What I will be Taking from This Class

Where do I begin?  In my opinion, public speaking is the same if I was talking to one person or a million people.  The way in which you present yourself truly matters.  I don’t think anyone can take enough speaking and writing classes.  This class has given me so much more confidence.  I was happy to learn that there is such a thing as “ethical speaking” because a person with ethics in today’s society is not the norm.  Developing a purpose, adapting to the audience, supporting ideas were extremely helpful.  My thoughts are better organized.  This is the first time I’ve made a power point presentation, and I actually had lots of fun putting it together.  Some other important items I will be taking with me are how important “details” are in a speech.  For an example, the use of precise applicable words during a speech is critical.  It’s important because I want to be sure I am communicating properly and effectively.  Lastly, I really enjoyed presenting all four types of speeches in class.

My Favorite Speech

My favorite speech was the Persuasive Speech because Monroe’s Sequence provides a great foundation to an organized speech.  The use of persuasion can be used in the workplace whether you are trying to convince your supervisor to implement a new procedure or process or take the day off!  I’ve sold print and radio advertising in the past and quickly realized while studying the material that the persuasion speech correlated with selling.  You can use a “persuasive” strategy when trying to return merchandise to a store WITHOUT a receipt.  You must have sharp persuasion skills in order to get your money back or you might end up with a store credit.  People don’t realize how much “persuading” they do throughout their day.  My second favorite speech was the Informative Speech.  In a few days, I will be a leading an “Informational” meeting at work.  I created a full sentence out line and will be following the outline to ensure that my delivery is organized, concise, clear, and of course informative. 

Helpful Concepts from COMM I Class

Hello,

All of the different types of speeches and how to prepare for each type was extremely helpful.  Organization in any speech is “key” to a successful delivery and was equally important to me.  Learning full-sentence outlines were extremely beneficial to me.  The demonstration speech taught me to start from the beginning of a process and end with a final result.  Informative speeches are simply just that – to inform your audience.  The tribute speech was fun and useful and can be used in a variety of settings.  The persuasive was one of my favorite speeches because people persuade others throughout the day and don’t even realize it.  I is important to “think-through” the steps before you begin your speech whether it is to one person or a large group.  I realized that “speaking” to one person must be organized and presented the same as if you were speaking to 100 people. 

Interactive Videos, 15.1

What I liked about Dixie’s speech is that her voice was very smooth and clear, she made great eye contact, her citations were stated at the beginning of each sentence , her thesis and main points were given upfront, and she also did not stand in one place.  Dixie held my attention, and actually had me sold on the concept of home schooling. 

Janine did an excellent job too.  He used the same exact delivery style as Dixie.  What I also liked is he came up with a “compromise” in that "parental involvement” is the goal.  His thesis was clearly stated, and I thought his conclusion was very strong by stating, “Home school is the not answer.”  This was a very direct and confident statement.

Both used the appeals of “ethos” because both speakers were competent, trustworthy, dynamic, and likeable.  Both speakers influenced me, but I’m going to have to go with Janine.

Types of Claims

Hello,

I like the way the book explained the two types of claims:  premises and conclusions.  If you give your audience three premises that make sense to them, then the audience will agree with the conclusion.  This strategy can be helpful in not only speaking, but in a writing assignment.  It can also be used when you are trying to present an idea for a project, etc in the workplace.  I am taking an Argumentation class here at Sierra College this semester, and the claim has been explained as the main idea of the argument.  In other words, the claim is what you want your audience to believe.  I have never heard of the term “enthymeme.”  Obviously from looking at the Coca Cola ad in the book, I recognized the enthymeme and do admit it fits in nicely with the girls in the ad.  Enthymeme’s appear in advertising all of the time, and now I will be able to recognize them.  

Max

Ethical Public Speakers

I really like the idea of ethical public speakers.  I had no idea that ethical speakers must meet the National communication Association’s standards of ethical communication.  In my opinion, speaking ethically should be the only option; however, there is no quality control over public speakers.  Audience members must use their own educated mind and good judgment when listening to a speech.  The fact that the National Communication Association has standard of ethical communication involving two categories of ethical violations is important for the audience.  These categories will help to prevent misleading information to be delivered to the audience, and will enforce the speaker to state the full ramifications of his or her topic.  The book uses an example of DNA as the topic.  Yes, it would be fascinating and tempting to get your DNA; however, as the book states, there are serious drawbacks of DNA testing.  In addition, if I knew the speaker was an ethical public speaker, the credibility of that speaker would be much higher at the beginning of the speech.  In other words, the speaker would have instant credibility with me. 

Sea of Persuasion

I never realized how much persuasion I actually have on a daily basis in my life.  For example, I started my morning off by making some coffee, taking the dog for a short walk, doing homework, trying to save money on my energy bill, and AT & T Uverse trying to persuade me to schedule a “last effort” technical repair service.  I persuaded myself to have three cups of coffee this morning so I could get through the day.  The dog persuaded me into going for a walk first thing this morning.  During the walk, I noticed signs posted persuading dog owners to pick up after their pets.  I persuaded myself to leave the air condition off today so I could save money on my monthly electric bill.  Lastly, I’ve been having problems with AT & T Uverse for the past month, and when I called to cancel, the customer service representative tried to persuade to schedule a “last effort” technical service repair.  Thankfully, I am not the type of consumer that has to have the greatest and latest.  I tune out most advertisers.  I like to pick and choose how I want to spend my money.  I'm not easily persuaded.