep-related difficulties.

Stage 7: Very Severe Cognitive Decline

In the final stage, the brain appears to lose its connection to the body and becomes incapable of telling it what to do. 

The person is likely to progressively lose their motor skills and the ability to speak. They may only be able to utter unintelligible sounds or words, if at all. They will need assistance with all personal care tasks, such as eating, walking, and using the bathroom.

Final Thoughts

Dementia is a challenging condition to live with because it increasingly affects a person’s mental faculties and ability to function. Being aware of how the condition progresses can be useful because it can help you take steps to slow it down, understand what to expect, and prepare for it.

National Institute on Aging. What is dementia? Symptoms, types, and diagnosis .

MedlinePlus. Dementia .

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About dementia .

Stanford Medicine Health Care. Dementia causes .

Reisberg B, Ferris SH, de Leon MJ, Crook T. The Global Deterioration Scale for assessment of primary degenerative dementia . Am J Psychiatry . 1982;139(9):1136-1139. doi:10.1176/ajp.139.9.1136

American Physical Therapy Association. Global Deterioration Scale for assessment of primary degenerative dementia .

Beason-Held LL, Goh JO, An Y, et al. Changes in brain function occur years before the onset of cognitive impairment . J Neurosci . 2013;33(46):18008-18014. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1402-13.2013

By Sanjana Gupta Sanjana is a health writer and editor. Her work spans various health-related topics, including mental health, fitness, nutrition, and wellness.

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Kamala Harris Isn’t Giving Interviews. Any Questions?

Critics say the vice president has been too cautious with the press. Her supporters think it’s the right strategy at the right time.

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By Michael M. Grynbaum

Michael Grynbaum has covered the interactions between presidential candidates and the news media since 2016.

Follow live updates on the 2024 election .

The press has questions for Vice President Kamala Harris. She isn’t giving a whole lot of answers.

In the nearly three weeks since President Biden withdrew his candidacy, catapulting Ms. Harris to the top of the Democratic ticket, the vice president has shown little eagerness to meet journalists in unscripted settings. She has not granted an interview or held a news conference. On Thursday, after a rally in Michigan, she held her first “gaggle” — an impromptu Q.-and-A. session — with reporters covering her campaign.

It lasted 70 seconds.

Ms. Harris replaced a Democratic nominee who has hosted fewer White House news conferences than any president since Ronald Reagan. Now she is taking a similarly cautious approach, relying on televised rallies and prepared statements amid a tightly controlled rollout of her candidacy.

Asked on Thursday if she might sit for an interview anytime soon, Ms. Harris suggested that she would get through the convention first. “I want us to get an interview scheduled before the end of the month,” she said, as aides signaled to the scrum of journalists that question time was over.

Ms. Harris’s lack of engagement with the media has become a constant rallying cry on the political right, with Republican critics and Fox News stars accusing the vice president of ducking scrutiny. The Harris campaign says it is being thoughtful about how best to deploy its message, and to introduce a new candidate to crucial voters in battleground states.

David Axelrod, the architect of former President Barack Obama’s winning campaigns, believes that Ms. Harris — who on Thursday said she had agreed to a prime-time debate on Sept. 10 with her opponent, former President Donald J. Trump — was trying to strike a balance.

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Kerr says Tatum’s minutes at Paris Olympics come down to a mathematical logjam

Steve Kerr, coach for the United States gestures during a men’s semifinals basketball game against Serbia at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

United States’ Jayson Tatum, right, celebrates after dunking as United States’ LeBron James watches during a men’s basketball game against Brazil at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

United States’ Kevin Durant (7) celebrates after beating Serbia during a men’s semifinal basketball games in the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024 in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

United States’ Jrue Holiday in action during a men’s quarterfinal game against Brazil at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, Pool)

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PARIS (AP) — Jayson Tatum has not played in two of the five U.S. games at the Paris Olympics, held out of both matchups against Serbia.

And once again, U.S. coach Steve Kerr said Friday that it’s not an indictment of Tatum.

“It’s not what I’m not seeing from Jayson. It’s what I’ve seen from the other guys,” Kerr said. “Like I’ve said many times during this tournament and this last six weeks, it’s just hard to play 11 people, even in an NBA game.”

