One down, four to go!

In my opinion my introduction speech was very successful. I felt it fit the assignment precisely because I had all the requirements. It was an extemporaneous presentation because I had not written it out fully neither was it memorized, but I did have an outline prepared and note cards that I used during the actual presentation. I mainly used the outline because my introduction and message were on it, everything else, like the body and the conclusion were already on my note cards. I also felt that I captured the attention of the audience mainly because of my subject. But I think everybody did that part well. We all had very interesting topics to talk about and they all certainly grabbed my attention. Lastly, I think my transitions were effective because there were no awkward pauses, at least none that I noticed. I believe the time was in between three and five minutes. I had not looked at the clock, which I meant to do, but I guess I forgot because I was so nervous. The reason I think it was in the time limit because when I practiced the night before I timed it at around 6 minutes and I know I talked a bit faster during the presentation. Also, my presentation included all the sections that were required: introduction, body and conclusion. I made sure I included all of the sections in my outline so I wouldn’t forget any parts during the actual speech. So in general I think the speech “worked” because I felt like I had the undivided attention of the audience. Maybe it was like that because we all read the chapter on being a better listener and we were trying to focus on what each other were saying, but it worked because it helped me focus on getting my message across.

Some aspects that I could have been improved as far as the delivery would have been including more pauses to add drama and effect. For example, I probably could have a paused some after I announced the age at which I learned I was going to become a mother; that’s always dramatic. Some positives were the fact that I maintained eye contact, I was loud enough, and my language was both clear and colorful. As far as for the speech I think I covered it well. I think it was a wise decision on my part to include the statistics and the expert testimony, all with the proper cited credentials; it helped put my message in perspective with my situation.

When I was presenting the speech I think my rate was a bit quick. Like I said before I probably could have paused a bit somewhere and had I been calmer I probably would have taken my time. I actually was a little surprised that I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be. I think the fact that this class is a bit smaller than my other classes plus the fact that I was talking about myself rather than an academic subject helped me in that area. As far as the audience, I hadn’t really anticipated them to react the way they did. For example, when I mentioned my feelings concerning my son behaving like a “party animal” because of the date of his birthday everybody laughed. I supposed I meant it to be a joke, but when planning this speech in my mind I thought I would be the only one who thought I was funny. I was pleasantly surprised! Compared to my expectations all went well. I really didn’t expect to mess up too much because this isn’t the first time for me speaking in front of an audience, and I’m starting to get used to it. But I did expect to stumble a bit, which I did. But it wasn’t that big of a deal was it? If I could choose something to do differently for next time, or if I could do it over again, I would bring in a large picture of my son and my fiancé and prop them up so everybody could see. I think this would have helped my message get across just a little bit more, and a visual is always a good thing.

Preparing for the speech I decided to choose the topic of a cherished relationship. I chose this because it is the most important thing in my life and it affects me everyday. It was also the first thing I thought to write about. I started by following the books’ outline for writing my speech and the steps really helped. I followed it step-by-step and that’s where I got the ideas to include my statistics and expert testimony. The main concept from class that kept coming to mind during and after my speech was becoming a better listener. The ideas to help you relax played in my mind before the speech, but I couldn’t get those together quick enough. However, when comparing the actual experience of presenting and preparing to present they were about the same, but a little different. When I practiced my speech I practiced in front of my fiancé, and he gave me his undivided attention as did the audience when I presented, but of course I wasn’t as nervous when I was at home. But what’s funny is I messed up more when I was at home. I guess that was because I was still working out the kinks.

Overall, I really think I put a lot of thought and work into this speech and at the end I did get my message out.

References:
http://www.planet-therapy.com/pub/gen_problems/parenting/parenting_youth.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lina_Medina
http://www.econ.uda.edu/hotz/e188x/files/teen_handout.pdf
http://www.marchofdimes.com/professionals/681_1159.asp
http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/publications/factsheet/fsadlchd.htm