Toasts
The toasts between the weddings.
Somebody has to say something at Thanksgiving, at the office party, at midnight, and at the retirement send-off. Here’s how to do it in a minute, with full examples, and a free writer that starts from your own people.
Thanksgiving
A minute at the table before everyone eats, for the host or a guest.
Christmas
A short toast at Christmas dinner or a holiday get-together.
New Year's Eve
Before the countdown, or the first thing after it.
Office holiday party
For the boss thanking the team, or whoever got handed the microphone.
Retirement
For a coworker, a boss, a parent, or your own send-off.
Tools that work for any toast
Questions people ask
- How long should a toast be?
- At a holiday table, 30 seconds to a minute and a half: people are hungry and the food is getting cold. At an office party, under three minutes. A retirement speech can run two to four minutes, because the room came to hear about the person.
- What do you say in a toast?
- Say why you're the one talking, say one specific true thing (a moment, a detail from this year, a story about the person), turn to the people in the room, then ask everyone to raise a glass and end on a short line that calls back to the detail.
- Do you have to drink to give or join a toast?
- No. Any glass works: water, juice, coffee. Say "raise whatever you're holding" and nobody has to explain anything.
Here for a wedding? The wedding speech guides and the free speech check are that way.