Visual Aid Speech Self-Reflection

The readings, assignments and class discussions that we have engaged in over the course of the semester have allowed me to considerably improve my public speaking skills. Before taking this class, I was apprehensive about public speaking as an activity, but taking this class has helped me to eliminate this fear. Now I see public speaking as an exciting and engaging activity that is essential to life in the professional world. Watching all the speeches given in class introduced me to a variety of different styles and approaches. It also showed me the immense potential of imparting information and arguments through well organized and delivered speeches. The readings helped me understand the theoretical foundations behind public speaking.

As I was walking over to the front of the class to deliver my visual aid speech, I had already learned a great deal from our class activities over the semester. One of the most important things that I have gained is confidence. This, as I see it, is a very important factor when it comes to delivering speeches in public. My initial apprehension towards speaking in public was my biggest handicap in the way of delivering effective speeches. A great deal of this confidence comes from good research and thoughtful organization. Once you have thoroughly researched the topic and have planned out the manner in which you are going to deliver the speech, it becomes easier to deliver the speech with confidence.

I am very happy with how my visual aid speech went, which stands as testament to the progress I have made over the semester. In my first few speeches, I tended to hesitate a great deal while speaking. This was not the case for the visual aid speech, which I managed to deliver with clarity. In my persuasive speech, I used more text than is advisable on my visual aid. This time, I was particular about making an effective visual aid. Also, I went a bit over time and did not provide adequate context for the video I played. These were both things I was careful not to repeat this time around. Although this can be claimed to an extent about my previous speeches as well, the biggest reason why my speech succeeded was because I was talking about something that is really close to my heart; namely, sufi music.