public speaking experience essay example

How to answer "What is your experience with public speaking and presenting?" (with sample answers)

Why Employers Ask This

Employers often ask about public speaking and presenting skills because these are important for a variety of roles. For instance, if you're interviewing for a sales or marketing job, you may be required to give presentations to clients or pitch ideas to a team. Public speaking skills are also important for leadership roles since leaders need to communicate effectively with their teams.

So, employers ask this to assess your communication skills, confidence level, and the ability to articulate your ideas effectively. They want to know if you can represent the company professionally in front of various audiences and handle challenging situations like giving presentations to large groups or addressing stakeholders.

How to Answer the Question

Start by talking about your experience. List any relevant public speaking or presenting experience, including any presentations, speeches, or workshops you've given. Discuss the number of people that were present during the event, who the audience was, and what the purpose of the presentation was.

You can also mention any initiatives you undertook to improve your public speaking and presenting skills, such as attending a public speaking course or analyzing videos of other experienced speakers. This shows that you're proactive and interested in personal development.

It's also important to talk about the outcomes of these experiences. If the presentation resulted in increased sales or enthusiastic feedback, mention it.

Remember to highlight the skills you gained from your public speaking and presenting experience. Employers want to hear about the skills that make you an exceptional candidate. For example, you could say, "I developed strong analytical skills while creating the content for my presentation, and my communication skills were put to the test when I had to present to the C-suite leadership team."

Finally, don't forget to exhibit confidence in your answer, speak clearly and concisely. Employers want to see a candidate who can represent the company professionally and capably in front of various audiences.

Sample answers

Good answer:.

I have a lot of experience with public speaking and presenting. In my last job, I regularly gave presentations to clients and at industry conferences. I was even asked to lead a workshop on presentation skills for new hires in my department. I always prepare thoroughly, practice beforehand, and use visual aids like slides to enhance my presentations. I've also received positive feedback from colleagues and clients on my clear communication skills and engaging delivery.

This answer is good because it gives specific examples of the candidate's experience and skills, and shows that they have a track record of success in public speaking. They also mention concrete strategies they use to prepare and deliver effective presentations.

Bad answer:

Um, I don't really have much experience with public speaking. I mean, I've had to give a few presentations in school, but I don't really like talking in front of people. It makes me pretty nervous.

This answer is bad because it doesn't inspire confidence in the candidate's ability to perform a key aspect of the job. They admit to being nervous and not having much experience, which suggests that they may struggle in this area.

I have experience with public speaking in a variety of contexts. In my previous job, I gave presentations to internal teams and external stakeholders on a regular basis. I also volunteered as a mentor for a local youth organization, where I led workshops on public speaking for teens. In addition, I've taken courses on presentation skills and public speaking to continuously improve my abilities. I'm always looking for chances to build my expertise and confidence in this area.

This answer is good because it demonstrates a diverse range of experience that the candidate has sought out, rather than simply relying on past job requirements. They also express a willingness to keep improving and learning, which is a positive trait in any candidate.

Public speaking? No, I've never really done that before. I prefer to work behind the scenes and let someone else handle that kind of stuff.

This answer is bad because the candidate outright rejects the idea of public speaking and presenting as something they're willing or able to do. It also suggests that they may not be as proactive or engaged in their work as an employer would like to see.

Public Speaking - Free Essay Examples And Topic Ideas

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Essays on Public Speaking

Faq about public speaking.

Public Speaking Experience

Take the time to think about your past speaking experiences. Were you nervous? What helped you get through this experience? Let’s write about it and discuss it. Case Assignment After reading and viewing the assigned material for Module 1, write a well-organized and well-supported essay in which you respond to the following: Share your public speaking experiences over the years—from childhood to the present day. Consider your experiences in front of an audience. This may include presentations, speeches, performance, theater, teaching, etc. Is speaking in public a talent of yours or is it outside of your comfort zone? Consider why you feel the way you do. What do you like or dislike about your voice, your delivery, your mannerisms, and non-verbal communication? Address also your role as an audience and listener. What sort of public speaking, presentations, life performances, etc., do you enjoy or not enjoy? A well-organized essay has a beginning, middle, and an end. The last sentence of the introduction is the thesis statement. The thesis states the main point of the essay. A well-supported essay includes supporting points, details, and examples. Each body paragraph should have a topic sentence that states the main point of the paragraph and guides your reader through the essay. The conclusion typically summarizes the main points of the essay and closes the essay with a lasting impression. Be sure to proofread your essay and edit for proper grammar, punctuation, diction (word choice), and spelling. Papers must be double-spaced in Times or Times New Roman font (12 cpi) with standard one-inch margins. For this module's Case, you may obviously write in the first person "I" as it is based on personal experience, although first person is not normally used in a formal essay. Assignment Expectations Write an informative essay (no less than two pages in length) outlining your background and feelings on public speaking, including a self-reflection on your own public speaking skills. Upload your completed essay to the Case 1 dropbox.

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115 Public Speaking Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

Public speaking is a crucial skill that can greatly benefit individuals in various aspects of their lives. Whether it is delivering a presentation at work, giving a speech at a special event, or participating in a debate, being able to effectively communicate with an audience is essential. However, coming up with a topic for your speech can often be a daunting task. To help you out, here are 115 public speaking essay topic ideas and examples to inspire you:

