A few days ago when I was rehearsing my speech with Ash, I jokingly suggested how funny it would be if an acute panic attack suddenly struck me and all I could say was:
“Plastics... heavy sigh.. Plastics... frowns... 3 recommendations... Thank you.”
Of course it was meant to be a joke, but part of me was secretly afraid that this presentation debacle might really come true. For this particular presentation, I didn’t want to rely on scripts or cue cards. Thus, my way of approach was to formulate the main points I want to convey at the back of my head, and slowly develop them- in the bathroom, during lecture breaks, before I sleep- I was talking to myself big time! I’m glad it worked out okay, partly because first of all my portion was manageable, and secondly it also gave me the freedom to elaborate according to my likings. I was terribly afraid that I might bore the audience; that is why I chose to use mainly pictures and as little words as possible.
Before the presentation, the unexpected technical glitch (which was fortunately saved Mr. Daniel) made me pretty upset that the video couldn’t be screened via the OHP, but I guess it was a blessing in disguise. Playing our video on the small laptop screen managed to capture the audiences attention- and I was extremely happy to see everyone squeezing ahead to get a better view.
During the presentation, I was initially flustered- the adrenaline rush made me felt incredibly light weighted. I believe I stumped over a couple of words in the front (perhaps more than I could recall), but after a while I kind of got use to environment and gradually calmed down. At certain point of time I realised I was slurring my words, especially near the end of the sentence. I caught myself playing with that little gadget in my hand as well, pushing in and out the battery cover- I guess nervousness got better out of me. I felt I could have done so much better actually.
Throughout the 8 minutes, I tried to maintain eye contact with the audiences, and attempted to make my delivery livelier by making use of the entire pathway. One thing I had to confess was the notion of passing of the Tupperware to the audiences. This was not something I planned to do; but at that point of time I remember standing in front of Wee Siong and he was staring right at the container in my hand. It seemed almost a reflex action- but I am glad I did so. The Tupperware was the spotlight during the Q&A, and I got to commend my 2 lovely group mates, Mark and Ash, for handling the questions so well.
All in all, despite the many ways I thought I could have performed better, I must thank my fellow rangers again- Mark and Ash, for the wonderful presentation we put together. I had so much fun, from the planning to the execution of the project, and of course picked up many valuable tips and advices along the way. Lastly a big thank you to ALL OF YOU, my lovely audiences, for paying attention to my ramblings and being enthusiastic throughout the entire presentation!
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Dear Shi Wei,
ReplyDeleteI would like to say that your group did a great job for the presentation especially the introduction part. I loved the way your group delivered the opening of the presentation as the style of the presentation was able to catch the audiences’ attention. The use of prop (i.e. non reusable plastic container) in your introduction was indeed a good way to capture their interest as well. It really made me to reflect on the negative impacts caused by the usage and the improper disposal of plastics. These negative impacts scared me and made me think twice before disposing a plastic product. The entire presentation went on smoothly including the transition between your teammates. I liked your slides because they were nicely done and some of the slides were only pictures without words. This would allow the audiences to focus on your presentation while looking at the pictures as a means to illustrate your points better. The pictures used in the slides were appropriate as they managed to demonstrate the devastated state brought by the improper disposal of plastic waste to our mother nature. Furthermore, I found your presentation quite interesting as your group was the only team which had a mascot, Mr. Paddles, for your proposed project.
On your part, I feel that you did quite well. I admired the spontaneity of your speech. You delivered whatever ideas or words which came to your mind when you were presenting which made your presentation looked natural. In my opinion, you did a wise thing by passing the prop (i.e. the sample of your group’s reusable plastic container) to the audiences. It really helped the audiences to understand more about your reusable container and probably increased their interest about it. This was evident with the amount of questions that your group received after your presentation ended! Moreover, you also managed to maintain a frequent eye contact with the audiences. One thing that I would like to highlight is that I think your voice was rather soft for me. Try to increase your volume next time so that those are sitting at the back can enjoy your spontaneous presentation as well. Overall, your performance was great and I am honored to have a chance to be part of your audiences.
Hey Shi Wei!
ReplyDeleteOverall, I thought your group’s presentation was very clear and well done! I liked the fact that your group coordinated the colour of your clothes such that all of you were wearing black, which looked professional and was also easy on the eyes. However, like what Duane has mentioned in his blog post, we tend to assume that what will be clear to our group will be clear to the class as well, which is probably why we had trouble following some points and understanding some things along the way (like why Mr. Paddles haha). But I think that happens to every group, so perhaps what we can all do is to present our stuff to people outside the group before the actual presentation and get their feedback that way.
Regarding your individual performance, I thought you were too tense as compared to Ash and Mark as your eyes looked a bit blank most of the time (probably because you felt light-headed) and tend to blink and look around a little too much. I also felt that there were quite a few pauses between your sentences and it looked like you could not remember your lines and were trying to recall the main points that you wanted to convey. However, you gradually got more comfortable after a while and everything just got better! And I thought that despite your nervousness, it was really brave of you (unlike me) to ditch your cue cards and also walk out of the comfort zone behind the table near the computer, choosing to present at the side nearer to the door where you were in full view of everybody. It is something I can really learn from you because I thought I was really tense (cowardly) too. Perhaps a little more practice in presenting to an audience will do good for tense people like us! (:
P.S. I'm sorry I kept asking questions during the Q&A session as plastics (polymers) is a topic that interests me greatly out of all the materials that I have studied (I’m currently doing a level four module called Selected Advance Topics on Polymers), and I was very intrigued by the super container that you passed around! =X
Dear Sauyeen,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your compliment, and yes, i do think that i was a indeed a little too soft during my presentation! I would definitely take your advice into consideration, there is plently of room for improvement of course=) Have a great recess week ahead!
Dear WanYu!
Haha yes you were such an inquisitive audience, but I was happy because it showed that you were paying attention! But frankly speaking there was this moment where we couldnt really answer your qn, so I came up with the excuse of asking you to stay back aft the presentation for further demostration on our "super container".
I was really nervous initially, thats my eyes were flickering arnd. Yes practice makes perfect, I guess I still got a loooong way to go before I can call myself a good presenter. Thank you so much for your comment!
xoxo SW