When You Look Back in the Mirror, and the Image is Somewhat Changed

For the many people who believe a public speaking class can't really improve the way a person can present in public, this opinion was proven wrong based on the amount of growth I have made in my own public speeches halfway through the semester.  

One of my very first goals for this class was to be able to speak more confidently in front of a large number of people.  I had stated that I was not a poor speaker, but that I was never confident that what I was saying was interesting or correct.  Today, I made a speech about my summer when I pursued my venture, granted to me by the venture grant committee in school, and this is where I saw the most growth for me so far in the year.  Like normal, I was very nervous to go up and I fantasized every way in which my presentation could go wrong.  Although I was nervous, I was confident in my abilities to speak in front of an audience.  When I went up to the podium, I had PowerPoint presentations to look at and notes, but I was confident in the story I was telling and was able to keep good eye contact with my audience and speak from the heart rather than from reading. This was one thing I noted in my third goal that I improved.  I showed significant growth in my confidence, I didn't stutter, I didn't take long pauses that showed I lost my thoughts and I spoke loudly, clearly and at an okay pace.  The only thing I feel like I still need to work on is my pacing.  I was in a pressure situation today, so the pacing was okay to be a little rushed, but next time I would like to focus on speaking a little bit slower to make sure everyone understands me completely.  

I also improved my second goal.  I blushed but it wasn't as noticeable, and I didn't show uncomfortable body language.  I was able to make good eye contact with the audience and even though I used my hands a lot, it was not to play nervously with them, but to emphasize my passion for the topic I was discussing. 

One goal that I have for myself for the rest of the class is to continue projecting my voice loudly and confidently.  I have a tendency to be a very quiet speaker and when I'm nervous I present my speech like I'm not confident.  I'm doing a much better job with this already and want to be able to do it perfectly by the end of the class.   Another goal I have for myself is continue memorizing my speeches and have them come from the heart and memory.  I felt that my presentation today was powerful because I was clearly speaking not from what the slides behind me were saying but from my memory of the summer and how much I loved talking about what I want to do in the future.  The audience could feel my passion and by telling most of the facts by memory, people could tell I was credible giving my speech.  Although this is one of the harder and scarier tasks when speaking publicly, it is almost the most important.  Overall I am overly pleased with my progress and can't wait to make more as the class goes on.