What Makes A Good Ted Talk

    This week, we saw a lot of amazing Ted Talks made by professional public speakers. Many of the speakers had similar techniques throughout their speeches, but there were different qualities involved as well. Our class learned a lot on how to make a great Ted Talk for our upcoming project.
Every Ted Talk we saw had excellent visuals in the background, while the speaker was talking. That seems to be one of the main things that makes a Ted Talk different from a regular speech. Visuals allow for listeners to stay interested in what the speaker is saying. Having pictures can also remind a speaker what they are going to say next. Another thing the Talks had in common were they were all spoken by adults. An interesting thing I would like to research in the future would be seeing if there are professional Ted Talks made by children or teenagers like us. I don't watch Ted Talks too often so I don't know the answer to this question yet but it is just something I noticed that interests me.
There were also things that people did differently in the Ted Talks. For example, some talked longer than others. Even though I believe there is a time limit for each Talk, I still just thought to note this difference. Since the limits were different, some speeches seemed more rushed than others. Some people spoke very clearly while others were harder to understand and the number of visuals in each presentation also were different each time. Although all Ted Talks have a main takeaway, some of the Talks have a more serious ending statement than others. This was evident as we watched the speeches where some topics were overall more serious then, say, the one before it.
We learned a lot of ways to make a good Ted Talk. We learned that we need an introduction that establishes credibility and grabs the audiences attention. The body of the presentation should have all your content and talking points. Putting humor throughout the presentation is also helpful. In the conclusion you need to have a clear take away. You can end in a question, you want the audience to continue thinking about, or a call to action, making the audience want to do something about what was said. These techniques ensure that the audience will remember the clear, main point of your argument.
Overall I am pretty excited to start this project. This project is taking place over a long period of time but I plan on starting research as soon as possible. I need to do a lot of research on my topic to obtain a decent amount of credibility. I also want to find some direct quotes from professionals that actually work and live learning about my topic, which has to do with the myth of having to go to collage to succeed. I am planning on saying my speech, recording it and putting it into iMovie. I will then add my pictures to add visuals to the presentation. I'm really glad that we got to choose our topic and I am excited to start research. I think that this will be a great learning experience and will prepare us for other projects in the future.

http://blog.ted.com/10-tips-for-better-slide-decks/

Ideas For Ted Talk

• The Idea of Having to go to Collage to Have a Good Future
• Reasoning Behind Lack of Reading as Kids get Older
• Coral Reefs and Marine Animals 

Ted Talks

 This is a quick, inspirational video that shows 8 steps on how to be successful.
https://www.ted.com/talks/richard_st_john_s_8_secrets_of_success?language=en#t-191386

This man talks about how doing something for 30 days can help start or subtract habits from your life.
https://www.ted.com/talks/matt_cutts_try_something_new_for_30_days?language=en#t-188271

This lady talks about good things being able to come from bad situations.
https://www.ted.com/talks/stacey_kramer_the_best_gift_i_ever_survived?language=en#t-178771

Final How To Speech Video

http://youtu.be/j6O3C_537-g

Evaluation of How To Speech

     "How-To Speeches" are speeches that explain how to specifically do or prepare something. My How-To speech talked about the importance of body language interpretation in other countries. I talked about how different body language can be offensive in other countries and gave a few specific examples. In the end, I believe I did a very good job on my final speech.
     In my last draft of performing the speech I used one, organized note card but had most of the speech memorized. I believe that my speech was interesting, though I could have maybe added more detail to make it exciting. I believe that my topic was clearly introduced and given clearly throughout the presentation. Although I did not get the speech perfect on the first try, I believe the final one was pretty good. I thought my volume was loud but not yelling and I don't believe that I stuttered too much. I don't think that I was reading off my notecard and I believe I made good eye contact. I don't think I was swaying a lot, like I usually do, but I may have touched my hair a few times which could have been slightly distracting.
     I thought the content of my speech was very clear. I started out with my credibility and tried to show that I knew what I was talking about. I believe that my topic was clearly introduced. I tried very hard to logically explain my topic and show specific examples of types of body language that should not be used in certain countries. I tried to explain why they were disrespectful as well so I had to find background on the subject. I had three different examples that I tried to clearly represent and show to the audience. My conclusion was kind of short but I wanted to quickly sum up the point of my talk so I believe that went well. I could have tried harder to make the conclusion a bit more interesting but thought it was pretty good overall.
     Even though I did some things correctly there are still many things I could improve on. I feel like I need to articulate more and also wish I was able to memorize the entire speech. If I memorized the whole speech I would be able to make even more eye contact and it would seem like I knew what I was doing, therefore increasing my credibility. Although I do go to a school with people from over 30 countries, I still don't think I have a large amount of credibility on the subject of national affairs due to the fact that I have never even been out of the United States. I needed to act more confident to seem more credible than I actually am. My conclusion was better than my first draft but I believe I still could have made it more interesting for the listeners.
    Overall, I thought my speech was good but could have used some improvements. I now know what I need to focus on in creating our next project.



http://www.inc.com/ss/jeff-haden/20-public-speaking-tips-best-ted-talks

How to Understand Cultural Differences in Body Language

       I have always had a passion for learning about other cultures and currently go to a school with over 30 countries represented. I get to meet people from all over the world and learn about their beliefs. When visiting other countries we need to be respectful of people's cultures and be sure not to accidentally offend them in any way. Before visiting places you are not familiar with, it is helpful to do some research on their culture and ways of life. 

Body language differs all around the globe. For example, in almost all of Europe, people will stand right next to you when having a conversation. The idea of "personal space" is not as big in most other countries as it seems to be in United States. If you step backward or move away during a conversation because you think someone is standing too close, that is considered very offensive.

Also, one thing that you should not do when visiting Greece is hold up your palms to anyone. It is a sign of disrespect that goes back to ancient times when criminals would be taunted by smearing their faces with excrement. 

Making a circle with your thumb and forefinger can be a common gesture in the U.S. but in France, the sign is a way of communicating that something or someone is worthless. Therefore if you are communicating "ok"or "sounds good", do not use this general hand signal in France. 

Use these tips and remember to do extra research before traveling. This will make sure nobody is accidentally offended or insulted by body language. Always respect other countries and their cultures, even if it is not what you are used to. I encourage all of you to go out, explore the world and have fun!

http://matadornetwork.com/abroad/10-common-gestures-easily-misunderstood-abroad/

Understand cultural differences in body language draft

When visiting other countries we need to be respectful of other people's cultures and be sure not to accidentally offend them in any way. Before visiting places you are not familiar with, it is helpful to do some research on their culture and ways of life. For example, in generally all of Europe, people will stand right next to you when having a conversation. The idea of "personal space" is not as big in other countries as it seems to be in America. If you step backward or move away during a conversation because you think someone is standing too close, that is considered very offensive. Something you should not do when visiting Greece is hold up your palms to anyone. It is a sign of disrespect that goes back to ancient times when criminals would be taunted by smearing their faces with excrement. Making a circle with your thumb and forefinger is a common gesture in the U.S. but in France, the sign is a way of communicating that something or someone is worthless.
Use these tips remember to research more to make sure that nobody is accidentally offended or insult. Always respect other countries and their cultures even if they are different than what you are used to.

http://matadornetwork.com/abroad/10-common-gestures-easily-misunderstood-abroad/