Chapter 5 Reading

I know that we were supposed to talk about these in a separate post, but I really believe that audience analysis is the most important topic of Chapter 5. It plays a huge role in determining everything about a speech. After analyzing the audience, it is much easier to choose a topic to write about. Audience analysis allows a speaker to figure out what demographic they will be speaking to. This is a huge help because it helps choose what to say. If the audience filled with young people then, it is probably not a good idea to quote or refer to television shows from the sixties and seventies. This concept is the basis for the entire speech. That is why it is so important. Without a good base, a speech can fall apart very easily.

Audience Analysis and Adaptation

Audience analysis and audience adaptation are extremely important when preparing and giving a speech. Audience analysis helps to anticipate what will and will not work with an audience. It is like the armed forces doing reconnaissance on an enemy before striking. Also, this gives you an idea of your demographic which you will be speaking to. This is super important because you have to have the correct topic for which you are speaking to. A young group will usually not be able to relate to a speech about the complexities of the stock market. That would be more appropriate for a trade show. Adaptation is also important because you have to be able to read the audience and be able to tell if they are listening to you. If people are looking around at the clocks then you need to do something to keep their attention. Otherwise you are just wasting everyone’s time.

I analyzed my audience for the demonstration speech. It is all college students. So I thought to myself what would help and/or interest college students. I eventually came up with a speech about selling books on half.com which will help my peers get money back for the books they do not need.

Drinking & Light Pollution

In the video about drinking, the man does a good job of making eye contact with the audience. Also, he relates the topic to his audience (college students) because college students are notorious for drinking. His topic choice is good because of the fact that college students drink and sometimes are not responsible when they do it, showing that he took the demographic into account. Another thing that they guy did well was to use a lot of visual aids. Visual aids almost always help make a presentation better. I learned that choosing a topic which the demographic can relate to is important. Also, visual aids are necessary to make the speech more interesting and effective.

The second video was the intro to a girl's speech about light pollution. The girl had a very good introduction. She introduced her topic and then explained what her examples will be. She used a very concise language, making it unmistakable what her speech is about. Outlining the speech is also good so people can know what to expect. I learned that it is a good idea to give your examples in the introduction. Also, it is important to make good eye contact during the speech because it looks funny when you just glance up at the audience between sentence.

Speech Progress

For my demonstration speech, I will be demonstrating how to sell a textbook on half.com. I thought this would be a good idea because textbooks are so expensive and it is possible to actually get a good amount of money back by selling them on half.com. There is not a whole lot of research to do, but I have been on half.com familiarizing myself more. I will probably take the class through the whole process of half.com. I will start with signing up and go all the way through putting a book up for sell. I have not decided if I will make a powerpoint to show the steps or if I will do the process live for the class, but I have a couple weeks to decide.

Chapter 6

The thing that I found to be the most important thing in chapter six was the huge list of websites that will help research a topic. This is so important because the library and print resources are almost obsolete at this point in time. Most of the time, students use the internet to research topics. They even go on the internet to search for print resources. I know I personally only use the internet to do research for papers. I have not been in a library in a very long time. This list will definitely help me when it comes time to do research for my papers this semester. It breaks down into several different types of search engines.

Research Interviews

I have hardly any experience with conducting research interviews. The only thing that I can remember that is close to a research interview is when I interviewed my grandma. In high school I had an assignment in which I was supposed to interview someone who is at least one generation older than me. I was supposed to ask her questions that had to do with views of different generations. I do not remember what went well. However I can say that being polite and courteous to the interviewee is important. What needed improvement for me was my conciseness of my questions. Sometimes my grandma did not understand the question. If I were to do it again I would make my questions more simple and easy to understand. My advice would be to make your questions short and simple while being polite to the person that you are interviewing.

Question #3

One concept that I found very interesting and useful was the part about building confidence before your speech. I felt that if anyone followed these steps, then they would feel a lot better about their speech. I know I would. The first tip is to dress for the occasion. This is very important because when you look good, you feel more confident and confidence is very important in front of other people. Also, the book suggests that you staying organized and arrive early. This is incredibly useful because if you are not organized, your audience will be able to tell. Being early helps reduce stress and it gives you a little more time for final preparation for the speech. The next is take calming breathes. This is very useful. It is just like my mom used to tell me to do when I got all wound up when I was a kid. Warming up your voice is a good tip that I have not even thought about. Nobody wants to go in front of the class with a raspy or cracking voice. Making sure all of your technical parts of the speech are prepared is critical. Not only does this calm you because you know that you are prepared, but it also makes you look more professional. Concentrating on other speakers is also important because if you just sit and think about all the "what ifs" then you are going to get anxious and very nervous. It is best to just sit back and relax.

Speech buddy response

In video 2.1, I felt that the tips were helpful for the most part. The first tip is visualization. This is important because if you have a picture or an idea of what your speech should look or sound like, then you will be more likely to have the real speech end up like that. Also, if you visualize what will happen, then the actual speech will feel like second nature. I personally have never tried the second tip which is relabeling and I am skeptical of this suggestion. I do not feel that this would help me very much. Relaxation to me is the most important tip given in this video. If you are relaxed, you sound better to the audience and you are less likely to get over anxious and mess up. Also, breathing is known for being calming.
The piece that I found most interesting in video 2.2, was Anthony's advice to know the introduction and conclusion very well. This is true because if you know how to start and end then you are already on your way and the body of a speech or essay is the easiest.

What makes me apprehensive about public speaking

There is one thing that makes me apprehensive about public speaking. That one thing is embarrassing myself in front of a lot of people, especially people I do not know. That is one of my biggest fears in life. I am in know way a very shy person but I do not enjoy being the center of all attention. I am scared that I will mess up or forget what I am talking about and everyone will laugh at me. I know that if I do make a mistake that people do not always react that harshly, but it is just in my mind. Other than fear of embarrassing myself in front of people I do not really have any problems with public speaking. Once I get up in front of the people I am fine for the most part except for some fast talking.