Communication Presentation

WOW!!! That is all I can say. Today in class we had to do a 20 minute presentation and I chose to do it on Boxers. Not the boxers you wear but the breed of Boxers. We had over a week to get prepared for it, the teacher gave us time in class to get prepared and he even gave us tips on how to present it. Well of course I was not prepared at all. I had a horrible week that kept me from going to work and I couldn't even show up to school. That's how bad the situation was. Today I woke up and freaked out. Made it to work on time but sat there and couldn't figure out how the hell I was suppose to get prepared for this presentation. I didn't have anything ready like how the boxer originated from, how they got the name or anything. I just had my personal experience being an owner of many boxers. After work I called my mom to have her print of some information and went and picked it up. When I got home I got my prop ready... BOO the boxer puppy and of course I forgot my boxer book. When I arrived at school I got about 10 minutes to prepare. Wasn't enough. The dog was a distraction, I was nervous, couldn't focus and I almost blew the presentation. Then my teacher asked what my conclusion was and how I got involved into the boxer. That's when I started to loosen up and became more comfortable. I had good eye contact, posture, and I spoke clearly and at a good pace. After all of the presentations my teacher gave us constructive criticism on our presentations and he said that once I started to talk about my personal experience owning over 12 boxers (8 being puppies) he said that's when he noticed that I don't do well when I am trying to present from a script. I do a better job at telling stories and the information that I already know. The point is.. be prepared when it comes to do things like this. The audience will be more interested and things will flow smoothly. No matter what the issue is focus on the things that need to be done to get your mind of the horrible situation and BE PREPARED.