One clear message for one listener

A speech becomes easier to follow when you know who needs it and what they should take away. “Tell everyone about our project” gives you no stopping point. “Explain to a new volunteer where to arrive on Saturday” tells you what matters. The listener does not need your entire planning history.

Write two private preparation lines: “I am speaking to…” and “After listening, they should know or do…”. These are planning prompts, not sentences you have to say aloud. Pick one primary outcome. If there are several unrelated outcomes, separate them into different messages.

We have been discussing the community garden for some time. There are plans for new tools, a change to the website, and perhaps a summer event. We also need volunteers on Saturday, and last year's event went well. The side gate is open from nine. The group will meet there before choosing the morning's tasks together.

The fictional announcement contains several possible topics. A first-time volunteer may finish it unsure whether to bring tools, visit the website, or attend a future event. Useful facts can still distract when they answer a different question.

If you are joining the garden volunteers this Saturday, arrive at the side gate at nine. We will meet there before choosing the morning's tasks. You do not need to decide which task to take beforehand. Come to the gate, meet the group, and we will get started together.

The revision focuses on arrival. It does not invent free equipment, refreshments, or access arrangements. When working with your own material, do not fill a missing fact with a confident guess. Check it or leave it out.

1. Use the garden announcement, or write four accurate facts about an ordinary activity.
2. Choose one listener and one practical question they need answered.
3. Underline the sentence that answers that question. Move it near the start.
4. Remove details that do not help the listener understand or act on that sentence.
5. Speak the revision once. Ask a listener to repeat its main point, or wait a moment and summarise it yourself.

For this exercise, clarity is the test. A shorter message is not automatically better if it removes a condition the listener needs.

If your takeaway is “the garden is great”, make it more useful: “new volunteers meet at the side gate at nine”. If it contains three different actions, choose the one that belongs in this message. You can place the rest in a later conversation or written note.

Say the important sentence naturally. Avoid announcing that you are about to explain, outline, or discuss something when you can simply explain it. Read your revision aloud before deciding it is finished.

For longer drafts, the script readability tool can flag text worth reviewing. Its suggestions do not replace listening to the message or checking your facts.