I started a short course in public speaking tonight. Not the best time to be starting a short course, much less in public speaking - seeing that I'm still dealing with the three-hour time difference between Malaysia/Hong Kong and Melbourne*, and it was my first day back at work.
Lazy little me had every intention of skipping class tonight, in favour of a good lie-down on the couch. Then I got a call from the course instructor. Boo. To his credit though, I was very impressed that he took the time to follow up with me after I had informed him that I would be skipping his first class due to my well-timed holiday. He rang me to then to reassure me that I could still catch up even after missing the first class, and today he rang to bring me up to speed with what happened last week and what we were expected to do in class tonight.
Maybe he had past experience with lazy people like me, 'cuz that was the motivator for me to stay back after work despite being incredibly dazed and sleepy, and front up to class at 6.30pm.
Tonight we were required to talk for 60-90 seconds about something that we were passionate about. Brad had suggested that I speak about why I wasn't in class last week, and link in to my passion for travel. Which was a good idea, 'cuz I sure as heck wasn't prepared. Visual aids, you say? Google Images here I come.
Thank goodness he left me for lucky last. I think that being in a daze turns one's brains to sponge, because I managed to soak up an amazing amount of helpful hints and tips on how to improve my presentation and its delivery. I started writing down witty asides (oh la-di-da), and using the breathing techniques to calm my nerves. That's the thing that gets to me with public speaking - it's not that I can't ad-lib and improvise on my notes, it's the nerves that get me. This course, for me, is going to be very much about overcoming that fear of speaking to a group of strangers.
And, glad to say, I did pretty well :D I started off with a line about how my parents tell me to save and invest my money, but I choose to squander my savings on two of my passions - food and travel. I put up a pic of HK that I found on Wikipedia (thank you, creative commons licensing!) and even slipped in a joke about doing my bit for the HK economy, using KRudd's money.
But what really hit me (despite my lack of sleep) is that how much being in a learning environment had energised and inspired me. After the class, my brain was going at a million miles per hour, it was as if the cogs had started turning again after being dormant for so long. I started getting ideas for next week's presentation, and about the various topics I could speak about. I started realising how much I missed learning, and how fun it was.
Learning expands one's horizons; it keeps your brain from becoming stagnant, and your mind open to new ways of thinking. It revitalises your brain cells, and fuels ideas. And, as I realised tonight, when you learn something new, you invariably learn something new about yourself.
I'm so pumped for next week. I have two classes - Copywriting in Action on Tuesday, and Public Speaking on Wednesday. Thank you, Professional Development funds from work!
And I thought tonight was gonna be a drag.
*Hey, three hours might not sound like much, but it's still quite a bit to deal with! Going to bed at 1am Malaysian time means that I am staring at the ceiling until 4am in Melbourne. Getting up at 7am in Melbourne is like forcing yourself to be awake at 4am in Malaysia.
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