My Self Assessment

"um.. such as Africa.. um" Ms. USA Beauty Pageant contestant
Ms. South Carolina blunders with her words

Skills that journalists possess:

• Communication Skills -- communicating clearly so others understand you
• Listening Skills -- clearly hear what others are saying to you
• Writing Skills -- writing clearly, concisely, proper grammar, structure and punctuation
• Speaking Skills -- communicating orally
• Interpersonal Skills -- work as a team, interviewing others politely, going in-depth
• Curiosity and awareness -- eager to know what's going on around you, able to see patterns in life and when those patterns are altered
• Self-direction -- takes direction from editors, can write a story without being told
• Self-confidence -- believe in their abilities to their readers and listeners

     Above is a list of the common skills that excellent journalists possess.  I feel that I am stronger in some of these than others.  I would have to say that my interpersonal and writing skills combined with my work ethic of self-direction helps me as a journalist write a story that readers find interesting.  However, sometimes I feel that my speaking skills are not up to par with the others.  When speaking, sometimes I have trouble in saying what I mean or I make it too confusing for others to follow.  I'd love to be able to improve on this weak area, so I thought of a three step plan t achieve this.  

     Step 1:  Read more.  Not only will this help my writing, but also by reading more I can familiarize myself with coherent, concise way of communicating myself.

     Step 2:  Write everything down.  When preparing for a speaking event, write down an exact script of what I will say, that way there will be no impromptu that I would stumble upon.  I already write questions down for interviews, too, so continuing that will also help.

     Step 3:  Listen to speeches to get ideas on how to convey my points in a more concise way.

     Hopefully, by working on this skill that I lack the most, I will not only improve as a journalist, but in communication as a whole