Impromptu Quotations

Bush is a very poor impromptu speaker. He does fine in small groups but when speaking without a script in front of large groups or answering questions he wasn't prepped for, he has problems.

And, finally, Lincoln was not a good impromptu speaker; he was at his best when he could read from a carefully prepared manuscript. Though maybe a teleprompter could have helped that!

During one of his uncannily well-timed impromptu visits to my restaurant, Union Square Cafe, Pat Cetta taught me how to manage people. Pat was the owner of a storied New York City steakhouse called Sparks, and by that time, he was an old pro at running a fine restaurant.

We had an exercise in speech class in school, impromptu speaking, that I was always real good at.

To explain this change to employees, Microsoft hosted an internal event with CEO Steve Ballmer, chairman Bill Gates, Johnson, Allchin, Raikes, and Bach. Most of the discussion and Q & A that happened that day is largely irrelevant to Nexus readers, but the company did take one impromptu question about competition with Apple Computer that I thought you'd enjoy. Here's a transcript of that portion of the session, and some photos taken from a video of the event,

(Jimi) was so into it -- if you listen closely you will see that I stayed on him, ... And when he started 'The Star Spangled Banner,' that impromptu thing, you hear the first four, five, or six notes; I'm in there with him. Then I said, 'Wait a minute, we didn't rehearse this, and it doesn't sound too good with me playing.' I backed away, and he continued and made a classic out of that.

I think if there's a vacancy like that, hopefully it will make bands get more creative, and turn up, as they did in the old days, in empty warehouses and just impromptu showcases that are word-of-mouth and flyer-oriented. Hopefully it can be a good thing. But I'll miss that place.

I've been relying very heavily on my instincts as of late, and my songwriting has come to depend on my ability to surrender to the inspiration whenever it strikes. When I clear my mind and let the music take over, my hands seem to move on their own, and my voice utters words I haven't premeditated. This is pure instinct. It's like riding a wave. You just take a deep breath, hop on, and hang on as long as you can. That's basically how I songwrite when I'm composing impromptu pieces. It's a lot like channeling. Or free associating. And it's super fun, because anything can happen! It's pure creativity.

It was very romantic. Josh had planned it all - he'd even bought the ring, ... I am very excited, but I think the wedding will have to be impromptu because it is almost impossible to get all our families together in one place.

It usually takes more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech.

It usually takes me three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech