Video Presentation Evaluation, Creative Essay Example

One of the most interesting presentations I have seen on TED is by Italian social aid expert Ernesto Sirolli (Sirolli). Even though the speaker comes from non-English culture and it was easy to recognize the thick European accent, overall the presenter did a good job of communicating with the audience.

As far as oral communication is concerned, Mr. Sirolli succeeded in capturing the audience attention early on. He made use of humor to keep the audience engaged and also effectively used eye contact to build relationship. Mr. Sirolli’s facial expressions showed he was enjoying the process of bonding with the audience which also helped capture audience attention. Mr. Sirolli was aware of the fact that speaking fast may make it difficult for some to understand him due to his foreign accent, thus, he spoke slowly enough to speak clearly which made it easy to understand him. Mr. Sirolli also made it a point to remind the audience that he had extensive experience dealing with social aid, especially in Africa, which helped him gain credibility and acceptance from the audience. In doing so, Mr. Sirolli fulfilled the first rule in Dale Carnegie’s 3 cardinal rules of speaking which is talking about something speaker has earned the right to talk about, either through experience or study.

As far as non-verbal communication is concerned, Mr. Sirolli also employed gestures generously to emphasize his points. But at times, his heavy reliance on gestures and facial expressions would be a distraction which shows communication styles can vary a lot across cultures. When I watch American presenters, they may use gestures but they usually do not employ wide variety of facial expressions. Mr. Sirolli was effective in building a relationship with the audience because he comes across as a warm person who is glad to be among the people and given an opportunity to speak.

This presentation has taught me that a presenter is not merely there to communicate with the audience but also make sure that the audience is engaged. Presentations can often be long, thus, it pays to make use of tools to keep presentation interesting such as humor and personal stories. I have also learnt that gestures, if used properly, can significantly enhance the message being conveyed by the presenter.

Mr. Sirolli could have used certain strategies to make his presentation more interesting. First of all, he could have used more visuals and other interactive tools because some people learn better through visual information. Mr. Sirolli was right in using gestures but at times it seemed he over-applied them. Mr. Sirolli could have benefitted by greater research on American culture and how gestures and facial expressions are not as extensively applied here as they may be in European communication styles.

Overall, Mr. Sirolli did a great job which may also be due to his experience. He captured audience attention early, made use of humor and personal stories to keep the presentation interesting, and made extensive eye contact. He also moved around the stage instead of merely standing still. But he could have made presentation more interesting through greater use of visual and interactive tools. Similarly, he could also do a better job of using facial expressions and gesture according to local norms because some societies like the U.S. focus more on verbal as opposed to non-verbal communication.

Work Cited

Sirolli, Ernesto. Want to help someone? Shut up and listen! September 2012. 4 December 2013 <http://www.ted.com/talks/ernesto_sirolli_want_to_help_someone_shut_up_and_listen.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TEDTalks_video+%28TEDTalks+Main+%28SD%29+-+Site%29&utm_content=FeedBurner>.