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A WORD FROM OUR PRESIDENT RAY ROMAN, CTM
 As
President, I occasionally find myself calling for a volunteer to speak at the
next meeting due to a cancellation. The instant I make the request, I am struck
by the spiritual impact of my words; for without fail, all eyes are cast
downward in reflection! And thus the cajoling, wheedling and shaming begin . . .But
it does not have to be this way -- not at all. With a dash of know-how and a
dose of gumption, you can prepare a speech in no time. The key is to remember
that to put together a 5-7 minute speech with minimal preparation time, all you
really need are three things: 1.
TOPIC. You need a subject that you 1.1.
know something about, so you don't have to research much but can speak
from knowledge/experience; and 1.2.
care strongly about, so your energy on the subject will carry your
preparations forward and inform your performance; and
2.
STRUCTURE. You need a framework on which to hang your ideas and
supporting facts -- for example, Introduction, Body and Conclusion; 3.
PRACTICE (about 30 Minutes!) The
introduction can be as simple as this formula: (Hook
[attention getter] + Tell them what you're going to tell them) The
body can take many formats. Some suggestions:
*
Etc.[1]
The
conclusion can be as simple as this recipe: (Call
to action [optional] + Tell them what you've told them) To
make this plan work when you have little practice time, you need to memorize
the introduction and the conclusion. They are your anchors. For
the body, there are several ways to preserve it when you don't have time for
memorization. You can put a brief outline, set of bullet points or set of
images that spark your memory on an index card. An alternative is to create a
mnemonic device. In a recent talk, I used the acronym SCOPE to remind me of
the benefits of achieving one's CTM: Skills, Confidence, Open doors, Power and
Expanded learning. Another technique is to use a visual aid or prop which will
remind you what to say while summarizing or embodying your talk for the
audience. Or combine these techniques with others. When
you have memorized the introduction and conclusion and have your outline of the
body, practice a bit. If you have chosen a familiar topic and the speech is 5-7
minutes long, 30 minutes of practice should suffice. Set a timer for the
"red" time and run through the speech a few times. Take effort to
smooth out the rough spots, and be confident: your background knowledge and
enthusiasm on the subject will carry you through the body. While
the suggestion that this program works may seem blithe to a beginner, those of
you who have completed about four speeches should sense the truth of this plan
and ought by now possess the confidence to take on a short-notice speech
project. Challenge yourself as you read this to think of an issue that you have
some knowledge on, are concerned about and could speak briefly on along the
lines set out above. Go ahead, pick out a topic now and take a minute to run
through the outline. If
you do this, you will understand that you can deliver a serviceable speech on
short notice. By serviceable I mean that it does not have to be perfect; it only
has to be good enough to allow you to flex and develop your speaking skills
while interesting your audience and serving as an example for them[2]. Remember General George
S. Patton, one of the most successful leaders in recent history. He said he
would prefer a pretty good plan that can be carried out tomorrow over a perfect
plan that must wait until next week. What you need to speak is a pretty good
plan plus the spunk to carry it out -- nothing more. Some
will object that the standard of quality set by other speakers in the club is
too high to permit them to take a chance on this short-notice formula. Remember
that all members come to the Club with different backgrounds, different amounts
of preparation time and varied interests. The standard for measurement is not
how well others are doing, but how you
are doing in comparison to how you were when you started in Toastmasters. Also
bear in mind that the outline technique also works even better for preparing
speeches far in advance. For example, you could create a speech preparation
binder. When a topic occurs to you, dedicate one page to that topic and make a
note at the top of what you want to say. Divide the sheet of paper into top,
middle and bottom thirds labeled Introduction, Body and Conclusion if you like.
As ideas for this topic occur to you over the weeks or months, augment your
outline. Attach pertinent news clippings when you spot them. Then, when the call
goes out for a speech, you are almost ready to go and there will be little need
for last-minute scrambling. You will have made things easy for yourself.
[1]
I am indebted here to Don Smith, whose seminar, "How to Create a
Fifty-Minute Seminar. . . in Fifty Minutes!" changed my life as a
speaker on November 4, 2000 at the District 2 Toastmasters Fall Conference. [2]
That is, at Toastmasters, even a speaker's "mistake" is everyone's
opportunity to learn.
A
Moment for Membership
ERIC
THOMPSON
Vice
President Membership I
originally joined
As
I step into the role of Vice President of Membership, I would like to start off
by saying thanks to Theresa Collier for doing such a great job
as VPM and for helping me
transition into the role. When I
look at the status of our membership, I see it is
very strong. With the recent
additions of Carol Johnson and Eric Beattie last week, we now have a total of 30
active members! In
closing, I am grateful to everyone for making our Club a pleasant place where
guests and members can feel comfortable. Let
us continue to treat guests like we would treat someone in our homes: making
certain that guests are introduced to Club members and acknowledging them during
the meeting. In this way, we can continue to make our Club inviting to potential
members.
