Written by Helen
Introduction
Swarajit, our President, opened a packed meeting with a bit of history of Toastmasters International. He went on to remind us that public speaking is a learned skill – one that we learn through practice and feedback, that is, evaluation. He then introduced Glen, who was performing the eponymous role of Toastmaster.
- Peter – the Timekeeper – explained his role, emphasising the importance of being able to contain a speech within a particular time.
- Helen – the Grammarian – explained her role as well and introduced the word of the day, “vivify”.
Prepared Speeches
In her Icebreaker speech, Grace traced her journey from the Irish countryside – where she grew up in a big, noisy family – to Liverpool, Dublin, and eventually London. She concluded by telling us all her hopes of building confidence as a public speaker.
Bronia spoke on the topic of conflict and how best to deal with it. She quoted many experts, including Abraham Maslow, to explain how conflict affects us. Her advice: open your mind, don’t project, and listen thoroughly.
Paula began her #10 speech, “People”, with two questions: “What kind of person are you? Are you the person you want to be?” She went on to tell a personal story of how she dealt with a difficult person at her workplace, and the lessons she learnt from that experience. She emphasised the importance of drawing a “line in the sand” when faced with such a situation.
In his advanced speech, Joe told a humorous story of a trip he took to Morocco in which he failed, on many occasions, to exercise good judgement. In the end he accepted help from some kind locals, and saw the importance of learning from his mistakes.
Evaluations
Carrie evaluated Grace’s Icebreaker, commending her structure, storytelling style and use of language. She recommended more eye contact but was impressed that Grace delivered her speech with very little use of notes.
Barnaby began his evaluation of Bronia’s speech by empathising with the challenge of preparing a research-based speech (which was the objective of Bronia’s No. 7 speech project). He recommended a more solid structure and more use of facts as evidence.
Femi congratulated Paula on her 10th speech before commending her “commanding presence”. He recommended being a bit more descriptive but found her speech nonetheless inspiring.
Henry promised to be harsh on Joe, who had given an advanced speech. He strongly commended Joe’s opening and structure. His recommendation was to use more drama, and not to over-signpost the learnings, but to let the audience draw their own conclusions from the story.
Table Topics
Marte, our Topicsmaster, introduced Table Topics and presented her theme – the Royal Family.
- Nazia was offered the prospect of becoming a princess and asked to choose whether she would marry Prince William or Prince Harry. She responded that she was not the marrying kind but that being a princess was quite tempting.
- Guest Peter was asked what he would change if he were king. He expressed his desire to abolish the monarchy and the moral dilemma that that presented. In the end, he decided to “just go for the crown and keep it”.
- This segued nicely into Svetlana’s question, “Should we still have a queen or king?” She speculated that when William becomes king he may reform the monarchy, bringing back the times of King Arthur.
- Manish was asked to choose a new location for his palace, should he be crowned king. He chose Lords pavilion – the Mecca of cricket – as he is a huge cricket fan.
- Asked whether the queen should retire, Tracey questioned the queen’s purpose. However, given that she is such a well-kept woman, why not just keep on going?
Renars evaluated each table topic with his usual wit. He pointed out the difference between a scripted speech and one which is improvised and went on to give detailed commendations and recommendations to each speaker.
Reports
Helen quoted numerous examples of excellent language used throughout the meeting. She also reported 10 uses of the word of the day.
Jane, our general evaluator, commended the club’s welcoming and warm atmosphere before evaluating each of the functionaries in a concise manner.
Awards
- Grace received an Icebreaker award for beginning her journey at Toastmasters.
- Paula received the Competent Communicator award for having completed her 10th speech. She also won Best Prepared Speech.
- Best Table Topic went to Peter for the second time in a row.
- The President’s award was given to Marte for having thrown herself into various roles since coming back to Toastmasters and running a highly entertaining table topics session.
Next Meeting
Our next regular meeting will be held on Monday, 10th February at The Apple Tree, 45 Mount Pleasant, WC1X 0AE (NOT The Real Man Pizza Company as previously announced).
Doors open at 6.30pm for a prompt 6.45pm start.
