Presentation and Me

Presentations are common in universities. Ranging from Certs, Diploma, Degree, Master and PhD. Students. Lecturers. Staffs.

Presentations were uncommon during my school days. (It may be common at school today cuz they have projector slides installed. During my time, it was newly planted in, and we never had the chance to use it).

It was during my Diploma in UiTM Sabah was I exposed to presentations. I guess it's the lecturer's favourite pastime to see students present. Especially those with stage fright. Like me. I gotta say. In the earlier days, I'd shiver before, during and even after presentations. I always feel I lack in so many ways. Are my clothes alright? Would my slides be readable and understood? Are my audiences gonna like my presentation? Am I presenting right? How's this? How's that? Although there were some positive feedbacks, I'd still feel I didn't reach my target benchmark. What's my target benchmark u ask? The Ellen-Degeneres-confidence benchmark. (Okay, I'm expecting wayy too high). Subjects that require active presentations?

• Business Communication: Role-play presentation. I acted as Secretary. I shivered most of the time. And I'm pretty good at hiding it.
• Public Relations: Individual presentation. Free topic. So I chose to present on my experience. Something that I need less research on. I spoke about my Mount Kinabalu Climb Experience. The lecturer said, "Nabila, you are a positive person. Keep it up. I'm sure u'll be successful one day". (This I'll never forget).
• Principles of Selling: The subject itself speaks of its point. So yes, our presentation: Selling. Bits of Marketing used. Using my personal camera collection, my group presented on cameras. The funny thing is, we provided sweets to our audiences as part of our Marketing strategy. Did we make sales? Not really. They were too overwhelmed over the sweets.
• Research Methodology: A presentation on findings of our research basically. The presentation was OK. The research wasn't. 

So by the end of my Diploma, I've eventually managed to overcome my stage fright. Not 100%. But i felt changes.

I later pursued my Bachelor studies in UiTM Terengganu. Okayyy..a lot more presentation than during Diploma. Cuz why? Cuz most of the subjects required field study, research, and report writing. And these comes with a set of presentations. No turning away. U turn. U make no marks. 

Here, I became a lot more confident. I didn't know people. I was new. So I took the opportunity to be a new person. No more stage-fright-Yong. No more shiver-Yong. 

Guess what? It worked! *serious face*. And somehow, I felt real. I didn't feel fake pretending to be someone confident, when i actually weren't.So from then on, I insisted I be the new person I was. Not faking to be another person. But to develop myself to a better person. So among the subjects that I've presented on:

• Presentation Skills: Free topic. This time, I chose to spend a lil time on research. I wanted to give out an informative presentation. So I presented on The Dead Sea. Not purely slideshow-method. I made a demo of the Sea's formation, using a chocolate bar. The second topic: Drug Trafficking in Malaysia.
• Research Methodology. Again, findings of our research. Only the difference to those in Diploma, it was a lot more detailed.
• Operations Management: We were to choose a company, and present its competitive advantage. It was in this presentation that my lecturer  said to me, "Very good! This is the type of presenter I'm looking for. You sound like a professional!" in front of the whole auditorium. *blush*
• Production Planning and Control: It was on the first day of class in the new semester that we were assigned a presentation for the upcoming class. Wayy~ quick. This time, we didn't present through PowerPoint. We used the manual way. And after our presentation, the lecturer commented. "Can you understand their presentation? (asking the class). I feel like crying!! You are a good team! Well done!".
• Job Design: We were to interview a company, and present its production activities to its productivity. 
• Supply Chain and Distribution: Free topic. Individual. I chose to speak on Just-in-Time Concept. Gratefully, I had the highest mark in class. 
• Report Writing: Another research done within the university titled "Factors Influencing Course Undertaken by Students of UiTM Terengganu". The findings were presented. Gratefully again, highest presentation mark.
• Personal Development: Free topic chosen from course syllabus. My group and I chose Communication . However, this was the only lecturer that never expose students' marks. So i never knew. But the lecturer did comment that our group was among the best. Syukran.
• Ethnic relation. The only presentation done in Malay. Since I'm so used to presenting in English, it suddenly became awkward presenting in Malay. But everything went well.

As for now, those are all my previous experiences. I'm now in my final semester. So I can't really elaborate much more. However, the idea to speak of this today is due to what happened this morning.

I had my first presentation this semester. It's only been a month. The subject: Current Issues in Operations. The topic: Productivity. We presented as usual. I have my usual group members since my first semester here: Ellie, Assila and Atikah. (Only Atikah weren't in the same class as us for this subject. Sad). Instead, she was replaced with Syikin. After babbling for half an hour, the lecturer, who was also our Rector said, "You have a very good team. Very good slide presentation". *Us blush*.

After class, we went over to the lecturer to ask a few questions. Then he told me that if he had the chance, he would want to give me an exposure to the outside world of presentation. He was a bit surprised when I answered "No" to his question: "Have you ever presented outside (out of UiTM)?" Like really, how am I suppose to have such an opportunity?

This post today is not about me being vain or arrogant. It's about seeing myself changing. I wanna take every bits and pieces of my life memorable. I wanna see the revolution of Yong/Nabila. If you feel uncomforatble reading so, I strongly apologize.