Summarize the following:
Some career service advisors recommend keeping your self-introductory speech as short as two or three sentences. Others suggest aiming for five to seven minutes in length. If it is not possible to make your speech this short, or if time permits you to give a longer introduction, you should still trim down your speech to be as concise, yet informative, as possible. Make sure that if this is an assignment, you stay within the assigned guidelines. If your speech is supposed to be 3-5 minutes, a 7-minute speech and a 2-minute speech are equally inappropriate. If you are giving a brief introductory speech in an interview, be certain that you don't go over the recommended time. Remember that your speech is going to be spoken out loud, and your audience will not be able to go back and re-read your words if something is confusing. Deliver your speech in such a way that no one will be uncertain of what you are trying to say. Avoid long rambling sentences, and use direct and concise prose as much as possible. Think about your sentence structure carefully. Reading your speech out loud will help you determine when you have overly long sentences that need to be restructured. You should run through your speech out loud well before the actual introduction. Practice different inflections and experiment with how you pace yourself during the speech. You can practice alone by reading at first, but to get some feedback it's a good idea to perform the speech in front of a friend, family member or colleague. Practicing in front of other people will enable you to gauge whether your speech captures the interest of your listeners. Think about which parts of the speech were successful and which parts weren't. Try to get as much detailed feedback as possible by asking specific as well as general questions after your speech. As well as saying "how did you like the speech?", ask specifically what parts were the strongest and weakest. Check that you delivered a clear message by asking your practice audience what they took away from the speech. Know what you're going to say, and how you're going to say it, well in advance. Although in some instances it is common practice to read from a piece of paper, try to memorize your speech and read it with minimal prompts. Presenting without reading a paper can create a stronger impression of control, knowledge and confidence. It will also help keep your audience's attention. If you are staring down at a piece of paper all the time, the audience might struggle to truly engage with what you are saying. You can, however, bring an index card with bullet points, just in case you freeze up. You shouldn't write your whole speech on the card, just the main points you hope to cover. Think of the card as a point of reference, rather than a backup for your speech.
Trim your speech down. Use short, simple sentences. Practice your speech. Memorize your speech.