• The importance of effective communication in the workplace
• How to overcome the fear of public speaking
• The power of storytelling in public speaking
• The impact of body language on communication
• How to deliver a compelling presentation
• The art of persuasion in public speaking
• The role of humor in communication
• The benefits of practicing public speaking
• The influence of technology on public speaking
• The art of impromptu speaking
• How to engage and connect with your audience
• The ethics of public speaking
• The role of public speaking in leadership
• The art of delivering a TED talk
• The importance of audience analysis in public speaking
• The impact of language and culture on communication
• The power of silence in public speaking
• The role of visual aids in presentations
• The influence of emotions on communication
• The art of public speaking in a virtual world
• The benefits of joining a public speaking club
• The impact of social media on public speaking
• The role of feedback in improving your speaking skills
• The art of delivering a eulogy
• The importance of authenticity in public speaking
• The influence of gender on communication
• The impact of public speaking on personal development
• The role of improvisation in public speaking
• The benefits of using storytelling techniques in speeches
• The art of delivering a commencement address
• The importance of practicing vocal variety in public speaking
• The influence of nonverbal cues on communication
• The impact of public speaking on career advancement
• The role of listening in effective communication
• The benefits of using humor in speeches
• The art of delivering a persuasive speech
• The importance of clarity in communication
• The influence of power dynamics on public speaking
• The impact of fear on public speaking
• The role of empathy in effective communication
• The benefits of using rhetorical devices in speeches
• The art of delivering a motivational speech
• The importance of adapting your message to different audiences
• The influence of technology on public speaking anxiety
• The impact of cultural differences on communication
• The role of storytelling in building rapport with your audience
• The benefits of using visual aids in presentations
• The art of delivering a powerful closing statement
• The importance of practicing active listening in communication
• The influence of body language on public speaking effectiveness
• The impact of public speaking on social change

In conclusion, public speaking is a skill that can be developed and improved with practice and dedication. Use the above 115 public speaking essay topic ideas and examples to inspire your next speech and engage your audience effectively. Remember to tailor your message to your audience, practice active listening, use visual aids, and incorporate storytelling techniques to make your speech memorable and impactful. With the right preparation and mindset, you can become a confident and persuasive speaker in no time.

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Public Speaking - Free Essay Examples and Topic Ideas

You walk onto the stage, your trembling hand holding a microphone. As you take a breath and begin to speak, you accidentally drop the microphone and it makes a horrible noise. With a red face, you leave the room, ashamed. This, and many other terrifying scenarios like it, is what plays through the heads of many people almost every time they have to speak publicly.

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• The Main Causes of Public Speaking Fear

Public speaking is not a terrible thing to do. It can build social skills, help us build connections, and influence change, but for some strange reason, whenever I speak publicly, it feels like the sky is falling. This may be because of the embarrassment I fear, my social anxiety, and the stress of competition I feel.

The problem with me is that I fear embarrassment. I am more scared of being judged and embarrassed then speaking in public. Whenever I mess up, be it during competition or when I’m presenting a project to the class, I fear that the mistake I made is what I will be remembered for, which means that I do my best to avoid public speaking. For me, is just as difficult to speak in front of a group of three as it is an entire auditorium.

I do have social anxiety, which makes me feel like everybody is watching and judging my every move. It makes it hard to speak publicly for anything on account of the fact that when I do try to speak publicly, it is for competition and I am being judged. However, if I get negatively evaluated, it does make my anxiety drift away for a short period of time, because I realize that it is getting in the way of our team winning whatever competition we are in. I am also more nervous in front of a group of my classmates or teachers than I am a debate coach from Powhatan. I know that the chances of me ever seeing that coach again would be slim, and that having them remember me would have an even slimmer chance, although this does not mean my anxiety will completely abandon me.

Even when I have a lot of time to prepare for speaking, I will still be anxious. In fact, I would be just as nervous, if not more so, if I have a week to prepare instead of an hour. Having only a short amount of time to prepare puts you on the spot, and it makes you want to do your best so that whatever you are doing will be impressive. For example, when I am debating, we first have to recite our speeches. I generally talk too fast, and am either too loud or too quiet, and I will stumble over a few words. However, when both teams finish reading their speeches, there will be a rebuttal, which we have about two minutes to prepare. I tend to do better on the rebuttals because I don’t have the time to stress over getting every little thing right.

For these reasons, I truly dislike public speaking, although it does give more experiences to things I will most likely have to do in the future, and it helps me get over my anxiety, even if it is just a bit. Public speaking will almost always be an enemy of mine, but I hope someday, we can be friends.

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Public Speaking Essay | Importance of Public Speaking Skills, How To Improve Public Speaking?

December 24, 2021 by Prasanna

Public Speaking Essay: Public speaking is an important part of today’s life. If a person can master the art of public speaking then there is a lot of chance for him or her to make a successful career in life. In whichever field you look at today, public speaking is very important to establish your identity and brand image. We need to know what public speaking is and why we need to master it. Public speaking refers to delivering some important topic in front of a group audience. This group could be small or at times big. But the main objective of public speaking is to catch the attention of the audience and convince them of the idea that the speaker wants to convey. This task is not very easy.

One may think that public speaking is easy as he has the knowledge on a particular subject but there are a lot of intricate things one needs to take care of. Some common mistakes are very often committed by people while delivering a topic on public speaking. All knowledgeable persons can’t become good public speakers. So the first step to public speaking is to go through the process systematically and master the skill. Public speaking is an art so it needs to be learned both in theory and practice. It is a test of an individual’s knowledge and expertise in certain fields. It also helps to develop an individual’s communication skills and confidence. This is a very basic thing and one needs to practice a lot to improve the oratorical skills.

You can also find more  Essay Writing  articles on events, persons, sports, technology and many more.

Long Essay on Public Speaking

Public Speaking Skills

A good public speaker must have the required skills to create a substantial impact on the audience by communicating his points clearly and by building a connection with the audience. The key to success in public speaking depends on the expressions and body language of the speaker which helps to keep him connected to the audience while speaking. To be a successful public speaker one needs to work on the content as well. The content has to be different from boring lectures overflowing with data and facts but should be made interesting to draw the attention of the audience. This can be done by adding some inspiring and motivational stories, quotes, and real-life examples within the speech.

Another important aspect is to create an environment for effective interaction between the speaker and the audience. It is a special skill of a good public speaker to keep the audience involved all the time so that their mind can never get diverted. The effectiveness of public speaking depends primarily on the speaking skills that keep the audience engaged and engrossed in the topic being discussed. These speaking skills involve some modulation and variations in voice, expression, and delivery. The purpose is to draw the attention of an audience and get you noticed in front of a large gathering.

