Elevator Speech

My speech:
I’m interested in exploring web technology in an academic library. At UNC Chapel Hill, I took classes in internet applications, which introduced me to methods of web development I’d like to explore further. I also had the chance to do some web work as part of my job as a grad assistant at the Health Sciences library, which I really enjoyed. For instance, I created a tutorial on plagiarism, and another grad assistant and I started the library’s Facebook page. I’d love to have the opportunity to build on what I know and gain new web development skills. Furthermore, as a student myself, I know I spend a lot of time online, so I’m interested in the challenge of reaching students there, whether it’s making library resources available in new ways or developing new resources altogether. Overall, I’m looking for a position that will offer me the chance to explore the possibilities of integrating web technology into an academic library and will also provide me with opportunities for professional development.

I wrote my 1-minute speech as a starting point to answer the interview question, “Why are you interested in this position?” The hardest part of this assignment, other than imagining myself delivering a 1-minute speech in response (as I noted on Blackboard, I’m definitely not someone who is comfortable speaking publicly without obsessive practice first), was writing a speech that would sound natural when I spoke it. My early drafts were overly formal and better suited to a cover letter than a conversation in an elevator. For instance, I referred to my school as the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in my speech, even though in most conversation I find it more natural to say “UNC” or “UNC Chapel Hill.” I also wrote very long sentences that looked fine on paper but when I read them out loud, left me out of breath by the end. However, I also wanted to be sure that the speech sounded thought-out and coherent. After all, the purpose in planning it ahead of time was to come up with something better than my usual way of speaking. Another challenge was in finding an ending. After writing what I thought was a good ending, I read my speech out loud a few times. When I did so, it became evident that I needed one more sentence that would signal to my listener that I was done. I couldn’t convincingly say my current ending in an “ending voice,” so I added one more wrapping-up sentence.

Once I had finished writing and practicing my speech, I delivered it for some of my friends. I found that even though I had spent time choosing each word carefully, I still made a few changes on the fly. I tried to reflect these changes in the transcript above. For instance, I had written “which I enjoyed” but when I delivered the speech, I added the “really.” I also changed “like” to “love” two sentences later. Because I was delivering my speech to my friends, my previous language sounded too detached. The extra adverb and change of verb sounded to me a little less formal and closer to how I spoke in ordinary conversation. In a different context, such as if I actually were at a job interview, I might have left the speech as it had been previously.