Self Evaluation

I think that I achieved the purpose of my speech very well. I felt somewhat confident during the speech, more that I thought I would. If I had to do it over again I would probably give my self more time to practice the speech. I would have liked to have practiced it a few more times before I delivered it. I also would have incorporated the slides into the speech a little more. To improve the content of my next speech I will research my topic more. My goal to improve the delivery of my next speech is to practice it more and try to make myself more comfortable when delivering my speech. I feel that I have gotten more comfortable and that I read less from my cards now. I still do distracting things like pay with my hair and move my feet, but I am more aware of them now and I try t to do them during my speech. I would rate my eye contact at about a 5 or 6, which could still use a lot more improvement. I would probably give my self a B for this speech, I feel that I fulfilled all of the required tasks, but that there were still some things I could have improved on, such as eye contact and preparedness. I think I only counted one source in my speech, but only because I was not aware that they needed to be cited in the speech. I feel that this speech was better than my last speech, because every time I talk in front of an audience, it gets a little bit easier each time.

Public speaking event

I recently got a new job at a large company. At the orientation for the new job there were about seventy five new hires like me and also many different speakers. Most of the speakers ecorporated a PowerPoint slide show into their speeches and other used other types of media such as videos. I would say that most of the speakers used the power point slides very well. They kept them simple with a few words or bullet points and maybe a picture. These slides were very easy to read and added to instead distracted from what the speaker was saying. Some of the speakers however tried to make their slide show more interesting by using those silly transitions from one slide to the next. These I feel were very distracting because I was focusing more on what the slide was doing rather than what the speaker was saying. Also one of the speakers put a lot of information on each slide so it was hard to listen to the speaker and read the slides at the same time. When creating a slide show I feel that it is best to keep the slides simple, with few bullet points or key words and maybe an impactful picture or two.

Ethical Responsibilities

When used correctly, digital files can greatly enhance your speech. They can draw attention to your topic, illustrate an idea, stimulate emotional reactions, clarify key points, and so much more. But if they are used incorrectly or if they are misused, it could have a very negative effect on the outcome of the speech. A speaker’s ethical responsibility when developing media presentation for a speech is to thoroughly check their sources, making sure that the media that they are going to use is coming from a credible and reliable source. They should make sure that the media that they are going to use has not been altered in any way. If a speaker does not do this then they could lose their credibility and the audience may not believe or trust anything that the speaker says for the rest of the speech. I think that some other ethical responsibly include making sure that the media being presented in the speech is appropriate for the topic, and also that the speaker doesn’t let the media being used do the talking for them. Meaning that the media is only being used to enhance what the speaker is saying, not delivering the information for them.

Components of Intro & Conclusion

According to our book there are four components of an introduction and three components of a conclusion. The components of an introduction are first an attention getter, second a purpose and thesis, third credibility and the fourth component is a preview of the main points. The components of a conclusion are first review of the main points, second reinforcing the purpose, and third providing closure for your audience. For my speech I am doing Heart Disease, so for an attention getter I can use a story of a family member that has died from heart disease or maybe a surprising statistic or fact. For my purpose and thesis I will explain that I am going to talk about heart disease and why, to establish credibility I will state how and why I am informed enough to talk about it and for the main points I will go over what main points of heart disease will be talking about. For my conclusion I will restate the main points that I wanted to get across. I will reinforce the purpose and I will provide closure by having an ending statement.

One Concept: Make Yor Speech Topic Come Alive

The topic of making your speech topic come alive really stood out to me in this week’s reading. If you don’t do this your speech may be very boring and your audience won’t be very engaged in your speech. The book says a speaker can make their speech topic come alive by demonstrating a positive attitude and connecting to the audience in meaningful ways. This can be accomplished by establishing a context for your topic that excites your audience's imagination and also by using vivid language to describe your main points. Having an awesome topic can mean nothing if you don’t speak about it in a positive and exciting manner. You can also make a not so great topic come alive by using vivid language and connecting it to your audience. Making your topic come alive will help you to keep your audience interested in your speech, in turn helping you to be more confident while giving your speech helping you portray a positive attitude about your topic.