Being down for most of the game — the U.S. trailed by 17 points in the first half and by 15 late in the third quarter — led to Kerr shortening his rotation in the semifinal victory. Stephen Curry played 33 minutes and LeBron James played 32, the first two instances of a U.S. player logging more than 27 minutes in any game of this tournament.

Part of that was because the second unit, a strength for the Americans in the first four games, never clicked Thursday night. That grouping of Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, Derrick White, Bam Adebayo and Anthony Edwards played only four minutes together, getting outscored 17-4 while Serbia made all five of its field-goal tries.

Tatum is a star, without question. He agreed to an NBA-record $315 million contract this summer, is a perennial All-NBA pick and now is a champion as well. It also should be noted that Tatum was one of two players to log 23 minutes in the group stage finale against Puerto Rico — and that he’s the only player on the roster not to make a 3-pointer yet in these Olympics.

“It’s not about anything Jayson is doing or not doing,” Kerr said. “It’s just about combinations and the way that group has played together, the way Kevin has filled in since he came back from his injury. It’s just a math problem more than anything.”

5 games, 5 leaders

Through five games, the U.S. has had five different leaders in scoring at these Paris Games. And that makes it tough to say who’ll lead in the gold-medal game against France on Saturday night.

2024 Paris Olympics:

• What to know about the closing ceremony : A skydiving Tom Cruise and performances from Billie Eilish, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Paris Olympics mainstay Snoop Dogg highlighted the French capital’s au revoir to the Olympics.
• Indelible images : AP photographers pick their favorite images from the Paris Olympics .
• Who won the 2024 Olympics?: See which countries tied for the most gold medals in Paris, and who exceeded expectations.
• When are the next Summer Games? The Olympics will always have Paris . But next up for the Summer Games: Los Angeles 2028 . See how the City of Angels is preparing to follow the City of Light.

Kevin Durant scored 23 in the tournament opener against Serbia. Bam Adebayo had 18 against South Sudan, Anthony Edwards had 26 against Puerto Rico, Devin Booker scored 18 against Brazil and Stephen Curry scored 36 in the comeback over Serbia in the semifinals.

Curry shot only three times against Brazil in the quarterfinals.

“It’s whatever the game calls for. I shot three times last game and I wasn’t looking to force it because that’s not what the game called for,” Curry said. “So, that’s the beauty of Team USA and FIBA and this whole experience. Every game, it’s been somebody different. And it’s going to be somebody different, hopefully, with everybody contributing on Saturday.”

Durant has chance at 4-timers club

Kevin Durant is one win away from becoming the first men’s player with four Olympic gold medals. And it’s a fairly short list of Americans with four golds in any event.

Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi each have five gold medals in women’s basketball, while Teresa Edwards, Lisa Leslie, Sylvia Fowles and Tamika Catchings each have four golds.

The rest of the four-time champions in the same event is pretty much a who’s who of U.S. Olympic history.

Swimming icon Michael Phelps has done it in three different events (4x100-meter medley relay, 4x200-meter freestyle relay and 200-meter individual medley).

Others in the four-time, one-event, gold-medal club: swimmers Katie Ledecky (800-meter freestyle) and Ryan Lochte (4x200-meter freestyle relay), sprinter Allyson Felix (4x400-meter relay), discus thrower Al Oerter, long jumper Carl Lewis and shooter Vincent Hancock (skeet).

Celtics can make history

The three members of the NBA champion Boston Celtics on this team — Jayson Tatum, Jrue Holiday and Derrick White — can join a special club if the U.S. beats France for gold on Saturday.

There have been only 12 instances of a player winning an NBA or WNBA championship and an Olympic gold medal in the same calendar year.

Holiday did it once before, winning the NBA title with Milwaukee in 2021 before going to the Tokyo Games and helping the U.S. win gold.

The others on the list: Stefanie Dolson (a 3x3 winner in Tokyo) in 2021, Khris Middleton in 2021, Kyrie Irving in 2016, LeBron James and Tamika Catchings in 2012, Katie Smith in 2008, Sue Bird in 2004, Sheryl Swoopes in 2000, Scottie Pippen in 1992 and 1996, and Michael Jordan in 1992.

AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games