Persuasive Reflection

The biggest speech is over!  One small speech to go!  I was feeling alright until the girl before me had finished.  At that point, my heart was pounding.
I regained confidence when I started the presentation.  However, I felt my eyes looking to my note cards more frequently than the last speech.  This was something that could've been improved.  However, I averted any use of a filler word, which was a huge accomplishment for me.  I also thought that my speech was the best in terms of content because I had the most information on the organization.  Furthermore, I think I did best in terms of the persuasion aspect of the speech.
I felt especially relieved when this presentation was over because it carries the highest point value in the course.

Informative Reflection

Another nerve-wracking speech has been conquered!  Two down and two to go!  As usual, I was feel jittery and nervous before the speech, but unlike my first speech, I wasn't nervous in the class beforehand.  I hesitantly decided to sign up for the 5th slot, but after a couple of minutes, changed to the 2nd slot.
During the speech, I felt very confident.  I knew the material.  I feel proud of the fact that I seldom looked at my note cards.  After the speech, I felt a sigh of relief once again.  I practiced a handful of times before the speech to prepare and I feel as though my delivery improved.  I thought my citing of sources was properly handled and well integrated into my speech.
However, I still need to conquer my use of filler words.  I found myself mentally cursing every time an "um" unthinkingly slipped out of my mouth.  What I really need is to practice in front of someone holding an obnoxious buzzer and instruct them to hit the button whenever I use a filler word.  I loved how my powerpoint turned out, though maybe a sound for each transition would have been good.  The background picture in my slide for the music writing and composition was the first few measures of "Fur Elise" by Beethoven; I could've played a 5 second piano solo for the entrance of the slide. Then, for the beginning of the music production slide, I could've played the 5 second dance production I have for that song and that would've given me something extra to work with. This would've more clearly illustrated the differences between the writing phase and the production phase.  Maybe next time!

Life In A Bag Reflection

I survived my first speech in Speech 101 this past week.  The speech consisted of bringing four personal items in a bag to class and talking about how they related to my life.  To prepare, I practiced tirelessly and made sure I knew the exact order of my items, their key points, and the overall direction of my speech.  The entire time in class before the speech (as well as the class I had before that) was nerve-wracking.  I was so afraid to go up there and talk to a bunch of strangers about my personal life.  I also began to rethink what I had brought and was afraid people might get a negative perception of me based on the items in my bag.  I was starting to feel calm as the other speeches were in progress.  Then, it was my turn.  My heart was beating fast and I was shaking inside.  However, after I began to talk I felt more self-confident.  By the end of the speech, I could feel my confidence over-flowing and the relief that the whole ordeal was over.  Overall, I felt great about the job I did.  My volume and enthusiasm was very on-point.  On the other hand, I did rely on some filler words to break silence such as "um".  It's so hard to get out of that habit!  I also could have varied my expressions and gestures a bit.  Aside from that, I'm very proud of myself.