Hettiarachchi said a common mistake beginners make is basing their presentation around a topic rather than a message.
Think of your message as a thesis statement, and make it as clear and concise as possible.
For example, when Tay was crafting his speech last year, he said he initially went into it wanting to tell an amusing story. "That really got my speech message very diluted and disconnected," he said.
His mentor told him he needed to start from the beginning and determine his message before writing another word. He settled on: "We are all our own worst bullies, and the best way to deal with that is by fully acknowledging the presence of negative thoughts in our mind rather than fighting or ignoring them." Tay said that the elements of an engaging speech flowed more naturally after he clarified this.
As Vasudevan told us, when developing a presentation, you should have every line you say pass the test, "Does this further my message?"