Rhetoric 3257-Tschider

I think that talking for five was really hard. I fell a little opposite than you as if I am boring someone with stuff I know andthey have to sit and listen to me. I found it hard to even find something technical that I knew something about. I am not a real technology person so I found it easier to talk about something more related to the Internet and the different ways people use them, and also about the gender differences in Internet use.

Personally I had the hardest time even coming up with something to talk about. I would stumble over my words for a couple minutes, and even then I wasn't confident. The first exercise was okay - I eventually settled into a topic and kept going, after about two minutes of trying to think of how to present it. The second was terrible, though. I could never settle on a single topic. I kept drifting from one thing to the next, and eventually I just gave up and conversed with my partner about the exercise. I'm probably going to do better next time but I hope we don't have to do that again any time soon. I have some experience with presentations, but I need plenty of time to prepare. Off the cuff speaking is just impossible for me.

You guys did a great job. This is a hard exercise for me, too! At least you didn't have to do it in front of the class, though, as a professor of mine once made me do. Yikes! Surprisingly, extemporaneous or impromptu speaking is a huge part of giving presentations. What happens if you lose your place on the outline? What if someone asks you a question mid-presentation? In both of these circumstances, you have to not only be able to talk off-the-cuff, but also the move the direction back to your speech! Crazy, huh? You guys are doing great, though, keep up the good work. ;-)