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Description

Improvisation: Speaking Without Preparation, Thinking on Your Feet and Staying Composed

Respond on the spot in meetings without losing your composure or drifting off track

  • 2 days — 14 h
  • In-person or virtual
  • Foundation
  • Up to 6 participants

Unplanned speaking is the most common kind: a round-table that reaches you sooner than expected, or an unforeseen question at the end of a presentation. With no preparation, many people speak too quickly, string ideas together without a thread and finish without a conclusion. The subject was well known, but the message did not land.

Two days to find your footing when nothing has been prepared, structure an answer in a matter of seconds, respond to the unexpected and close clearly. Progress comes through short, repeated exercises drawn from improvisation techniques and adapted to the professional environment.

Learning objectives

  • Manage the first few seconds of an unplanned speaking moment
  • Structure an improvised answer in three stages
  • Respond to a question or an unexpected turn without freezing
  • Use silence and pace rather than filling every gap
  • Close an improvised contribution clearly

What makes this programme different

Short, repeated exercises rather than long theoretical input
Practice in round-table and surprise-question situations under realistic conditions
A three-stage answer structure you can apply as soon as you are back at your desk

Programme

1The First Few Seconds

What happens when you are caught off guard

  • Identifying your own reactions the moment the floor turns to you
  • Breathing, posture and eye contact to buy three seconds
  • Accepting the pause rather than filling it
  • Opening with a simple sentence that sets up what follows

2Structuring Without Preparing

Three stages to avoid drifting

  • Framing the subject in one sentence
  • Developing two ideas at most
  • Illustrating with a concrete example
  • Signalling your conclusion and sticking to it

3Thinking on Your Feet

Welcoming the unexpected instead of enduring it

  • Building on what has just been said rather than on your initial idea
  • Handling an off-topic question or a figure you do not have
  • Saying you do not know without losing credibility
  • Picking up the thread after an interruption

4Sustaining and Closing

From the short answer to the five-minute contribution

  • Improvising a presentation in place of an absent colleague
  • Pacing yourself without a watch or notes
  • Closing crisply rather than letting things fade out
  • Maintaining the practice day to day

Who is it for

Anyone required to speak without preparation in meetings, with clients or in front of senior management

Prerequisites

No prerequisites

Dates & locations

36 scheduled dates between November 2026 and December 2027. Seats are confirmed in the order enquiries are received.

November 2026

December 2026

January 2027

February 2027

March 2027

April 2027

May 2027

June 2027

September 2027

October 2027

November 2027

December 2027

None of these dates suit you? We open additional sessions on request, and any programme can be run privately for your team.

Practical details

Before the programme
Online positioning questionnaire. Your development objectives are shared with the trainer, who tailors the practical case studies to your context.
Teaching methods
Theoretical input, workshops and practical case studies. Digital course materials and method sheets provided.
Assessment
Multiple-choice tests and role-play exercises. Assessment of learning at the start and end of the programme, with immediate and 60-day follow-up evaluations.
After the programme
One year of access to the e-learning platform. Self-assessment of the skills acquired and a 30-day follow-up session with your trainer.
How to register
Registration online or on the basis of a quotation.
Lead time
11 working days after confirmation of registration.
Accessibility
Accessible to people of determination. Contact our accessibility coordinator to design a suitable solution: contact@mpf-academy.ae
Start dates
Rolling intake: in addition to the scheduled sessions, this programme can start on request.