Our
Treasurer Speaks MICHAEL SUVERClub
Treasurer
Thanks!
Been
There, Done It. It’s a Little Bit
Different! SHEILA
DIXON, ATM This
was the title of the presentation given by Bob Opple, ATM-G, at the
Totem Toastmasters #41
meeting on Feb. 6th.
Bob
Opple is a professional speaker with 30 years experience as a Toastmaster.
His speaking career blossomed when he gave training seminars early in his
life as an employee of the large equipment manufacturer,
Caterpillar Inc.. Last
year he competed in the Toastmasters International Speech Contest, achieving
third place in the World Championship. In
this presentation, Bob allowed us to see “behind the scenes” as he prepares
for a speaking engagement. In fact he has a repertoire of ten speeches.
He is able to adapt each of his speeches to suit a special occasion, a
specific audience.
Does
this audience want to be informed, trained, persuaded, or entertained?
How much time is available? Bob
suggests 20 minutes would be a suitable length for an after dinner speech.
The sensitive topic of the fee is handled by asking what is the
organization’s budget for the event. He
is flexible, within limits. Bob
says if the budget allows $500 then that’s fine with him! As
a professional speaker, Bob arrives at the location early (1 1/2 to 2 hours!).
He checks out the room, podium, lights and microphone. He brings a spare bulb if he is using an overhead projector.
Bob has a dynamic speaking voice, which he projects to each corner of the
room. He suggests anyone needing a
microphone should have a backup available. The
keynote
address
needs to be inspiring, dynamic and emotional.
Humor should be appropriate – no off-color jokes!
Bob uses personal stories
and vivid descriptions. The audience needs to feel a bond of sympathy, common
experience or understanding. The
final thought of the speech should
be a gift for the audience to
take away with them. After
Bob concluded his presentation, two members of Totem Toastmasters, Jack Buce and
Ralph Pehrson, attempted Keynote speeches.
The group evaluated these speeches in a round
robin
format. Any
Toastmaster who has achieved the Competent Toastmaster designation would find an
Advanced Club beneficial. Presentations
are typically 20-45 minutes
and evaluations are in-depth.
The Club meets monthly, providing a laboratory to explore, develop and
apply leadership and management skills.
Meeting Awards & Reports Great meetings all month, even on the day of the earthquake (Feb. 28)!
Great
job, everyone! Keep up the good
work! We have now achieved 8 of the 10 Distinguished Club
goals (see below)! Membership
Anniversaries: Steve Thompson, ATM-B, Mar.
1996 Michael Suver, Mar. 1999 Gina Coluccio, Ashley
Kantor, Lisa Smith - Mar. 2000. Congratulations to Gloria Buce, ATM, for winning our Club-level International Evaluation Contest on March 14, 2001, and to Marta Boyle for placing second. Good luck in the Area 23 competition!
How to Create a 5 -Minute Speech… in 5 Minutes! MARLO
MYTTY I recently went back to
school (well, just for 2 nights) to attend a course through the University of
Washington’s Experimental College. It was taught by Don Everly Smith – an
experienced Toastmaster – titled “How
to Create a 5-Minute Speech… in 5 Minutes!”
I wasn’t sure how this would be possible, so my curiosity was piqued.
Now that I have completed the course, I feel that I have been given some
excellent tools that will significantly help
narrow down my speech topic, make my speeches more organized
and shorten my speech-preparation time.
In this article, I’ll share some of that information with you in the
hope that you will discover some tips and techniques that will aid in the
preparation and delivery of your speeches. Roadblocks
to speech writing are usually either a lack
of ideas or a
lack of organization. Don called ideas and organization the “2
cylinders of speech”. Both are needed to prepare an effective speech.
Whichever is your weak point, this speech-writing technique can
help you.
The
second phase of Mind Mapping is the Evaluation Phase. Now that your ideas
are all out there, you can analyze and organize them into a logical structure.
A tip for organizing and narrowing down ideas is to use a standard speech
format. Some of the formats that Don outlined include: ·
Contrast/Comparison, Advantages/Disadvantages, Positives/Negatives ·
Story ·
Analogy (i.e. how success in sports is similar to success in
career…) ·
Problem/Cause/Solution ·
Points 1-2-3 ·
Feel-Felt-Found (i.e. I know you might feel…I felt the same
way…I’ve found that….) ·
Past-Present-Future ·
Challenge/Response ·
Cost/Benefit Analysis ·
Persuasion Format (win Attention, arouse Interest, create Desire,
and stimulate action or Agreement) ·
Risk/Reward, Opportunity/Obstacle Once
you have chosen a format, write the speech using the anatomy (parts) of a
speech. Whereas Toastmasters teaches there are 3 parts of a speech
(Introduction, Body, and Conclusion), Don professes
that there are actually 4 parts: Introduction, Thesis (or Specific Purpose
Statement), Body, and Conclusion. The
purpose of the “SPS” is that it gives the point of the speech up front
before you bury the audience in detail. Your
audience generally wants to know where you are going and wants you to get to the
point right away before all of the detail is provided.
