Day 5

The writing process for my individual project was more difficult for me than writing the things I normally write. While I'm rather comfortable writing what I feel, the compelled creativity was an uneasy process for me. I think that if the project had been about something other than ME, I would have been more open to it. At first I started writing my project on the computer, but there is just something about writing on the computer that stifles my voice. So, I took my pad of paper and pencil outside and sat in my garden for a while and within an hour I had nine pages worth of material for just the success and professionalism sections. I guess I simply needed to find my comfort zone to jumpstart the writing process.

My oral presentation was much the same. I stewed over the weekend about how and what to present and succeeded in doing nothing more than working myself into a nervous frenzy. However, once I jumped headlong into the presentation and let it flow into the parts of the project that I was more comfortable with than others, it went quite well. Granted, I was still nervous, but I managed to somehow find my voice while talking about some of the things I'm most passionate about.

Overall, I think the project turned out to be a success for me, and I'm glad that I've gotten the first of what I'm sure will be many such presentations out of the way. The first time doing anything--even if it's just doing something that you've done before in a new setting--is always nerve-wracking. I'm certain that this project has set the foundation for me to build on presentation skills and that the presentations I have to make in the future will be a bit less intimidating because I've found a few things that really work for me and know more about what will hold me back.