I like to think everyone has a skill that is uniquely theirs. That's not to say that there is only one person in the world who can play jazz trombone or pan-fry a mean tuna steak. Instead, what I mean is that if you think about all the people you know, there are a few characteristics that speak most highly to who they are as a person. For example, my friend Lisa can do the worm. If I want to give someone some quick, surface insight into who she is, I tell them that. It lets them know that she's fun and goofy. Its the elevator pitch of my friendship introductions.
As for me, I always felt like mine would be talking. What's Kristen into? She really likes to talk. I didn't realize until high school, that people will actually give you prizes for doing that well enough.
I did it well enough.
I always wondered what it would be like to be on the other side of the judge's table though. Partly because I was really curious about how it would feel to evaluate speakers, partly because I almost never got to see other people speak, and partly out of a mad desire for absolute power.
Role model.
I finally got the chance to judge a speech contest instead of be in it today. A lot of things were exactly as I remember them. There is a TON of down time between rounds. You need a map to get around whatever venue you're at. Everybody's wearing a suit (ADORABLE). And, most importantly, of course, everybody's real real nice to the judge. Of course, I enjoyed that part of the competition a LOT more than I used to.
Actually judging the speeches was pretty difficult. It was generally easy to figure out first and last place, but all those middle spots were more of a challenge. I tried to be honest and give as much complete feedback as I possibly could. I remember getting ballots back that put me in 3rd place (for example) and the only commentary was "good job". Thanks. Awesome. Did I need a "great job" or a smiley face for first? What is your system here?
The one thing that was tough is that I didn't want to be mean. It is sometimes difficult to be candid without being harsh. After the first round, I went to my friend Rocco (who asked me to come judge this weekend) and told him I felt bad cause I had to leave some fairly critical comments. Apparently, according to Rocco, I couldn't possibly be as bad as some of the judges. Specifically, he was referring to the judge that left him this comment on one of his pieces: "On what planet was that funny? Planet Jack-ass?". She clearly did not get his humor.
The thing today reminded me of the most is how much I miss public speaking. I didn't get into moot court the last couple years and other than that, I don't know of a ton of opportunities to just randomly speak in public. Besides, I was an impromptu speaker. There are even fewer opportunities for people who don't want to actually write their speech beforehand. But seriously. That's so much work.
The tournament wraps up tomorrow. I'll be judging some rounds over the course of the day, so that should be fun once again. And I get to go hang out at EMU. Which... is something.
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