The Trend in Public Speaking

In the current scenario, public speaking has become a successful career in terms of earning opportunities. People want to hear from certain eminent personalities about their experience and their journey towards success. It is also a professional approach adopted by many coaches and guides to building a brand of their own by appearing as public speakers in a gathering of selected people. It has become a part of organizational culture to conduct sessions for working professionals where an expert public speaker is invited to provide insights into some topics of relevance in a motivational and interesting manner.

One aspect is to provide the audience with some updated knowledge but the main motive is to make the people present in the session more charged and motivated in work with some increased energy. The success of a public speaker depends on how well he can influence the thought process, views, ideas, and corresponding actions of the people after attending the session.

Short Essay on Public Speaking

Opportunities in Public Speaking

There are plenty of situations where good public speaking skills are required, be it in a social or organizational setup. You might be asked to make a speech at an award function or in a cultural event or talk to a group of volunteers or recruits. In the virtual platform, speaking to an audience also includes online presentations or discussions, consulting a team, or speaking to a group of customers in an online meeting. Showing good public speaking skills helps to open up new career opportunities and build your identity in social circles as well.

Strategies for Public Speaking

To become a better public speaker, one has to use the following strategies:

Plan appropriately: Work on the content that can resonate with your audience. As a good speaker, you need to intrigue your audience from the very beginning. It is better to start with an interesting fact, headline, or story in the context of what you’re going to talk about.

Engage with the audience: It is necessary as a speaker to keep everyone involved with your speech so that you don’t feel isolated from the audience. It is very effective to interact and ask questions and encourage people to participate and give feedback.

Pay attention to body language: The gestures and body language of a speaker generates positive vibes to the audience constantly. The confidence and belief can be communicated to the audience through your body language and voice. Instead of standing, walk around and present yourself as more active and passionate.

Think positively: A positive approach with confidence brings effective results in public speaking. The primary focus should be that you’re trying to help a group of people in some way, so convey your message in a more meaningful way.

The essence of public speaking lies in the way you create awareness and educate others to bring some tangible results. As a public speaker, you must ensure your communication is always natural, confident, and authentic.

FAQ’s on Public Speaking Essay

Question 1. How are the main types of public speaking?

Answer: There are mainly three types of speeches public speakers use to influence their audience. The informative speech conveys information, the persuasive speech motivates people to take action and the special occasion speech is given to commemorate a person or event.

Question 2. How one must practice the habit of public speaking to gain confidence?

Answer: One of the best ways to practice public speaking is to be involved in situations that require public speaking, such as volunteering to speak at team meetings and events.

Question 3. How do voice modulation and pace of speech help in building engagement with the audience?

Answer: A vocal variation in volume, pause and pacing can help to break the monotony of speech and create better engagement with the audience.

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Home — Essay Samples — Education — Class Reflection — What I Learned on Public Speaking Class: a Reflection

What I Learned on Public Speaking Class: a Reflection

• Categories: Class Reflection Communication Skills Speak

About this sample

Words: 861 |

Published: Mar 18, 2021

Words: 861 | Pages: 2 | 5 min read

Works Cited

• DeVito, J. A. (2020). The essentials of public speaking (6th ed.). Pearson.
• Hamilton, C. (2014). TED Talks: The official TED guide to public speaking. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
• Lucas, S. E. (2014). The art of public speaking (12th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
• O'Hair, D., Stewart, R., & Rubenstein, H. (2019). A pocket guide to public speaking (6th ed.). Bedford/St. Martin's.
• Pearson, J. C., & Nelson, P. E. (2000). An introduction to human communication : Understanding and sharing (5th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
• Petersen, C., & Gallagher, K. (2017). Public speaking: Strategies for success (9th ed.). Cengage Learning.
• Pride, W. M., Hughes, R. J., & Kapoor, J. R. (2020). Business communication (9th ed.). Cengage Learning.
• Quintanilla, K., & Wahl, S. (2016). Business and professional communication: KEYS for workplace excellence (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
• Verderber, R. F., Verderber, K. S., & Sellnow, D. D. (2020). Communicate! (16th ed.). Cengage Learning.
• Zarefsky, D. (2017). Public speaking: Strategies for success (9th ed.). Cengage Learning.

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Why This Common App Essay Worked: Prompt #2 “The Lessons We Take…”

Working on your Common App essay and thinking about this prompt? Then read on to learn how to answer this in a compelling essay and read two examples of essays that worked!

The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

Everyone has faced obstacles of some kind: a struggle with health, a failed personal project, or a financial hardship. This prompt is relevant to most people applying to college – which isn’t a bad thing. 

The most important part of writing a personal statement is to show admissions committees how you think about the world and respond to challenges rather than to come up with an entirely new angle or topic. That being said, you probably should not write about a time that you received a bad grade or lost a sports game. Those narratives are overdone and won’t allow admissions officers to get insight into your unique perspective.

What colleges want to see is your ability to be mature, resilient, and thoughtful; they want evidence that you are able to handle the independence and challenges of college. Show the admissions committee how you faced an obstacle, but responded with a creative and dignified solution instead of giving up. Be vulnerable – show your insecurity, regret, and fears. Finally, as indicated in the prompt, describe what you learned and the experience’s permanent significance. If you can’t think of such an impact, you probably shouldn’t be writing your personal statement about the situation. Remember, your personal statement is like your introduction – make sure you’re telling them an important story! 

The linearity of this prompt allows you to follow a pretty straightforward outline for your essay: context, obstacle, reaction, result. Putting these parts together, you’ll have a well constructed personal essay! We outlined the basic questions that should be answered in response to this prompt by component (context, obstacle, reaction, and result), but these are fluid and may be placed in whatever section makes the most sense for your narrative. 

Below, CollegeVine breaks down a finalized version of a real essay that we worked on with a student who addressed this prompt. 

Make Sure to Establish Enough Context

Outline the situation leading up to the event.  Make sure you hit the basics: who, what, where, why? It is also important to note whatever your pre-state was.

