- Yea
- Nay
0 voters
Please note the lack of third option. I have opinions on this matter. But first, yours.
Not in my line of work.
I think it can be a useful icebreaker or way to get the audience to identify with the speaker. It depends on the nature of the speech/presentation if such is useful or a hinderance.
However, if teaching someone to give a speech/presentation, I would not generally recommend it in most cases.
I misunderstood. Withdrawn.
It depends entirely on whether I’m prepared or not. Well-prepared, with an interesting topic to speak about, and all sorts of fascinating tidbits to drop on the audience? I’m raring to go.
Unprepared and told to go on stage about something I know little about or have nothing to say? Yikes.
I would love that.
I’d spend the rest of the talk rooting for the presenter. And I’d feel like s/he and I were alike, as opposed to “I am the Great And Powerful Oswald Ossenpfeffer, PhD, here to bestow nuggets of wisdom from my superior brain.”
One of the best semesters I ever had was the one where I walked in and said “I wasn’t supposed to teach this class until a half hour ago. But I spent that time getting a half hour ahead of you, and I’ll try to keep up with that…”
SO many times, I’d have to answer a question with “I have NO idea”, and a student would say “Oh, I’ve been emailing an animator in South Africa. I’ll pick his brain tonight and let y’all know what I found out.”
(Oh, the subject was Web Animation, before anyone, even at Adobe, knew what Adobe Flash could do. The whole class got to be friends with a worldwide Web Design community just to get through the semester.)
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By the way, more than half the class went on to either work for (or found!) Web Design companies. And a couple hired some of their classmates!
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eta: Yeah, this works if the presenter has sufficient content… and hopefully isn’t too nervous to convey that content.
But I’ve heard world-class designers say something like this, and nail a great talk in spite of it.
I mean, you don’t have to say anything.
MeanOldLady is back! Yay!
Back to the poll. Always. Unlike @silenus , always in my line of work.
I think I voted incorrectly in my own poll, which is funny.
I’m usually a little nervous before I speak in front of a group of people, but not always. I’m not the least bit nervous during new employee orientation even when I have thirty people I’m speaking in front of. But when I’m giving a presentation to a small group of executives I can get a little nervous. Nothing crippling.
I’m a little confused by the OP. Is MeanOldLady asking if we tell the audience we’re nervous? Because my answer would be no. I don’t tell them that.
I could have been clearer. I’ve gotten less wordy in my old age.
I want to know everyone’s vote on people announcing nervousness before speaking.
I stand by my vote.
They feed on fear.
Indeed. I can do it a thousand times and still be nervous, sometimes almost sick depending on the stakes, but once I get up there, I’m fine.
A little, usually not that much. Been much more nervous about other things.
I’m recently retired, but I did public speaking, presentations & chaired meetings for upwards of 45 years and always, ALWAYS got a bit of the “nerves” before any presentation. I think that’s totally normal and to be expected but one works through it.
Okay, so this poll is useless because I guess my question wasn’t clear. Instead, please comment on whether people should announce the words “I’m nervous,” or any variant expressing nervousness before speaking.
I’m actually less nervous speaking in front of a room full of strangers, than I am talking to a single stranger one-on-one.
I thought you were clear.
The comments have drifted off into “Do you get nervous” territory, but the people who mentioned voting have said they voted on whether they would or wouldn’t admit it.
I don’t say, “I’m nervous.” Instead I open with some sort of small joke on myself. That shows I’m modest, self-effacing, and likable. That works better for me than the “please pity me, I don’t know how to do this” approach.