When it comes to public speaking, my experience is quite barren. In fact, I have done only one public presentation in my entire life. Up until my enrollment in Olympic College I was never tasked with the objective of delivering a speech in front of an assembly. Considering the fact that I am a reserved person, I felt lucky to have avoided the attention that comes from such an event. In retrospect, it wouldn’t hurt to have gained some early experience with the craft.
My first public presentation came from attending English 101 here in OC. Being an english class, I of course expected to receive a variety of writing assignments. However, I did not anticipate that one of these assignments would be a public presentation. This particular exercise …show more content…
During that presentation I struggled to keep myself from stuttering over words that, under any other circumstance, I could pronounce just fine. At some point during my speech, my nerves caught up to me and I repeated a sentence. This caused me to lose my momentum and get lost within my own words. My manner of speaking was also stiff and quite rushed. If I had to choose a speech with which to model myself by, it would have to be “The Dangers of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Watching this speech, I can’t help but admire the way she is able to capture an audience’s attention in a calm and composed manner. Throughout the entire nineteen minute video she is able to transition to different parts of her story without it ever feeling rushed or lacking in detail. The serious tone of voice she uses for a majority of her speech adds a level of intensity to her final message. Around the five minute mark of the video, she recounts the humorous experience she had with her roommate who had requested to hear “tribal” music under the assumption that Africans were still living in an era that left them unexposed to any mainstream music. She tells the audience how this assumption left her roommate disappointed when she played her tapes of songs by Mariah Carey. At that moment, she pauses to allow the audience to laugh in response. The fact that she is able to provide a strong, meaningful message while subtly interacting with the audience always leaves me in awe. Were I put in the position of narrating a nineteen minute speech, I would have floundered within the first
My first public presentation came from attending English 101 here in OC. Being an english class, I of course expected to receive a variety of writing assignments. However, I did not anticipate that one of these assignments would be a public presentation. This particular exercise …show more content…
During that presentation I struggled to keep myself from stuttering over words that, under any other circumstance, I could pronounce just fine. At some point during my speech, my nerves caught up to me and I repeated a sentence. This caused me to lose my momentum and get lost within my own words. My manner of speaking was also stiff and quite rushed. If I had to choose a speech with which to model myself by, it would have to be “The Dangers of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Watching this speech, I can’t help but admire the way she is able to capture an audience’s attention in a calm and composed manner. Throughout the entire nineteen minute video she is able to transition to different parts of her story without it ever feeling rushed or lacking in detail. The serious tone of voice she uses for a majority of her speech adds a level of intensity to her final message. Around the five minute mark of the video, she recounts the humorous experience she had with her roommate who had requested to hear “tribal” music under the assumption that Africans were still living in an era that left them unexposed to any mainstream music. She tells the audience how this assumption left her roommate disappointed when she played her tapes of songs by Mariah Carey. At that moment, she pauses to allow the audience to laugh in response. The fact that she is able to provide a strong, meaningful message while subtly interacting with the audience always leaves me in awe. Were I put in the position of narrating a nineteen minute speech, I would have floundered within the first