Discussion Question #2
The best speaker that I have ever heard was the pastor at my church. His family and my family have been friends for a very long time. I have been going to the same church since I was in elementary school. I have developed some great relationships with a lot of the people who go there as well. When I was a young kid I never wanted to go and attend the adult services with my family. It always seemed boring to me because I never understood what the pastor was saying because I was young. I couldn't wait for the first service to be over so I could attend my Sunday school class. As I grew older and I began to understand the message that the pastor was sending I started enjoying the adult service more and more. The way the pastor talked was very inspiring. I could feel how passionate he was about the message he was sending out to everyone. His voice wasn't boring and monotone. The way he delivered the message was very persuasive. Every time I attend a Sunday service I look forward to hearing him speak.
The worst speaker that I have heard was in one of my classes. The girl was very boring to listen to. Her voice was very monotone which made it very hard to pay attention to what she was saying. She was reading her speech and made no eye contact with the audience. She was constantly swaying from side to side. I think I paid more attention to her swaying then I did to her speech. I don't remember what her speech was even about because it was so boring to listen to.
Your story about the local pastor brought up a memory from my past. I had the opportunity to listen to a church pastor when I was about ten and it seemed so long and boring. I think it was because I was young and did not understand, plus my family was just invited to come and listen by some friends. I am glad to hear you enjoyed your Sunday services. I can relate to your worst speaker too, since I heard someone speak for twenty minutes in a monotonous voice too. My speaker did not move at all, I think it is really hard for some people to speak in public and when they get nervous, they tend to just read from their notes.
ReplyDeleteIt’s amazing what a great speaker can do for a topic! I remember taking a few classes in other majors before I decided on Communication Studies and thinking, “This is the major for me!” just because the professor was engaging. Eye contact and good tone of voice are two things we often don’t think about until they’re lacking. If the speaker doesn’t sound interested in the topic, how can they expect the audience to be? Also, the swaying from side to side, paper crinkling, foot tapping, and other nonverbal nervous habits can be incredibly distracting. Sometimes, the nonverbal communication can say just as much about a person as the content of their speech.
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