For example, the author of the sample essay overcame his fear of public speaking to pay tribute to a beloved coach. This triumph would have been much less meaningful had he not outlined his fear earlier in the essay. You need to give the admissions committee enough detail to understand how you evolved.

“Getting beat is one thing – it’s part of competing – but I want no part in losing.” Coach Rob Stark’s motto never fails to remind me of his encouragement on early-morning bus rides to track meets around the state. I’ve always appreciated the phrase, but an experience last June helped me understand its more profound, universal meaning.

Stark, as we affectionately call him, has coached track at my high school for 25 years. His care, dedication, and emphasis on developing good character has left an enduring impact on me and hundreds of other students. Not only did he help me discover my talent and love for running, but he also taught me the importance of commitment and discipline and to approach every endeavor with the passion and intensity that I bring to running. When I learned a neighboring high school had dedicated their track to a longtime coach, I felt that Stark deserved similar honors.

Here, the author describes why he was so fond of his coach as well as his desire to dedicate the school track to Stark. He hits the who (Coach Stark), what (desire to dedicate the track in Stark’s honor), where (high school), and why (the important lessons that Stark has imparted). 

The author also hints at his future personal development – “to approach every endeavor with the passion and intensity that I bring to running.” He also implies that he will fail to meet his original goal in the opening quote, “ getting beat is one thing – it’s part of competing – but I want no part in losing.” Hinting at the lesson you will eventually learn is an effective strategy. It allows to admissions committees to read your personal statement with the final lesson in mind, making the essay simpler to follow and priming the reader so that your conclusion is easy to understand.

The author comes across as caring by wishing to dedicate the track to his coach, thoughtful in the way he is aware of the impact that Stark has had on him, and driven in his ability to identify and pursue a selfless project. These qualities will appeal to a college admissions committee which wishes to build an intellectual and kind community on campus.

Clearly Define the Obstacle

Who or what got in your way? To what extent were you responsible for the obstacle?

Our school district’s board of education indicated they would only dedicate our track to Stark if I could demonstrate that he was extraordinary. I took charge and mobilized my teammates to distribute petitions, reach out to alumni, and compile statistics on the many team and individual champions Stark had coached over the years. We received astounding support, collecting almost 3,000 signatures and pages of endorsements from across the community. With help from my teammates, I presented this evidence to the board.

They didn’t bite.

Here, the author makes it clear that he came up with a plan in which he felt confident. The author does a good job of showing, rather than telling, the ways in which he addressed the issue at hand. Instead of saying he put together a plan, the author lists individual efforts that he took, which allows the reader a fuller understanding of the lengths to which he went. This is crucial as it gives the admissions committee better insight into the way in which the author approaches lofty goals; he uses many approaches (petitions, alumni testimonies, and statistics) to support his argument. 

The short and separated sentence – “ They didn’t bite.” – comes as a contrast to the long list of preparations that the author had organized. It implies that the board was both curt and absolute in their rejection of his plan. Here, we learn of the real obstacle – and lesson – that the essay focuses on: the importance of not giving up. The message of the opening line of the essay – “G etting beat is one thing – it’s part of competing – but I want no part in losing,” – is relevant here. The author experienced initial failure, but isn’t passively accepting a loss just yet. In the next paragraph, the author describes how he tried to persuade the school board a second time. 

Go In-depth About Your Reaction

This is the most important part. Colleges want to know how you think about things or handle stressful situations!

Did you make a plan? Collaborate with teammates? Have an open conversation with your parents? How did you work around the challenge? It is important to also describe your emotional response; were you hurt, invigorated, sad, angry, surprised? In what ways did you handle this emotion? Was your response mature? What was your first (emotional) response? How did your thoughts or feelings change over time? Finally, what plan did you make?

Most members argued that dedicating the track was a low priority. Knowing that we had to act quickly to convince them of its importance, I called a team meeting where we drafted a rebuttal for the next board meeting. To my surprise, they chose me to deliver it. I was far from the best public speaker in the group, and I felt nervous about going before the unsympathetic board again. However, at that second meeting, I discovered that I enjoy articulating and arguing for something that I’m passionate about.

Public speaking resembles a cross country race. Walking to the starting line, you have to trust your training and quell your last minute doubts. When the gun fires, you can’t think too hard about anything; your performance has to be instinctual, natural, even relaxed. At the next board meeting, the podium was my starting line. As I walked up to it, familiar butterflies fluttered in my stomach. Instead of the track stretching out in front of me, I faced the vast audience of teachers, board members, and my teammates. I felt my adrenaline build, and reassured myself: I’ve put in the work, my argument is powerful and sound. As the board president told me to introduce myself, I heard, “runners set” in the back of my mind. She finished speaking, and Bang! The brief silence was the gunshot for me to begin.  

In this section, the author shows the admissions committee how resilient he is by organizing a rebuttal to the board’s initial ruling. The detail about being selected by his team to present is also crucial; it shows that he has been identified by his peers as a leader. 

Moreover, his hesitation to present (his pre-state) is essential to the later connection he makes between running and speaking publicly with ease. He handles a negative emotion (nervousness) with ease and maturity, reframing it as an opportunity to be a powerful speaker and sound orator. Crucially, the author doesn’t just tell us that he’s nervous, but brings us into the physical and psychological experience.

This detailed description allows the reader to empathize with the author; we have all experienced nervousness and know how difficult it can be to overcome, and the author allows the reader to mentally enter an anxious state. Putting the reader into your emotional experience (here, being anxious) makes whatever reaction you have (here, speaking well in front of a group of people) seem more impressive. Instead of simply telling us that he spoke in front of the board, the author brings us into the room with him to highlight his accomplishments!

The author also makes a connection to overcoming his fear of public speaking to performing well under pressure at track meets. In this way, the author is able to connect all of the valuable life skills that track taught him without doing so in a cliche or contrived fashion. This connection is creative and ties the narrative back in with the essay’s broader themes. It shows the admissions committee that the author is capable of understanding how and why he behaves the way he does, which is a sign of maturity. Colleges are more interested in how you think about the things you do than they are interested in the things you do. 

