My IFP Public Speaking experience

Recently, during one of our sessions we were asked to put ourselves outside our comfort zone and speak in front of a group of 30 people, in an effort to enhance our public speaking skills. I found this particular activity/exercise incredible impactful. Our topic of conversation was “what we are passionate about” this was a question that meant different things to different people. I believe that our passions are very varied and it was very interesting to hear about what the people in my particular group were passionate about.

These topics  varied from speeches about gender equality, to speeches about making speeches itself. Through this exercise I believe we as potential peace makers got a feel of what it will actually be like on the day, we were able to practice and strengthen our confidence in front of groups of people. In this case we were quite lucky because we were asked to speak in front of people we already know however, during the IFP conferences we will not be given that luxury of speaking confidently in front of people we know.

When I first started speaking I was quite nervous and very much looking forward to finishing the task off but, as I spoke more and more I got more and more confident in myself and what I was saying. My voice slowly started to stop shaking. This was the case for a lot of the people who came up to speak, upon starting off they were nervous and unsure of what they were saying but, as time went on they started to find their train of thought and were able to get the message they intended to get across, across. For further improvement of this very challenging yet rewarding activity I hope to have more time to present as I noticed that a minute was too little time for many of us to deliver the message we intended to deliver.

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4 Comments on My IFP Public Speaking experience

  1. Louisa Radford
    October 10, 2017 at 8:44 am (6 years ago)

    Public speaking is extremely nerve wracking, so well done for facing that fear and taking part. It is interesting that you found 1 minute too little because the group I listened too mostly finished before the minute was up. I’d have loved to hear your speeches.

    Reply
  2. krish43283@gapps.uwcsea.edu.sg
    October 10, 2017 at 9:56 am (6 years ago)

    The post was very well connected to the mission and ideologies of IFP, you mentioned the task made you question and explore your passions. This will prove especially beneficial when we are making decisions about which topics to discuss at our conferences later on. Having a definite passion you want to speak about will ensure a much more powerful conference.

    Since you have already begun taking risks, pushing yourself out of your comfort zone and taking risks, as IFP progresses I think you will make monumental growth as a person.

    Because this was an especially challenging task for all students, providing each with support is vital. Once people feel comfortable and accepted their participation level will increase significantly, allowing for more fruitful and engaging discussions.
    -Nandini Krishna

    Reply
  3. rudra14176@gapps.uwcsea.edu.sg
    November 17, 2017 at 12:19 am (6 years ago)

    If we were going to continue this conversation, I’d be interested to know a bit more about your feelings throughout this experience. You very nicely narrated what happened and that helped me understand the situation and I could empathise with you, however if you had explained how hearing other people talk made you feel and furthered the explanation of your own feelings when you were talking, I would have had a better insight into the experience and the learning that you may have undergone.

    Reply
  4. Katie Harper
    May 7, 2018 at 12:52 am (6 years ago)

    Public speaking is really hard – I don’t like it myself either. Do you think it gets easier the more time you do things like this? Do you think it helped that you had a topic you were really passionate about?

    Reply

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