Su..suc…succ….sussess….SUCCESSFUL. This was one word which I stumbled on during the presentation, and eventually managed to pronounce, albeit with some awkwardness. This was definitely evidence of nervousness and something which I saw coming actually. As much as I had tried to preempt the words which I thought were more challenging to pronounce, I guess nervousness still got the better of me and presented itself even in simple words. I also struggled a couple of times during the presentation to find the right words to use and I think this could be one area where I can work on. Making deliberate effort to articulate my thoughts and ideas in all situations, even if it’s just hanging out with friends, will allow me to expand my vocabulary and practise the use of the English language. This will inherently increase my confidence during presentations.
For me, I felt that there was a little struggle between trying to avoid looking at my notes and ensuring that I presented all that I had intended to say for each slide. I guess I wasn’t confident enough to do without my notes and did not want to risk going blank during the presentation, thus I was prepared with notes to fall back on. This could have been a good thing, on the one hand, because at least I had content for each slide regardless of the activity of my brain.:) On the other hand, having notes could have prevented me from engaging the audience as much as I had wished to, and caused me to hurry through my presentation, focusing on just getting through with what I needed to say.
I could go on and on talking about my weakness and how I could have done better but I also want to acknowledge God and the people around me who have helped me survive the preparation for this presentation, while trying to complete a lab report and study for a test today. I thank God that His grace is sufficient for me, and that His power is made perfect in my weakness. Although there were some hiccups here and there, I generally felt that I was braver during this presentation as compared to my previous presentation, where my lips and hands literally trembled as spoke. Haha… In addition, I am also thankful for my group mates who have been very helpful, supportive and encouraging throughout the research project and the preparation for this presentation.
Presentation is definitely not my forte. But as my tennis coach used to say when we lost a point, “Don’t worry, the next one can only get better.” I guess it’s true that I can only get better every time I present, because every presentation is an opportunity for me to learn from my mistakes and improve.
I am thankful for this experience, and look forward to your feedback! :)
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Dear Grace,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing so much about your feelings towards your presentation. I felt that you did much better than what you described in your blog post. During your presentation, I could sense that you were quite well prepared and I hardy see you looking at your notes. The only thing that I think you can improve on is to speak louder during the presentation. In addition, the slides that your group prepared were really excellent. They were clear, informative and looked really professional. I would really like to ask whether all the picture of dustbins were taken by your group? If so, all of you must have put in tremendous effort in this project. ( I remembered that some of the shots even required your group to "dismantle" the different bins to view the contents inside) . Personally, I saw a great deal of hard work and team spirit in your team presentation.
Also, I really like the encouraging remark that you mentioned in this blog post. (“Don’t worry, the next one can only get better.” ) I guess it is true that one will "bounce back" from his or her setbacks as a stronger individual by learning through his or her mistakes. I shall learn from my presentation and try to do better for my future presentation.
Hey Terry, thanks for the feedback! Actually I have had lots of feedback previously about my voice being too soft as well. Even if I had used the mike, people will still comment that I should speak louder. But you know what, every time I present I feel like I'm shouting. haha...that's why feedback from the audience is so important, cos what you hear may not be what the audience is hearing.:) Maybe I should seriously consider going for vocal training.
ReplyDeleteSome pictures from our presentation were taken by us, but not all. The picture showing the contents of the bins was taken from the NUS website.:)
Yup, let's work towards better oral presentation skills! I think that's why we took this module in the first place... to prepare us for the real world!!
I agree with Terry, Grace. You're overly harsh on yourself.
ReplyDeleteGenerally, I thought you three did a very good job with the the info that you gathered, the way you organized that for your presentation and in your delivery.
I'll give you more specific comments to your mail address. Thank you!
Hey Grace,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your valuable comments on my post. I should say the organisation for your whole presentation was very good. The slides were well done. I found out you had a lot of notes prepared, maybe next time you can only write the main points and elaborate during the presentation. The way you recovered when you stumbled with the word 'successful' is good, you overcame your nervousness well. Do not feel too bad about it, as we say, 'Shit Happens'...lol
Cheers...
haha...thanks! I actually highlighted the main points in my notes so that I could pick out the points quickly and not be so reliant on my notes.:)
ReplyDeleteI guess it's in my character to make sure I am more than prepared, which can mean "kiasu" at times. I am also generally less of a risk-taking person, guarding myself against Murphy's law, which says, "If anything can go wrong, it will." haha... But I think I can be overly paranoid at times. Thanks for your feedback! I'll definitely work on it!