The overall purpose of the speech was to inform the class that drinking can lead to excessive weight gain as well as freshmen 15. The point of my speech would have been a bit more clear if my preview of points was introduced better in my introduction. According to the evaluation form from class, the preview could have been more clear and definitive. I feel I tried to have a narrative speech but failed because I couldn’t implement a lot of information while still telling a story. During my speech I did feel more comfortable than last time. I think this comes from the overall culture and environment of the class. We all have a slight fear of speaking but I get the feeling that no one us judging me and I can become a better speaker in the positive environment of the class. I wasn’t too confident because I had a lot of last minute changes to the speech. I had sent the incomplete power point presentation and right off the bat that made me feel a bit uncomfortable because I didn’t have all the visuals I needed. During the speech, I felt as if I was in a daze because I just stood there and gave my speech with out actually acknowledging that I was nervous. I also felt that the speech was very short, but I ended up being with in the time slot.
In doing this over again, I would have chosen a different speech pattern because narrative was difficult to implement all the information in the speech while still being able to tell a story. My power point was great, but I could have explained the slides a bit more. The charts were effective but just pictures with out the proper explanation. All of these problems need to be addressed in the organization of the whole speech. I found myself a bit shot for time during the end of the week. I will plan accordingly next time to ensure that I will have time to prepare all parts of the speech. The delivery was not to great. I didn’t have enough eye contact and I also used my note cards too much. Practicing more would allow me to take my attention off the cards and allow me to deliver with more eye contact and holding the audiences gaze longer. The content of my speech will be better because I will have plenty of time to plan and prepare my speech. My number one goal for my next speech will be to practice it 4 times a day for a week. After doing so 28 times, I should have no problem delivering it. I am shooting for an A!
The difference between this speech and my last was that I was less prepared for this one. In my last speech, I had prepared more because I hadn’t given a speech for over 3 years. I had a better delivery but was more nervous before, during, and after the speech. One good thing is that I am more comfortable of speaking in public! My fear is diminishing and I eventually will be a great public speaker. My power point was an effective visual but I feel that actually demonstrating something like the first speech is more effective. Power points help because I didn’t have anything in my hands to distract. My note cards distracted me a lot and it gave me an excuse to look at something other than the audience. My last speech was better because I couldn’t use my note cards because my demonstration was hands on. I also caught myself swaying back and forth a bit too much and it distracted me from the delivery of the speech. This speech was also better because my fear wasn’t distracting me as much and I felt more natural up there because of it. It may not have been a better delivery, but I did feel less nervous. Because of not being as prepared as I could have been, I rate myself as a 4 out of 10 on eye contact. Having eye contact with the audience is important so they know you are talking to them and not just reciting your speech. My next speech I will be prepared enough that I will not need to hold note cards. My eye contact will be 10 out of 10 by maintaining a better gaze with audience. Over all, I feel that I do deserve the grade I got. I deserve a B because I had a functional intro and conclusion but the body of the speech was a bit unorganized and the purpose was unclear. The introduction had a good attention getter, the credibility was weak as well as the preview. But, the conclusion was good because I did review the points well. The closing phrase was weak because I didn’t go out with a bang. I feel that I had all the right things for a proper speech but I couldn’t put them together in the best way possible. The delivery wasn’t as I had hoped and it is due to lack of being as prepared as needed. I had four source citations in my speech which was good but I feel that they were too close together. Overall, I had a better organized outline and most of the required information. But, the delivery was weaker due to practice and organization of the body and its information. I had a great idea for this speech but it fell apart because I tried to have a narrative speech pattern.