Colleges want to see that you have an optimistic and opportunistic approach to obstacles. People generally like people who are positive, which the author certainly comes across as here. Instead of being shut down by a challenge, show admissions committees how you used it to fuel your fire!

Discuss the End Result

Talk about to what degree your efforts were successful. Even if you didn’t meet your original goal, what did you learn? Importantly, how are you applying these lessons now?

The next few minutes blurred together, but when the dust settled, I knew from the board members’ expressions and the audience’s thunderous approval that I had run quite a race. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough; the board voted down our proposal. I was disappointed, but proud of myself, my team, and our collaboration off the track. We stood up for a cause we believed in, and I overcame my worries about being a leader. Although I discovered that changing the status quo through an elected body can be a painstakingly difficult process and requires perseverance, I learned that I enjoy the challenges this effort offers. Last month, one of the school board members joked that I had become a “regular” – I now often show up to meetings to advocate for a variety of causes, including better environmental practices in cafeterias and safer equipment for athletes.

Just as Stark taught me, I worked passionately to achieve my goal. I may have been beaten when I appealed to the board, but I certainly didn’t lose, and that would have made Stark proud.

Despite being disappointed in his failure to meet his original goal, the author responds positively: proud of his and his teammates’ hard work. 

The author also addresses his post-state by answering the last question of the prompt (how the obstacle affected you and what you learned from the experience). In this example, the author’s post-state is uncovering a passion for advocacy and evolving into a more confident leader. He outlines specifically the way in which he learned to stand up for the causes he believes in and overcame his fears of public speaking and leadership. 

Importantly, the author’s resiliency is embodied by not being dissuaded by his first unsuccessful attempt to make a change. He shows that he is applying the lessons he learned “to advocate for a variety of causes, including better environmental practices in cafeterias and safer equipment.” This hint at his other interests, environmental and safety policies, encourages the admissions committee to learn more. Ideally, the author’s mention of these interests should be backed up in his activity list – perhaps, for example, through involvement with his school’s Sustainability Club or recent recycling initiative. 

Finally, the author pays respect to the man who first inspired him. Importantly, this essay allows the author to explore all that he learned by being an athlete without writing a cliche essay on the topic. 

Want More Insight?

The original version of this essay along with our edits and higher-level notes can be found in a download here. We’ve also thrown in a second sample essay to help you see more of the same patterns and strategies discussed above in action. For insight on the other prompts, be sure to check out our other Common App posts . 

Want help with your college essays to improve your admissions chances? Sign up for your free CollegeVine account and get access to our essay guides and courses. You can also get your essay peer-reviewed and improve your own writing skills by reviewing other students’ essays.

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Ready, Set, Speak

By  Aisha Langford

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Public speaking is a critical, but often underdeveloped, skill among higher education professionals. Your ability to convey ideas with confidence and clarity is essential for articulating the importance of your research, getting buy-in for your projects and obtaining funding from sponsors.

Many people are afraid of public speaking. They think that effective public speakers are “naturals” who were born with strong oratory skills. Luckily, it is practice and not genetics that will make you a better public speaker. With practice and a few tips, you can improve your skills in a relatively short amount of time. This article will discuss five tips to becoming a better public speaker.

WAIT Method

WAIT stands for Why Am I Talking ? Before you jump right into making Powerpoint slides or writing a speech, take some time to think about why you’re speaking and what you want the audience to remember. That is, begin with the end in mind (habit number two from Stephen Covey’s book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People ). For example, pick three things you want people to take away from your presentation and then work backward. A clear understanding of your end goal will keep your thoughts cohesive as you prepare. More details can be found on Loren Ekroth’s webpage .

10/20/30 Rule

Introduced by the entrepreneur, author and speaker Guy Kawasaki, the general idea behind the 10/20/30 rule is that your Powerpoint presentations for most talks should:

• Have only 10 slides
• Last no more than 20 minutes
• Use 30 point font or greater so the audience can actually read your slides.

Keep in mind that these guidelines were created with the business community in mind and may not always apply to academic situations (e.g., dissertation defenses). However, it’s worth noting that our attention spans are short. There’s nothing worse than listening to a talk that goes on and on, or seeing slides that you can’t read.

Content Over Medium

The content of your presentation is far more important than fancy slides without substance. Powerpoint is a wonderful tool; however, it isn’t a requirement for effective presentations. Let’s repeat. Powerpoint isn’t a requirement for effective presentations.

Sometimes speaking without Powerpoint slides is even more effective and engaging. This may be especially true if you’re sharing aspects about your life (e.g., how you landed in higher education) or giving a motivational speech.

Unfortunately, Powerpoint is often used as a script instead of the visual aid tool it was designed to be. Using the analogy of a music concert, you are the lead singer and Powerpoint is your backup singers -- there to support you, but not the main focus. You are the show.

If you choose to use Powerpoint slides, avoid common Powerpoint mistakes like reading every slide and presenting crowded tables. Your audience will thank you.

Control the Controllables

The marketing and management consultant Somers White once said, “90 percent of how well the talk will go is determined before the speaker steps on the platform.” Reduce your public speaking anxiety by following these steps:

• Organize your thoughts. This blueprint for a presentation by Eleni Kelakos is a good guide.
• Decide which format is best (Powerpoint, no slides and/or paper handouts).
• Practice by yourself and refine.
• Practice in front of others and refine.
• Time yourself. Staying within allotted time limits is crucial.
• Decide what you’re going to wear. Be comfortable, but look professional.

If possible, practice in the room where you’ll be speaking. Test the equipment to make sure it works. If using your own laptop, remember to bring your charger and adapters. This is especially true for Mac users. Also ask about:

• Wireless clickers
• Laser pointers
• Internet connections
• Sound system
• Microphones

Speaking of microphones, please use one if you’ll be in a large room. As we present, our voices get tired. Tiredness makes it hard to project our voices to the back of the room. If people can’t hear you, then you’ve missed an important opportunity and wasted everyone’s time, including yours. Lastly, if you have interactive exercises or surveys that require writing, be sure to bring pens.

