FHC Inspires Q&As 2022: Andrew Shier

Name: Andrew Shier

Position: Speaker

TED Talk Title: How to Win an Argument

Why did you apply to be a speaker?

“I applied to be a speaker because I think it’s important to maintain public speaking skills. I’ve never been a nervous speaker, and it’s always been a strong suit of mine, but I think if you don’t routinely practice it, the skill goes away eventually.”

How are you feeling about speaking at FHC Inspires?

“Pretty good. The preparation part of it is always what gets me rather than the speech itself, like making sure what I have to say is good and ensuring that the topic is engaging, etc.”

What was the process of picking the perfect TedTalk topic?

“Not sure. For Ted Talks in Mr. George’s class, I had a different topic. I was asked to change it for Inspires, and couldn’t think of anything. This topic was more or less chosen for me, but it’s a fun one nonetheless.”

What does your message mean to you?

“It means something, that’s for sure. I won’t say it’s some huge topic that means the world to me, and I’ll start a foundation based on it, but it’s relatively important to me in that I find people are generally really bad at persuading and I think they need to get better.”

Who is your target audience?

“Everyone. Everyone is a salesman.”

Did you ever see yourself speaking at FHC Inspires?

“Not really. I didn’t think I’d be motivated enough to do this, and I wasn’t sure my friends were going to, but here I am proving myself wrong.”

What are you doing to prepare for the big night?

“Practicing.”

How does your google slide presentation reflect your topic?

“Very little. My Google Slides represent ME. Not pretty, straightforward, no-frills or fanciness.”

What’s a mobile game you’re currently hooked on?

“Odd question, but Clash Royale for certain. Been really fun lately.”