Quote:
Originally Posted by Displaced Flames fan
I aced Public Speaking in college and never wrote a single speech. Off the cuff everytime. (demostration speech aside).
Some people have a natural abilty to think on their feet, preparation or not. I wouldn't say they are stupid.
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I'm with DFF on this. If you're 17, and have all the cameras on you, the question announced over the PA in front of hundreds of people, freezing wouldn't be uncommon. She would never have been in that situation before. If all her prep was done on, as someone previously mentioned, AIDS in Africa, and the War in Iraq she could have froze.
The question was probably far easier than she anticipated. It's funny, when I see guys who are amazing at hockey trivia. You can ask them to recite the Stanley Cup winners dating back to 1900, and they'll do it without batting an eye. Ask them who played Left Wing on the 1932 Detroit Red Wings' 4th line, and they'll answer it like it's a joke. Ask them who wore #9 for the Boston Bruins, they'll freeze and wait a minute or two before saying "Bobby Orr". Why? Because the question seems too easy, it must be a trick.
Alas with the spotlight on live TV you don't have a minute or two for your brain to go "wait a second, that was an easy question, what was it again, it couldn't be simply 'why can't Americans locate themselves on a map' it must be tricker than that".
The amount of vocal fillers she used would lead me to believe she was thinking about everything but the question due to its simplicity.
I, like DFF, have whipped off speaches off the cuff (once gave an emotional speech to a class about how a pop vending machine changed and enriched my life). Some people can do it, some can't. It's not a sign of intelligence. The general public's biggest fear is public speaking, I won't fault anyone for freezing while doing it.
I'm a far better speaker than I am a writer. When I type on message broads I have speling mitokes all over the palce.
When I speak I'm much more articulate (Maritime accent available upon request)