The Polish Phase

With your structure set, spend the remaining time adding hooks, stories, and transitions. Write your opening hook in one or two sentences. Add one short story to each supporting point.

The final polish is cutting everything that doesn't serve the big idea. If a story is interesting but irrelevant, cut it. If a data point is accurate but distracting, lose it. Editing is not about making the speech shorter — it's about making every remaining element pull its weight.