First of all: can you believe we’re halfway through the semester already? It feels like only yesterday I was writing about Halloween. Anyway. This semester, I’ve been in a class that has really been pushing my boundaries; which typically I…
Sweaty palms. Shaking hands. S-s-stuttering voice. Look up and speak. But nothing comes out of my mouth. That is my worst fear when it comes to class presentations. I dreaddd public speaking. Seriously. I dread it and have spent the…
I remember filling out the form, clicking send, and a day after responding to the confirmation email. I also remember afterwards thinking how absolutely insane I was for having just signed up for what I signed up for. You see,…
You know that person in tutorial that is so articulate it hurts? They seem to have a rhythm when they speak, they never get lost in a train of thought, and they know how to hold everyone’s attention.Does that person fill your heart, as it does mine, with equal parts envy and admiration? If so, read on.For us, tutorial goes a bit like this:“Should I put up my hand? Oh no, Mr. Perfect is talking now. He’s a tough act to follow; I’ll wait a few minutes. Waiting… Waiting… Oops, now we’re talking about something completely different. Back to the drawing board. Okay…. Okay… Got something… And she just said what I was thinking. No problem, I’ll think of something else. Thinking… Thinking… Blanking… Despairing… Five minutes left. Maybe I’ll talk next week. Oh wait! I have something! Too late now; my voice is weird anyway.”At least, that’s usually how my internal monologue goes. I’m not very good at articulating my thoughts in tutorial-type settings; they make me feel extremely anxious and shy. I’m constantly afraid that I will forget what I meant to say in the middle of saying it, or that I will say something completely off the mark, or that I will forget how to speak altogether when everyone’s eyes turn to me.I like to listen to my peers and I often gain really cool insights from their conversations. Sometimes, I like the way the conversation is flowing so much that I would rather not interrupt it with my own awkward contribution. Unfortunately, however, listening is not usually enough; we have to prove that we’re engaging with the tutorial to get full marks. Like it or not, we have to speak.I don't think having a ventriloquist dummy speak for you counts. Lookin' at you, George. Image courtesy of: http://www-tc.pbskids.org/arthur/i/friends/photos/george2.jpgThat is why I would like to share with you, my fellow Mr. Imperfects, the strategies I use to help me speak up in tutorial:
I had my first tutorial session last week. Being in my final year of an arts degree, tutorials are nothing new to me, but they still can fill me with a certain amount of anxiety. It seems every year I…
Last week at U of T, on multiple occasions, I let others walk all over me and make me feel small to avoid confrontation. I let my colleague talk over me and take over my project. I let the…
Remember the presentation I had to get over with last week? Well the results are in and my professor thinks I need to work on being more professional. Obviously, I did not present in a clownsuit...but I intentionally tried very…
glossophobia: an abnormal fear of speaking in public or of trying to speak. When I was eight years old, I had to write my very first speech. I wrote it about my dog "Buttons", a lovable mutt who thought he was…
