Pitching my idea for a basketball tournament

This past Tuesday night, I was able to practice my speaking skills by giving a short presentation to a group of friends and peers at my college age bible study group on a fundraising idea I had. Every year we raise money for the organization Agape, a charity group that rescues women and children from sex slavery in third world nations. Throughout the months of March and May there are a handful of different fundraising events that are ran through the college ministry to raise money for the cause. At last week’s meeting, we were asked to think of ideas for this year’s fundraisers. As the week went on the idea of a 3 vs 3 basketball tournament could be a great fundraiser.

I prepared for my presentation by doing research, talking to individuals who have played in basketball tournaments before and putting together a PowerPoint explaining the benefits of putting on a basketball tournament, and the logistics of how to make the tournament a success. When Tuesday night came, I felt confident in my pitch, as I had practiced a few times earlier in the day, and for the fact that I knew many of the audience members.

When giving my presentation I made sure to speak clearly and not rush through. The presentation lasted about four minutes and then I answered a few questions after. The idea of the basketball tournament was well received, and we plan to go through with the idea. Overall, I feel like I did a good job on my presentation because I received a positive response from my audience. I believe having friends in the audience was a part of why I did well, being able to look out and see familiar faces in the crowd gave me a feeling of comfort. I believe the next step in my growth of public speaking is to give a presentation where I recognize less of the audience members.