Stage Speech

I think I really suck at giving a speech. I think I talk fairly well in a smaller group of friends or even a bunch of unknown people. But, getting to the podium and giving a speech is a whole different beast to me. I really admire those who give eloquent speeches for hours and hours. May be I am missing some fundamental tricks that needs to applied. However, if I rewind time, I see myself giving speeches and participating in all sorts of recitation and debate competitions. What happened to me? It cant be the marriage...:)..We will find out when we get back after a quick break...

Suvaiya Manama Samachi vachha rasichu sappidanum..um.. Aahaa Oho Besh Balenu Ellarum Parattanum..um...Adhukku venum Sakthi Masala...Venum Venum Sakthi Masala...Sakthi Ma.sa.la.ah.ah.ah...

Oh well... The more I think about it, when I was young, I think I wasnt very conscious about what others thought of me. I was very confident that I was giving the best speech. To top that, the speeches mostly had stuff that someone else drafted. All I had to do was, memorize it and convey it out. Now, it is a totally different story. First of all, I dont usually get to spend a lot of time to prepare for a formal speech (not that I get called to give any public speeches..mostly official stuff..). And when I do prepare slides for a speech, I think too much about the content. I usually assume that all my audiences are very clever and can think through stuff in the 3-5 seconds window that I spend on a slide. I also spend a lot of time to fabricate a lot of interesting stuff that can be inserted at different places along the presentation. After doing all this, when I get on the stage, I draw a blank...Here comes the rescue. On behalf of all of you, I take this oppurtunity to devote all my dedication and gratitude to MS-Powerpoint. It really is a life-saver. One can just flip through the slides and talk about whatever that is mentioned and get through the presentation. Once the presentation is done, I just brood about all the nicer things that I could've done. To add to my embarassment, murphy's law kicks in...some people always manage to ask questions that I didnt think through... We will find out how I retaliated after a quick break...

Sadha Karkal Nagaigal Vaangida Lalitha Varungal..Seikooli illai...Sedharam illai..Karkalukku Vilayum illai... Lalitha Jewellery, T.Nagar, Panagal Park...

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. To balance my act of stupidity and embarassment, I try to do my best when I am on the other side of the seat. When I attend a seminar or lecture or a speech of any kind, I bombard the speaker with the maximum questions that I can come up with. Sometimes, I even take considerable pain to go through the speaker material to come up with creative questions. And when they droop, I give my victorius vengeful smile...;).. Seriously, I am just amazed at how some people can deliver absolutely great speeches. President Clinton is one of my favorite speaker. It would be great if you can share on the experiences that you've had....