Daniel Estevez Gonzalez

    I really enjoyed watching all of the presentations on all of the chapters about public speaking. If I'm being honest public speaking has always frightened me as I'm a shy person myself. I recently started a new job about three months ago. I took the job of "Learning Assistant" at Miami Dade College in the Hialeah Campus. This new job required me to go to the new student orientations and present in front of roughly 50 students. I felt scared since I really didn't know much about speaking in front of an audience, but hearing all of my classmates presentations have definitely made me feel more confident about speaking to a large audience because of all of the tips and tricks I've learned. 

    My group which was Group One by the way, presented chapters 1-4. Reading these chapters definitely gave me a lot of knowledge into the field of public speaking which I didn't have before. Through this presentation I learned that it's ok to be nervous, it happens to the best of us. I learned to choose vital topics, current topics and other things the audience would be interested in hearing about. I also learned some of the things to avoid while giving a presentation. Although being nervous is completely nervous, being too nervous can ruin your presentation. Engaging with audience is another key factor as you don't want to lose them. Also focusing on what the audience needs is a must as you don't want to get side tracked. I also learned that practice makes perfect, and practicing your speech before hand is a must. Audience analysis was also something I learned while working on this presentation. Analyzing your audience is very important to carry your message across. Knowing your audience's beliefs and opinions on a topic can make a big difference in how your speech is received. Things like demographics, and conventional wisdom are terms I learned while researching for this presentation that have stuck with me. These are so important to know as they tell a lot about your audience.

    Moreover, while watching Group Two's presentation on chapters 5-9 I also obtained lots of more information to further better my public speaking abilities. They talked about research for presentations which, expands your knowledge, gives you the latest information, raises your credibility and introduces you to new ideas. Group two also talked about different types of sources for information like sharing your personal experiences, getting resources from the library and internet, and also interviewing others. I learned the importance of staying organized, as this makes things easier for the speaker. This helps you to feel more confident and helps the audience understand you better. Another interesting point group two made was the different ways of delivering speeches. Memorized Mode is you going off strictly by what you have memorized. There's also Manuscript Mode which involves the speaker reading out a pre prepared manuscript on what they are talking about. This helps to avoid mistakes and barely required any practice as you already have what you're going to say written. The only bad thing about this method is poor delivery to your audience. Luckily group two mentioned another method called Extemporaneous Mode. This way of presenting only requires an outline and some notes to present. This mode does requires a lot of practice as you are mostly free styling the presentation with your own words.There's also Impromptu Mode which is the speaker improvising and going off on their own. This group also went over other key factors such as how to use your body to communicate with your audience. They talked about the importance of eye contact, your facial expressions, gestures, movements and attire. This group did an overall amazing job in their presentation and provided me with such great information for the future.  

    In addition to that, Group Three went over chapter 10-12. They talked about grabbing the audience's attention and keeping them engaged with your presentation. This group also mentioned ways for your audience to clearly understand the information you are giving them which I found very helpful. They said to state and repeat the main idea, present all of your ideas in a simple way and to relate your topic to the audience. Another tip they gave was to inform the audience what you want them to get out of your presentation and to tell them what information you want them to remember. Group two also talked about incorporating humor into your speech. Doing this can make the presentation more enjoyable and interesting to the audience and keeps them paying attention. Rewarding the audience and letting them know what they will get out of this speech at the end can make their experience feel more rewarding. They also mentioned ethos, pathos and logos as the methods of persuasion one can use to persuade the audience. There are different types of persuasive speeches like some to convince, some to inspire, and others to help your audience take specific action. Ethics is another big piece of information I took from this presentation. I learned about using reliable sources, being trustworthy, and being respectful to your audience. Additionally, they talked about special occasion presentations and how to prepare for them. I also loved the Kobe Bryant acceptance speech they chose as an example of a special occasion speech.I really enjoyed group three's presentation and loved their powerpoint and the way they chose to decorate it. They gave out a lot of useful information and explained everything with great detail. 

    In conclusion I loved watching everyone's presentations. I really loved the way in which we all had to read the chapters which informed us about how to deliver a speech successfully on top of actually having to present it in front of the whole class online. I don't think I'll ever present the same way ever again as I now know all of these terms that I learned through our class presentations.  So far I'm really enjoying this class and love the way everything's set out as it'll be very beneficial in my public speaking journey as this is such a big part of life.