@yasminekho thread (15): In 2023, Stanford professor Matt Abrahams gave a maste…
TL;DR. Stanford's Matt Abrahams says spontaneous speaking is a physiology and structure problem, not an intelligence one — calm the body, ditch perfectionism, and use simple frameworks to sound sharp on the spot.
Takeaways
- Breathe with exhale twice as long as inhale to kill fight-or-flight before high-stakes conversations.
- "Maximize mediocrity" — perfectionism eats the mental bandwidth you need to think and speak fluently.
- Use the "What → So What → Now What" structure to sound organized when you're improvising.
- Adopt an improv "Yes, and" mindset: treat questions as gifts, not threats.