Finding a creative, attention-grabbing opening can be a struggle, but in the end it will be well worth the effort, for your first words can and do make a big impression on your audience (Hockenbury & Hockenbury, 2009). If you open with something as boring as “Hi, my name is . . .” or “Today I’m going to talk about . . . ,” your audience may conclude that there’s nothing more interesting to follow. In many cases, it is a good idea to finalize your introduction after the bulk of your speech is complete. This can be an advantage because you will approach your introduction armed with your main points and your supporting material—and probably a few ideas on how to make it lively! Consider the following suggestions.