Body Language and Other Distractions

A few years ago, I attended a job talk. The candidate -- we'll call him John -- had great training and an interesting program of research. Unfortunately, all I remember about John’s talk is that he spoke too fast, fidgeted a lot and rambled during the Q and A. He didn’t seem prepared, and he didn’t get the job. The selected candidate was probably a better fit overall for the department. However, I still wonder if John’s poor public speaking skills were a factor in the final decision.

Keep these things in mind when you’re giving presentations:

• Make good eye contact and scan the room. Force yourself to look to the left, center and right portions of the room.
• Eliminate filler words like um and ah . Take a pause instead.
• Reduce excessive hand movements, including taking your hands in and out of pockets.
• Try not to sway or rock in place.

Finally, it’s okay to move around the stage and interact with the audience. If you do so, use a wireless microphone so the audience can hear you.

For more information on public speaking, check out Toastmasters International , a nonprofit organization focused on public speaking and leadership development. If you own a smartphone, this article, Fearless Public Speaking: 6 Apps to Help You Prepare for Presentations (pages 46 and 47), may also be helpful.

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The Art of Public Speaking Essay

• To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
• As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
• As a template for you assignment

Introduction

The main purpose of communication is to involve the listener in the discussion and make him/her perceive the message of the speech. Therefore, the art of public speaking is necessary to master in case a person wants to succeed in the process of communication. However, becoming an acknowledged speaker is one of the most daunting tasks, as it involves all the fears and frustrations, which are obligatory to overcome. Arising from the above, such components as the speaker, the audience, and the speaking situation are the pillars of effective public speaking and the inherent part of an effective communication.

The interrelation between the speaker and the audience constitutes the basis of the success. Therefore, these relations are rather complex but still both participants have the same goal – to perceive the message and its purpose. Before accomplishing this task, the speaker should prepare his main weapon, namely the speech itself aimed at meeting the audience’s motivations. To do that, it is vital to have a good image of the audience classification in terms of goals, intentions, cultural preferences, and gender. Hence, the demographical analysis of the audience allows the narrator to adjust to the environment by fitting the words, which are mostly euphemisms, to the speaking situation. To identify the approaches in the speech delivery, it is obligatory to consider the psychological profile of the audience, including beliefs, values, and behaviors. This subtle connection between the audience and the speaker is hardly perceived in case it is a TV program where the listeners are TV viewers. Hence, when viewing two different videos on scuba diving and snorkeling, it is possible to identify the main goal of speaking, its target audience, and the success of the message delivery.

In the first video called Scuba Diving for Beginners: How to Use Scuba BCD, the narrator instructs the audience about the work and the destination of buoyancy compensator devices or BCDs. The speaker manages to attract the attention of the viewers by introducing part of the speech, as he is aware of the main goal of the message. However, the speech has been delivered ineffectively, as the narrator’s intonation is even and boring despite his explanation being simple and easily accepted. The main advantage of this video speech lies in granting visual aids and examples for the viewers. Still, his speaking lacks spontaneous questions and catching phrases that could engage the audience into further instructing.

The second video called Scuba Diving and Snorkeling: How to Put on a Wet Suit effectively discloses the purpose of the narration supported by concrete examples. The narrator manages to engage the audience with a prepared speech, the structure of which fully covers the importance of the message. The speaker successfully chooses the approach of narration combined with action that greatly contributes to a better perception of the main message. Judging on the gestures and language, she also succeeds in visualizing her target viewers. From the process of speaking, it is easy to see that the narration has good presentation skills and an excellent command of the topic.

In both cases, it is very hard to reunite the Rhetoric Triangle of the speaker, the audience, and the speaking situation, as it is a video speech. However, it is still possible to foresee the intended audience and the speaking situation without discussions and questionnaires. It should be also stressed that the narrators have succeeded in presenting the situation on the part of their personal experience. They also have managed to use the main message of a means of connecting these basic components as a logically connected entity, which is especially difficult to do when the speaker does not have direct contact with the audience.

Scuba Diving for Beginners: How to Use Scuba BCD (2008). Web.

Scuba Diving and Snorkeling: How to Put on a Wet Suit (2009). Web.

• Participatory Politics for a New Age
• Ethics and Persuasion of Humor: In Context to the Social Functions of Humor in the Society
• On Dumpster Diving by Lars Eighner
• The "Diving Bell and the Butterfly" Book by Bauby
• Diving Into the Secrets of the Korean Music
• Aristotle’s Influence on History of Rhetoric: Treatise Rhetoric and the Concept of the Rhetorical Triangle
• Integrity in “The Rules About the Rules” by Carter
• Rhetoric in “The Land Before Time” by M. T. Kelly
• Rhetorical Persuasion – Appeals to Logos, Pathos and Ethos
• Classical and Rogerian Persuasion in Speech
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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IvyPanda . 2021. "The Art of Public Speaking." December 10, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-art-of-public-speaking/.

1. IvyPanda . "The Art of Public Speaking." December 10, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-art-of-public-speaking/.

Bibliography

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1.2 The Process of Public Speaking

Learning objectives.

• Identify the three components of getting your message across to others.
• Distinguish between the interactional models of communication and the transactional model of communication.
• Explain the three principles discussed in the dialogical theory of public speaking.

Looking4poetry – megaphone head man – CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

As noted earlier, all of us encounter thousands of messages in our everyday environments, so getting your idea heard above all the other ones is a constant battle. Some speakers will try gimmicks, but we strongly believe that getting your message heard depends on three fundamental components: message, skill, and passion. The first part of getting your message across is the message itself. When what you are saying is clear and coherent, people are more likely to pay attention to it. On the other hand, when a message is ambiguous, people will often stop paying attention. Our discussions in the first part of this book involve how to have clear and coherent content.

The second part of getting your message heard is having effective communication skills. You may have the best ideas in the world, but if you do not possess basic public speaking skills, you’re going to have a problem getting anyone to listen. In this book, we will address the skills you must possess to effectively communicate your ideas to others.

