Increase the speaking time as you become more comfortable with the exercise. A practice shortcut is to make quick mental outlines of topics while reading the newspaper or watching the evening news. Many attempts to communicate are nullified by saying too much. Robert Greenleaf A s with addressing a scientific audience, when speaking to a lay audience or the media, the point is to clearly and concisely communicate your information on a level they will understand. The point is not to overwhelm or snow the audience, nor to impress them with your vast knowledge and lofty credentials.
E ffectively communicating with such a group usually means greatly simplifying a complex topic.
There are some important guidelines that will help you with that task. Be sure to give at least thumbnail sketches of any essential underlying assumptions or principles, then straightforwardly explain or demonstrate how they relate to your subject. If possible, frame your talk in the context of everyday life or the binding focus of the group you are addressing. Math is rarely, if ever, appropriate for this type of audience. C onfusing a lay audience is bad enough because it essentially wastes their time by failing to provide new, comprehensible knowledge.