Public Speaking by Makayla

Public Speaking by Makayla - January 2022 Scholarship Essay

All my life I’ve been described as quiet and shy. Being an introvert comes with the fear of talking in front of a large group of people or keeping to myself when I’m put into a new environment. Knowing this is an area in which I can improve, I’ve been encouraging myself to give compliments to strangers or start small talk. I'm aware that this may not seem like a big deal to some but for me it is.
I often find myself overthinking before I speak when in class. Sometimes the overthinking causes me not to speak when in class or interact with my teachers like I should. A major event that has helped me improve my speaking skills was an oratorical contest and I am glad people encouraged me to participate. Even though I was skeptical, I ended up winning first place at the High School level. Many people told me I did well. Since I was very nervous and overanalyzed things, I didn’t believe I did good and thought I had made a lot of mistakes. After watching the video of the speech, I did better than I originally thought. This has taught me to go into things with confidence and if you make mistakes, most of the time, others won’t notice.
Overall I’ve learned that you can be your own worst critic. This one event has helped me become more confident when speaking and will help me going into the future. It has also helped me be able to interact with my teachers more and give presentations in front of my classmates. I inspire to work with individuals with disabilities and injuries as an occupational therapist. This field involves having conversations and engaging with people of all ages and backgrounds and being able to do so effectively will help me to make an impact on others' lives.