Posts Tagged ‘public speaking’

Competent Communicator Award from Toastmasters

Friday, December 19th, 2008

Hello! I’ve just received my Competent Communicator Award from Toastmasters International. That means that I gave 10 speeches in front of an audience in my local club. Would you like to know what about were those speeches? Below is a list of the titles. Most of the speeches are in some form converted into articles on this website.

18th Jun 2007 - Icebreaker
29th Oct 2007 - Reiki
26th Nov 2007 - The Law of Attraction
17th Dec 2007 - Practical Use of the Angels
18th Feb 2008 - You Can Be a Tai Chi Master
14th Apr 2008 - Unleash the Power Within
26th May 2008 - Vegan Children
01st Sep 2008 - Raw Vegan Food
29th Sep 2008 - EFT - Emotional Freedom Technique
24th Nov 2008 - Money Free World

Each speech has to obey some rules and guidances, at the bottom there is a list of them. It took me a year and a half to complete these ten speeches which is fairly good. Doing it in one year would be too crammed, although there are people doing it faster. Each speech lasts only several minutes but preparation takes countless hours spread over weeks. Writing articles takes also a lot of time but it is much faster. Non the less it is worth it. In between those speeches I played almost every role in the club: I recited two poems, introduced word of the day three times, kept timing of other member’s speeches etc…, once I even was a Head Toastmaster for one day - that means that I kept control of the whole meeting. This year I’m a also a secretary so I log each meeting and I prepare a program/agenda before each meeting. There are many advanced speakers in my club, Competent Communicator - 10 speeches is just a first step into an art of public speaking. Here are guidances for those first 10 speeches:

 
 

Speech 1 – The Ice breaker
Objectives:

  • To begin speaking before an audience,
  • To discover speaking skills you already have and skill that need some attention.
    Time: 4 - 6 mins.  

     

    Speech 2 - Organise your speech
    Objectives:

  • Select an appropriate outline which allows listeners to easily follow and understand your speech.
  • Make your message clear, with supporting material directly contributing to that message.
  • Use appropriate transitions when moving from one idea to another.
  • Create a strong opening and conclusion .
    Time: 5-7 mins.  

     

    Speech 3 - Get to the point
    Objectives:

  • Select a speech topic and determine its general and specific purposes.
  • Organise the speech in a manner that best achieves these purposes.
  • Project sincerity and conviction and control any nervousness you may feel.
  • Strive not to use notes.
    Time: 5 – 7 mins.  

     

    Speech 4 - How to say it.
    Objectives:

  • Select the right words and sentence structure to communicate your ideas clearly, accurately and vividly.
  • Use rhetorical devices to enhance and emphasis ideas.
  • Eliminate jargon and unnecessary words. Use correct grammar
    Time: 5 -7 mins.  

     

    Speech 5 - Your body speaks.
    Objectives:

  • Use stance, movement, gestures, facial expressions and eye contact to express your message and achieve your speech’s purpose.
  • Make your body language smooth and natural.
    Time: 5 – 7 mins.  

     

    Speech 6 – Vocal Variety.
    Objectives:

  • Use voice volume, pitch, rate and quality to reflect and add meaning and
  • interest to your message.
  • Use pauses to enhance your message.
  • Use vocal variety smoothly and naturally.
    Time 5 – 7 mins.  

     

    Speech 7 - Research your topic.
    Objectives:

  • Collect information about your topic from numerous sources.
  • Carefully support your points and opinions with specific facts, examples and illustrations gathered through research.
    Time 5 – 7 mins.  

     

    Speech 8 - Get comfortable with visual aids.
    Objectives:

  • Select visual aids that are appropriate for your message and the audience.
  • Use visual aids correctly with ease and confidence.
    Time 5 – 7 mins.  

     

    Speech 9 - Persuade with power.
    Objectives:

  • Persuade listeners to adopt your viewpoint or ideas or to take some action.
  • Appeal to the audience’s interests.
  • Use logic and emotion to support your position.
  • Avoid using notes.
    Time 5 – 7 mins.  

     

    Speech 10 - Inspire your audience.
    Objectives:

  • To inspire the audience by appealing to noble motives and challenging the audience to achieve a higher level of beliefs or achievement.
  • Appeal to the audience’s needs and emotions, using stories, anecdotes and quotes to add drama.
  • Avoid using notes
    Time 8 – 10 mins.  

     

    Each speech and any presentation in Toastmasters has to avoid top three controversial topics: sex, religion and politics. Beside that there are really no restrictions and there is unlimited selection of topics. I’ve chosen those that I liked most. I am so happy that I gave these speeches and to have this award now :)

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    Can This Help You To Break the Fear of Public Speaking?

    Friday, June 27th, 2008

    I am happily surprised. I’ve just received “the most improved speaker award 2008″ from my local Toastmasters club. Toastmasters International is a worldwide network of clubs for developing public speaking skills. Below you will read about how meetings look like, what will happen if you join and at the end you will be able to do a search for a nearby club.
    The first step in improving your public speaking skills is breaking the fear of standing in front of an audience. Most people fear it more than death. You can overcome this fear with Toastmasters quite easily in a safe and supportive environment. It doesn’t have to be a speech straight away, there are plenty various roles like introducing a word of the day, saying a short poem or just saying few words in a proper time.

    Meetings are very organized and the program is almost identical in all clubs globally. Most clubs meet fortnightly or weekly and duration is usually two hours with a break in the middle. The first part is informal and is mostly filled with impromptu speaking, that means that one specified person - a Topicsmaster - asks a question to someone in the audience or waits for a volunteer which has to give a quick answer off the cuff. For beginners it’s hard, the first few times I was selected I stood up and couldn’t breathe, the heart was pumping loudly, I just kept thinking “Why me? I have nothing to say on that. Couldn’t they ask me another question?”. Now I volunteer on every meeting and I like to say something even if afterwards I have back thoughts like “I forgot to say about the most important thing”, “I could say it without tension” etc. I like it because I know that it’s normal and I see some progress. Usually there are plenty of interesting questions during the first part of the meeting.

    The second part is more rigid and timed, those are the prepared speeches and evaluations. That is really cool because in Toastmasters we do evaluation internally - one member to another like a friend to a friend. In some clubs like in mine there are even paper slips that anyone from the audience can fill in with a feedback and comments about what could be improved and what are the strengths of the speech.

    Any interested guests are always welcome and it feels good to all members if there are guests. First three meeting a free, then if you decide to join there is a yearly fee of something about $90 and on each meeting about $5 for renting the room, prices vary. You will receive helpful manuals at the beginning and then a not so helpful monthly magazine sent to your address. When you join Toastmasters and decide to give speeches you will get an assigned mentor - advanced member who can guide you or at least give some clues. I have a privilege to have a mentor who was a president of the Toastmasters International several years ago.

    Now you should know how to break the fear of public speaking. Do it with small roles, volunteer to answer impromptu especially if the question fits you. When you join you get manuals, a mentor and warm support of other members. I definitely recommend Toastmasters. You can search for clubs right here: www.toastmasters.org/websiteApps
    Remember, the first three meetings are free but you will know straight away how much it can help you.

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