There are three Golden Rules for developing good speech topics. First of all, you - the public speaker - have to like the subject. You need to know something about the issue of your choice, or have warm feelings for the the theme. For example speeches based on issues in your personal or professional life will cause credibility and authority. Secondly, tie the general message of your speech topic to the audience. Check who they are - do some backgroud research on the demographics of your listeners. E.g. age, gender, education, occupation. The information makes it easier for you to relate your central idea to their needs, opinions and interests. And thirdly, your speech have to fit the assignment rules and the occasion setting. For example think about the time schedule, the place of delivery or the exact task words in your assignment instruction. Public speaking coach and author Jim Peterson helps you to meet these Golden Rules. He has developed more than 10,000 ideas for speech topics, and created how to tutorials for students and business speakers. The checklists of Jim’s Speech Topics Help site are used in many educational and business training classes.