My Pecha Kucha Experience

For my blog post, I decided to talk about my experience with the increasingly popular communication tool known as Pecha Kucha. By definition, it refers to a presentation consisting of 20 slides with 20 seconds for the speaker to talk about each slide. In total, a Pecha Kucha presentation runs 6 minutes and 40 seconds long.

The slides on the presentation revolve around images, leaving out the wordy aspect that comes with the common long, boring and rambling presentations. Thus, Pecha Kucha puts the power in the speaker's voice rather than dependence on the physical presentation itself. The wordiness of a presentation requires a lot of reading for the audience, drawing their attention away from the presenter and directing it towards the screen. In a sense, what the speaker is trying to convey gets "lost in translation." In this case, what the speaker says may not be communicated as effectively as if the audience hadn't been distracted by numerous, and sometimes confusing, terms.

Pecha Kucha Banner [Digital Image]. (2012). Retrieved February 26, 2012, from: http://www.engineering.ucl.ac.uk/blog/events/engineering-pecha-kucha/

When we were given the assignment in our ALES204 lab, I was intrigued yet terrified at the same time. The amount of pressure this would entail for me as the speaker was unsettling since the power is in my hands as I am the focus of the presentation. As the speaker, I'm the reflection of my work on the presentation, and I essentially leave the lasting impression on those who take the time to listen to me, so, in a way, I had a responsibiilty not to disappoint. Seeing as I am an unconfident speaker as it is when it comes to public speaking, the thought of having the audience intently focused on every word I'm saying, was really unnerving for me. Taking into account the fact that we only had about 45 minutes to prepare an impromptu presentation about our topic, there was not much time to rehearse and revise. I became uncomfortably anxious when it was our group's turn to stand at the front of the classroom. I did not have much time to organize my thoughts, so I did not to know how I wanted to present my thoughts clearly. For a short presentation style like Pecha Kucha, every word counts and should be significant! Being concise and straight to the point is key to any presentation even though wordiness (for lack of a better term) may make the speaker feel more confident in that he or she is presenting the audience with as much knowledge he or she has to offer.

I had all of the above in mind as I was walking towards the front of the room, but unfortunately, I completely froze as I started speaking. I stumbled over words and struggled to try and pick myself back up. I felt like I let my group members down at the end of our 6 and some minutes. Although my group was really understanding, I still had feelings of defeat and embarrassment in the back of my mind. My first experience with Pecha Kucha did not go nearly as well as I had hoped, but I did come to find how important this tool is along the way.

Child with Stage Fright [Digital Image]. (2011). Retrieved February 26, 2012, from:http://communicationskillstips.com/2011/proven-formula-for-powerful-public-speaking/

I realize that this is not an easy thing to master immediately. With constant practice, I can be able to utilize Pecha Kucha to my advantage and give me the edge and excitement needed to draw people in. It is a presentation style that is always appreciated (or refreshing, one might say), no matter the topic or the audience. I believe that one reason for my less than successful attempt at Pecha Kucha was that I was taking myself too seriously. I wanted it to be perfect, and I was so caught up in trying to be the perfect "voice" of the presentation that I forgot to relax and have fun with it! Pecha Kucha is indeed a more modern way of conveying information about certain topics and issues, and in this way, it allows for a complete different direction away from the old, "overdone" presentations where words are simply plastered on Powerpoint slides in a monotonous fashion. The traditional way shows no uniqueness and no reflection of one's self. Pecha Kucha allows for freedom to change it up and make the presentation into what you want it to be, something totally custom-made to fit you.

Maybe one day I will be able to be as comfortable and confident as those who will participate in Pecha Kucha night in Edmonton on March 4th! More information about the speakers can be found clicking on the embedded link.

I really admire those who can put aside their feelings of nerves to talk about something they believe is important for the general public to be aware of. I appreciate the fact that they "pump up" their confidence in order to spread important ideas and perspectives to the world, which may otherwise be overlooked or ignored. In my future career, I want to be able to use my voice and channel it towards increasing other people's knowledge, using presentations like Pecha Kucha, but I have much to learn before I can get that far.

My friend, Steph, wrote in her blog about her perspective of another increasingly popular communication tool which is...you guessed it! Twitter! Steph highlights points about effectively using writing space, as Twitter only allows for a 140 character limit. Although Twitter is different that Pecha Kucha, she mentions how Twitter is an exemplary way to express opinions and talk about important issues which I believe is similar to that of Pecha Kucha! Both somewhat stray away from the same "old" and overdone (as I mentioned earlier) template of how to express an idea. Pecha Kucha and Twitter can both be used professionally, but it can also be "dressed down," which makes both of these tools useful means of communication for people everywhere!