http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRf4R6RMR1M&feature=youtu.be
Overall, I think that my TED talk went pretty well. It’s definitely a much different experience watching yourself give the speech than it is to actually be up there delivering it. I’m glad that I get to view it from both perspectives, and through the process, come to a conclusion as to what went well and what didn’t.
One of the things that I thought I did a really good job with was the introduction. There was a clear, logical progression of ideas that culminated in a sentence that gave my audience an overview of what I would be speaking about. I really like this approach because it not only introduces your topic, but also firmly grounds your audience in the topic. The only negative part of the beginning was that I stumbled a little at the start of one sentence. It wasn’t too bad, but it’s definitely good to be aware of that.
Now that I’m watching myself, I do see that I glance down a lot. It seems to happen more often between sentences or during a particularly long phrase. I think I can solve this problem by just practicing on maintaining eye contact more. Also, I could practice my delivery in such a way as to reduce sentence length or minimize the transition of ideas between sentences.
As my talk progresses, I’m also noticing that I have a few short stops where I’m searching for words. Although it’s not a major problem, I think I could do a better job if I slow down slightly and get the idea fully in my head before executing it. In my opinion, it’s better to have longer pauses between sentences than to pause mid-sentence searching for the right thing to say.
One last positive thing that I notice throughout my talk is my speaking voice is mostly clear and easy to understand. Occasionally, I mince a few words, but it’s not a major problem. The one aspect of my voice that I think I could work on is inflections. At times, I sounded a bit monotone and bored. I think if I worked on emphasizing certain words and varied my tone and pitch, it would make the speech sound more dynamic and less flat.
Generally, I’m pretty happy with how it went! It was a solid effort and provides me with a baseline comparison for my future work.