Introductions
President Swarajit opened the meeting by welcoming guests and members. He spoke about the open and friendly atmosphere in Bloomsbury Speakers, which offers a safe platform for both guests and members to get up and speak in front of an audience until they gain confidence.
The Toastmaster Glen, a past president of Bloomsbury Speakers, started by commending the immediate past and current presidents for a fantastic job done. He went on to introduce the functionaries and his theme for the meeting, which was “What experience have you had (recent or otherwise) that really got your adrenaline pumping?”
Timekeeper David talked us through the green, amber and red light system for timing speeches and cautioned speakers to be mindful of the gavel.
The Grammarian, Samuel, introduced the word of the day as “Congruent”. He also gave a number of examples of rhetorical devices that speakers could use in their speeches and encouraged the use of good language generally.
Prepared Speeches
Rajeev on his number 5 speech ‘Cash in hand’ started by sharing with us his hunt for a painter and the moral dilemma of not paying tax – should he pay the painter “cash in hand”? In his speech he explained the difference between tax evasion, tax avoidance and tax abuse and how it applies to our financial activities.
In his number 9 speech ‘Somaliland’, Ahmed gave us an insight to the history of Somaliand – an independent state that has not been recognised as such by the international community, perhaps because of its lack of natural resources. He said is always at the end of receiving bad press because of connections with Somalia however in spite of all the struggles nearby, there is still a peace haven in Somaliland.
Joe’s advances speech on storytelling, entitled “Ups and Downs”, expressed his views and opinions on the ups and downs of success, something we all experience. Joe drew on personal stories such his time as a teenage tennis player and an episode where he was determined to climb a mountain near Marrakesh despite having food poisoning. These helped him to drive home his point about the pressure to become successful at all cost and to explore the lessons learnt.
Renars in his advanced speech persuasive speech entitled “Do you get me?” shared his fascination about the English language, how one word in English can have different meaning from one country to the other. Some example cited were: “How are you?” in Canada simply meant “Hi” and the use of filler phrases by the English such as “Do you get me” after every statement. The morale of was to be mindful when you use the English language in another country.
Evaluations
Ben liked the choice of Rajeev’s topic – which everyone has an opinion about – and the way he explained the possible scenarios. He also commended his natural presence, great eye contact and a friendly tone, however he was recommended to make better use of the stage.
Mike commended Ahmed on an illuminating speech and a great concept of talking about Somalia from another perspective other than the news. Other commendations were good pauses and gestures which engaged interest and the use of personal story. In closing, Mike recommended Ahmed to use more of his allotted time.
Rufina, who evaluated Joe, was impressed with the pace of his speech, timing, audience engagement and a great choice of topic. She felt the use of personal stories further enforced his message and her main recommendation was to practice the rule of three.
Paula commended Renars on choosing a captivating, catchy and punchy speech title ‘Do you get me’ and his use of humour. She also mentioned his other great qualities such as being an open, friendly and enjoyable person to watch, however she felt his speech lacked a clear structure and was not very persuasive, which was the main objective of the speech.
Table Topics
Table Topicsmaster for the evening was Kate. Participants were given were given 6 different day jobs which could pump up their adrenaline. The questions – and speakers who tackled them – were as follows:
- “Tell us why you are great at diffusing bomb in a serious environment?” Jo informed us that although she’s not very good at diffusing bombs she could however shepherd everyone away from it.
- “Tell us the benefit of pick pocketing or bag snatcher?” Adam outlined his reasons which were: the great items you get, meeting people and the thrill it gives you.
- “Why do you enjoy been a bungee jumper?” Samuel enlightened us on the excitement factor and the great weight loss technique it offers.
- “What will make you a good lion tamer?” Eva informed us she would not dare go near lions however she will tend to sheep instead because of their gentle nature.
- “The great benefit of been a formula one driver?” Jonathan cheerfully educated us that the car does the work while he gets the thrill and the dream of dating a Pussycat Doll, like Louis Hamilton.
- What will make you a good shoplifter? Joowan informed us of her 5yrs experience in shoplifting, attributing her success to her innocent looks and the love of it.
Awards
Best Table Topics award went to Adam for his impromptu justification for been a pick pocket.
Best Evaluator went to Paula for her precise evaluation of Renars advance speech.
Best Speech went to Renars for his advanced persuasive speaking “Do you get me?”
Rajeev after delivering his 5th speech received a ‘Half-Competent Communicator’ award.
Next meeting
Please note our next two events – our regular meeting thisMonday 19th August and our topics workshop onMonday, 2nd September have been moved over to The Real Man Pizza Company. However it reverts back our regular venue upstairs at The Clerk & Well pub, 156 Clerkenwell Road, EC1R 5DU on on Monday, 9th September 2013
Doors open at 6.30pm for a prompt 6.45pm start.
