Week 15 Question 3

I think that the most helpful thing that I learned during class this semester was the different breathing techniques. They really helped before and after the speech when my adrenaline was running high. It was a big help to me. The other thing I learned is that not everyone is judging me when I'm speaking. I always thought that I was being judged. The comment cards helped me to realize that people are just listening attentively. Interestingly, I have also noticed through some of my comment cards that there are actually students in the class that genuinely care about how my speech goes. People have been very supportive. That was a huge revelation. The hardest part was the preparation of myself right before the speech. The help of my classmates, the breathing techniques and the overall ability to just try led to me being a better public speaker. Not perfect speaker, just a better one.

Week 15 Question 1

 In my future endeavors, I plan to take with me the ability to actually speak in front of people. When this semester first started, public speaking was something that I was so scared of, all I wanted to do was run away. Now I have a better understanding of how to use the skills I have learned to apply to my everyday life. I have learned how to just take a deep breath, breath normally through a speech and soon it will be over. This last speech I remember seeing the 1:30 card and the 5:30 card. That must mean that I blanked out on most of it. Oh well, at least I tried. That has been this entire semester for me. Just try! I have also learned that not everyone is staring at me or judging me even though it feels that way. Most people are just scared about giving their speech like I was a moment ago while sitting at my desk.

Week 15 Question 2

I think my favorite speech of this semester was the tribute speech. I liked that it was something that I could apply to my personal everyday life. I'm not sure that in my line of work that I would have much use for the other types of speeches such as the persuasive or cultural. The tribute speech showed that you can outline and prepare a really good tribute to someone. They were also very meaningful speeches. A few of us got choked up while speaking about a loved one. This speech just had a heartwarming feel to it that I really enjoyed. It was really awesome to see the different emotions that were invoked from the tributes. It was a very meaningful speech. I also liked that it was very easy to prepare, short and sweet. The outline was pretty simple and self explanatory. It made it a very easy assignment.