Lastly, if you want your message to be heard, you must communicate passion for your message. One mistake that novice public speakers make is picking topics in which they have no emotional investment. If an audience can tell that you don’t really care about your topic, they will just tune you out. Passion is the extra spark that draws people’s attention and makes them want to listen to your message.

In this section, we’re going to examine the process of public speaking by first introducing you to a basic model of public speaking and then discussing how public speaking functions as dialogue. These models will give you a basic understanding of the communication process and some challenges that you may face as a speaker.

Models of Public Speaking

A basic model of human communication is one of the first topics that most communication teachers start with in any class. For our focus on public speaking, we will introduce two widely discussed models in communication: interactional and transactional.

Interactional Model of Public Speaking

Linear model.

The interactional model of public speaking comes from the work of Claude Shannon and Warren Weaver (Shannon & Weaver, 1949). The original model mirrored how radio and telephone technologies functioned and consisted of three primary parts: source, channel, and receiver. The source was the part of a telephone a person spoke into, the channel was the telephone itself, and the receiver was the part of the phone where one could hear the other person. Shannon and Weaver also recognized that often there is static that interferes with listening to a telephone conversation, which they called noise.

Although there are a number of problems with applying this model to human communication, it does have some useful parallels to public speaking. In public speaking, the source is the person who is giving the speech, the channel is the speaker’s use of verbal and nonverbal communication , and the receivers are the audience members listening to the speech. As with a telephone call, a wide range of distractions ( noise ) can inhibit an audience member from accurately attending to a speaker’s speech. Avoiding or adapting to these types of noise is an important challenge for public speakers.

Interactional Model

The interactional model of communication developed by Wilbur Schramm builds upon the linear model (Schramm, 1954). Schramm added three major components to the Shannon and Weaver model. First, Schramm identified two basic processes of communication: encoding and decoding. Encoding is what a source does when “creating a message, adapting it to the receiver, and transmitting it across some source-selected channel” (Wrench, McCroskey & Richmond, 2008). When you are at home preparing your speech or standing in front of your classroom talking to your peers, you are participating in the encoding process.

The second major process is the decoding process, or “sensing (for example, hearing or seeing) a source’s message, interpreting the source’s message, evaluating the source’s message, and responding to the source’s message” (Wrench, McCroskey & Richmond, 2008). Decoding is relevant in the public speaking context when, as an audience member, you listen to the words of the speech, pay attention to nonverbal behaviors of the speaker, and attend to any presentation aids that the speaker uses. You must then interpret what the speaker is saying.

Although interpreting a speaker’s message may sound easy in theory, in practice many problems can arise. A speaker’s verbal message, nonverbal communication, and mediated presentation aids can all make a message either clearer or harder to understand. For example, unfamiliar vocabulary, speaking too fast or too softly, or small print on presentation aids may make it difficult for you to figure out what the speaker means. Conversely, by providing definitions of complex terms, using well-timed gestures, or displaying graphs of quantitative information, the speaker can help you interpret his or her meaning.

Once you have interpreted what the speaker is communicating, you then evaluate the message. Was it good? Do you agree or disagree with the speaker? Is a speaker’s argument logical? These are all questions that you may ask yourself when evaluating a speech.

The last part of decoding is “responding to a source’s message,” when the receiver encodes a message to send to the source. When a receiver sends a message back to a source, we call this process feedback . Schramm talks about three types of feedback: direct, moderately direct, and indirect (Schramm, 1954). The first type, direct feedback, occurs when the receiver directly talks to the source. For example, if a speech ends with a question-and-answer period, listeners will openly agree or disagree with the speaker. The second type of feedback, moderately direct, focuses on nonverbal messages sent while a source is speaking, such as audience members smiling and nodding their heads in agreement or looking at their watches or surreptitiously sending text messages during the speech. The final type of feedback, indirect, often involves a greater time gap between the actual message and the receiver’s feedback. For example, suppose you run for student body president and give speeches to a variety of groups all over campus, only to lose on student election day. Your audiences (the different groups you spoke to) have offered you indirect feedback on your message through their votes. One of the challenges you’ll face as a public speaker is how to respond effectively to audience feedback, particularly the direct and moderately direct forms of feedback you receive during your presentation.

Transactional Model of Public Speaking

One of the biggest concerns that some people have with the interactional model of communication is that it tends to place people into the category of either source or receiver with no overlap. Even with Schramm’s model, encoding and decoding are perceived as distinct for sources and receivers. Furthermore, the interactional model cannot handle situations where multiple sources are interacting at the same time (Mortenson, 1972). To address these weaknesses, Dean Barnlund proposed a transactional model of communication (Barnlund, 2008). The basic premise of the transactional model is that individuals are sending and receiving messages at the same time. Whereas the interactional model has individuals engaging in the role of either source or receiver and the meaning of a message is sent from the source to the receiver, the transactional model assumes that meaning is cocreated by both people interacting together.

The idea that meanings are cocreated between people is based on a concept called the “field of experience.” According to West and Turner, a field of experience involves “how a person’s culture, experiences, and heredity influence his or her ability to communicate with another” (West & Turner, 2010). Our education, race, gender, ethnicity, religion, personality, beliefs, actions, attitudes, languages, social status, past experiences, and customs are all aspects of our field of experience, which we bring to every interaction. For meaning to occur, we must have some shared experiences with our audience; this makes it challenging to speak effectively to audiences with very different experiences from our own. Our goal as public speakers is to build upon shared fields of experience so that we can help audience members interpret our message.

Dialogic Theory of Public Speaking

Most people think of public speaking as engaging in a monologue where the speaker stands and delivers information and the audience passively listens. Based on the work of numerous philosophers, however, Ronald Arnett and Pat Arneson proposed that all communication, even public speaking, could be viewed as a dialogue (Arnett & Arneson, 1999). The dialogic theory is based on three overarching principles:

• Dialogue is more natural than monologue.
• Meanings are in people not words.
• Contexts and social situations impact perceived meanings (Bakhtin, 2001a; Bakhtin, 2001b).

