Hello and welcome to the September newsletter!
August was the month when the Olympics brought the world to the British Isles and in particular to this great city of London. And Bloomsbury Speakers benefited from the influx.
Yes we saw Toastmasters from overseas clubs visiting us during their short stint in London, and they had nothing but praise for us. They also said they felt as if they were at home, because our club meeting experience was similar to what happens in their clubs in their respective countries.
All of this reminds me again of what a global phenomenon Toastmasters is, and how through the same format combining regular practice with feedback, the organisation is helping multitudes around the world to become better speakers and leaders.
Now here in a nutshell is what happened in August in case you were away and haven’t read the meeting reports…
(Remember, if you’re in a hurry, you can scroll to the very end of the newsletter to get a list of the key things you need to know!)
What’s happened since the last newsletter?
In August, we returned to our two standard meetings a month which were well attended despite strong competition from the Olympic Games and the holiday season. Yes, we saw record numbers of guests in the meetings and members turned out in their droves.
There was an ice breaker speech and speeches from members across the experience spectrum. This is why I enjoy coming to Bloomsbury because whether you are an advanced speaker or a newbie there something appealing for everyone!
What’s planned for September?
We’ve got two meetings in September – on the 10th and 24th September.
However, our first meeting Monday 10th September is not a regular meeting; instead it’s our Humorous Speech and Table Topics Contest night. This is the club-level round of the autumn contests, featuring humorous prepared speeches and table topics.
We already have lots of eager contestants but our Contest Organiser Swarajit tells me members still have a few hours left to register for the contest. Contact him directly at education@bloomburyspeakers.org.uk by the end of today (Friday 7th September).
If you’re not taking part or acting in a functionary role, please come along anyway. This contest meeting is usually one of the most entertaining on the Bloomsbury calendar.
As for Monday 24th September 2012 – This is a standard regular meeting and while speaking slots are already booked up, we are still looking to fill the Toastmaster role. Alternatively, you can put yourself down for a table topics slot.
Tip: an experienced member to watch in this meeting is Hari Kalymnios (our previous VP of membership and mentoring) who is already a Competent Communicator.
What’s on the horizon?
We’ve got two meetings in October – on the 8th and 22nd.
- Monday 8th October 2012 – Regular Meeting – again this first meeting is already booked up speech-wise, but you could book in as an Evaluator which will not simply help you develop your speaking skills but will go some way in developing your leadership ability. Alternatively put yourself down for a table topics slot – there are still three up for grabs. Finally, seasoned speakers to watch out for are David Jones and Kaveh Pourvand (both from Holborn Speakers) who are our GE and guest Toastmaster respectively. There’s also Henry Playfoot who will be our Grammarian that night.
- Monday 22nd October 2012 – Regular meeting – There are still two Evaluator slots to fill here so don’t delay book your slot now before they are gone! Once again Henry Playfoot – who will be chairing the meeting as our Toastmaster – is one to watch.
Membership freeze coming to an end!
As you know, we have frozen membership to cope with demand on speaking slots. But membership will re-open at the end of September.
We already have a waiting list of people keen to join and they will be given priority when we start enrolling new members.
If you would like to join but haven’t done so already, please contact the membership VP Joe Lake (membership@bloomsburyspeakers.org.uk) to put you on the waiting list.
As always in the meantime, we continue to welcome guests to come to our meetings.
Want to improve your impromptu speaking and get extra table topics practice between meetings?
Now I’d like to hand over to our past president Glen for some information about a brand new resource that members – particularly those who’d like to improve their table topics skills – could find very useful.
Hello! I know many of you, like me, enjoy the challenge of a good table topic.
But I used to get frustrated about only being able to do one or two table topics a month. It never seemed quite enough to improve as quickly as I wanted to.
That’s why workshops – like the one Hari ran a few weeks back – are so great. You get to do lots in one evening!
And this got me thinking: Is there a way to realistically practice table topics – and perhaps learn a few new techniques – between meetings and workshops?
The result is the Table Topics Boot Camp.
It uses exercises and specially-recorded audio topics to allow you to practice in front of your computer or even from your smartphone, recreating as closely as possible the experience of doing a table topic in a meeting.
Currently there are 10 exercises and 30 practice topics.
I would love for a few of you to check it out and give me some feedback saying whether you found it useful.
There are no strings attached, the content is totally free and doesn’t require any kind of email sign-up or other commitment.
In the interest of full disclosure I should point out that this is a personal project rather than a Bloomsbury Speakers initiative. It comes with no guarantees, etc. but I hope some of you find it useful.
Thanks and see you soon!
Glen
That’s all.
See you in a meeting very soon!
Femi Asaolu
President
Bloomsbury Speakers
Key facts – just the stuff you really need to know
- Our next meeting is our Contest Night on Monday 10th September. If you’re competing – good luck! If not, coming along and watch the fun.
- Our next regular meeting is Monday 24th September – and we’re still looking for a Toastmaster.
- Our meetings in October are on the 8th and the 22nd
- The club is re-opening to new members from end of September – email membership@bloomsburyspeakers.org.uk to get on the waiting list
- Check out Glen’s new, free resource – Table Topics Boot Camp – to practice and improve your table topics skills between meetings