Let’s look at each of these in turn.

Dialogue vs. Monologue

The first tenet of the dialogic perspective is that communication should be a dialogue and not a monologue. Lev Yakubinsky argued that even public speaking situations often turn into dialogues when audience members actively engage speakers by asking questions. He even claimed that nonverbal behavior (e.g., nodding one’s head in agreement or scowling) functions as feedback for speakers and contributes to a dialogue (Yakubinsky, 1997). Overall, if you approach your public speaking experience as a dialogue, you’ll be more actively engaged as a speaker and more attentive to how your audience is responding, which will, in turn, lead to more actively engaged audience members.

Meanings Are in People, Not Words

Part of the dialogic process in public speaking is realizing that you and your audience may differ in how you see your speech. Hellmut Geissner and Edith Slembeck (1986) discussed Geissner’s idea of responsibility, or the notion that the meanings of words must be mutually agreed upon by people interacting with each other (Geissner & Slembek, 1986). If you say the word “dog” and think of a soft, furry pet and your audience member thinks of the animal that attacked him as a child, the two of you perceive the word from very different vantage points. As speakers, we must do our best to craft messages that take our audience into account and use audience feedback to determine whether the meaning we intend is the one that is received. To be successful at conveying our desired meaning, we must know quite a bit about our audience so we can make language choices that will be the most appropriate for the context. Although we cannot predict how all our audience members will interpret specific words, we do know that—for example—using teenage slang when speaking to the audience at a senior center would most likely hurt our ability to convey our meaning clearly.

Contexts and Social Situations

Russian scholar Mikhail Bahktin notes that human interactions take place according to cultural norms and rules (Bakhtin, 2001a; Bakhtin, 2001b). How we approach people, the words we choose, and how we deliver speeches are all dependent on different speaking contexts and social situations. On September 8, 2009, President Barack Obama addressed school children with a televised speech ( http://www.whitehouse.gov/mediaresources/PreparedSchoolRemarks ). If you look at the speech he delivered to kids around the country and then at his speeches targeted toward adults, you’ll see lots of differences. These dissimilar speeches are necessary because the audiences (speaking to kids vs. speaking to adults) have different experiences and levels of knowledge. Ultimately, good public speaking is a matter of taking into account the cultural background of your audience and attempting to engage your audience in a dialogue from their own vantage point.

Considering the context of a public speech involves thinking about four dimensions: physical, temporal, social-psychological, and cultural (DeVito, 2009).

Physical Dimension

The physical dimension of communication involves the real or touchable environment where communication occurs. For example, you may find yourself speaking in a classroom, a corporate board room, or a large amphitheater. Each of these real environments will influence your ability to interact with your audience. Larger physical spaces may require you to use a microphone and speaker system to make yourself heard or to use projected presentation aids to convey visual material.

How the room is physically decorated or designed can also impact your interaction with your audience. If the room is dimly lit or is decorated with interesting posters, audience members’ minds may start wandering. If the room is too hot, you’ll find people becoming sleepy. As speakers, we often have little or no control over our physical environment, but we always need to take it into account when planning and delivering our messages.

Temporal Dimension

According to Joseph DeVito, the temporal dimension “has to do not only with the time of day and moment in history but also with where a particular message fits into the sequence of communication events” (DeVito, 2009). The time of day can have a dramatic effect on how alert one’s audience is. Don’t believe us? Try giving a speech in front of a class around 12:30 p.m. when no one’s had lunch. It’s amazing how impatient audience members get once hunger sets in.

In addition to the time of day, we often face temporal dimensions related to how our speech will be viewed in light of societal events. Imagine how a speech on the importance of campus security would be interpreted on the day after a shooting occurred. Compare this with the interpretation of the same speech given at a time when the campus had not had any shootings for years, if ever.

Another element of the temporal dimension is how a message fits with what happens immediately before it. For example, if another speaker has just given an intense speech on death and dying and you stand up to speak about something more trivial, people may downplay your message because it doesn’t fit with the serious tone established by the earlier speech. You never want to be the funny speaker who has to follow an emotional speech where people cried. Most of the time in a speech class, you will have no advance notice as to what the speaker before you will be talking about. Therefore, it is wise to plan on being sensitive to previous topics and be prepared to ease your way subtly into your message if the situation so dictates.

Social-Psychological Dimension

The social-psychological dimension of context refers to “status relationships among participants, roles and games that people play, norms of the society or group, and the friendliness, formality, or gravity of the situation” (DeVito, 2009). You have to know the types of people in your audience and how they react to a wide range of messages.

Cultural Dimension

The final context dimension Joseph DeVito mentions is the cultural dimension (DeVito, 2009). When we interact with others from different cultures, misunderstandings can result from differing cultural beliefs, norms, and practices. As public speakers engaging in a dialogue with our audience members, we must attempt to understand the cultural makeup of our audience so that we can avoid these misunderstandings as much as possible.

Each of these elements of context is a challenge for you as a speaker. Throughout the rest of the book, we’ll discuss how you can meet the challenges presented by the audience and context and become a more effective public speaker in the process.

Key Takeaways

• Getting your message across to others effectively requires attention to message content, skill in communicating content, and your passion for the information presented.
• The interactional models of communication provide a useful foundation for understanding communication and outline basic concepts such as sender, receiver, noise, message, channel, encoding, decoding, and feedback. The transactional model builds on the interactional models by recognizing that people can enact the roles of sender and receiver simultaneously and that interactants cocreate meaning through shared fields of experience.
• The dialogic theory of public speaking understands public speaking as a dialogue between speaker and audience. This dialogue requires the speaker to understand that meaning depends on the speaker’s and hearer’s vantage points and that context affects how we must design and deliver our messages.
• Draw the major models of communication on a piece of paper and then explain how each component is important to public speaking.
• When thinking about your first speech in class, explain the context of your speech using DeVito’s four dimensions: physical, temporal, social-psychological, and cultural. How might you address challenges posed by each of these four dimensions?

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