Write a strong introduction and conclusion, fit the format in the body,
don’t forget the SPS, and you have your speech.
Don pointed out that the Greek dramatists have a saying “By your
entrances and your exits, shall you be known!” This is just a brief summary of some of the main points that I took away from the course. We also learned an emergency technique for use when you do truly have only 5 minutes to prepare a speech, but you will have to take the course to find out what it is! I’d highly recommend all Toastmasters to take the course, as I’m sure each one of us would come away with parts that we found most valuable to our own improvement. Don will be teaching a shortened 3-hour version of the course on April 30th from 6:30-9:30pm. You can register through the UW Experimental College at (206) 68-LEARN.
Already
a proven go-getter, Carol recently achieved the
long-term career-change goal of becoming involved in the affordable and
low-income housing arena. Taking a hefty pay-cut to do the work she loves,
she is now a senior development analyst for the Washington State Housing Finance
Commission. Through increased skills and self-confidence as a public
speaker, she hopes to have an influence on the availability of affordable
housing in Washington. Carol
was born in Burundi, Africa, and came to the U.S. when she was eight. After
living in the mid-west, she came to Seattle in 1982. She lives with her
partner Bruce and two cats. Outside of work, Carol enjoys cycling,
skiing, gardening, hiking and reading. On behalf of all of us in
Toastmasters Club #6949, welcome Carol!
The Secretary’s Corner – Club Business MADELEINE
KOLB Club
Meeting 3/07/2001 The
Club voted unanimously to accept Carol Johnson and Eric Beattie as new members.
They were duly sworn in to the Club by President Ray Roman, CTM. Executive
Committee 3/07/2001 The
following officers were present: President Ray Roman, CTM; VP Education Fred
Coutts; VP Membership Eric Thompson; Secretary Madeleine Kolb; Treasurer Michael
Suver; Sgt-at-Arms Lisa Smith; and Immediate Past President Sheila Dixon, ATM.
They reviewed and updated the Club Success Plan, and discussed
preparation for the Mar. 14 Speech/Evaluation Contest.
Eric spoke about new member orientation, and the need for more time and a
quiet place to talk with guests after meetings.
Several suggestions were offered. A
reminder was given that dues are due, and mentors needed for new members.
The meeting was adjourned.
The
Northgate Chamber Is Marching Forward! MICHELLE
RUPP A brief history:
The Northgate area is
The
steering committee meets every other week for several hours. We have been
diligently and laboriously writing the bylaws. When our discussions hit a
vortex, we realized that we needed a mission/vision statement in order to make
any additional decisions. Just this month we gathered vision/mission
material and will begin our next meeting doing the work to formulate the vision
for the Chamber. Just
a preview: the consensus so far is that we want to be a community
organization that views events through business lenses. In other words, we
think we would like our scope to go beyond the typical Chamber of Commerce. All
of the members of the steering committee feel the tremendous responsibility and
excitement of being able to lay the groundwork for this organization. In
the meantime, even though we have stopped soliciting memberships until we have
our nonprofit status, we are having luncheons the third Wednesday of every month
at noon at Northaven Retirement Apartments at 11045 8th Ave. NE (across from the
Post Office). All of our speakers are focusing on the issues facing our
Northgate Community. We would love to have you! The group is very
friendly and inclusive - not unlike our Toastmasters Group! It would be great if
you could call us at 695-4141 to RSVP but don't let lack of reservations stop
you from coming at the last minute. The cost is $10 for lunch. It is
a great networking opportunity. Hope to see you there! Editor’s
note: Notable Northgaters is a charter member of the Northgate Chamber. Please
attend as a representative of our Club, making sure to wear your Toastmasters
pin or badge. Chamber meetings are excellent opportunities to put your public
speaking skills into practice in the real world, as Michelle is doing. Here
are some highlights of recent meetings: January 17th: NGCC meeting at Northaven. There were 30 people present. Mike Thompson, President of Maple Leaf Community Council and the North District Council gave us an overview of how the neighborhood council system works. He also familiarized us with the various neighborhood councils in and surrounding the Northgate Area.
February
21st: NGCC. Dierdre Grace from the Department of Neighborhoods gave
us an update. A
comprehensive update from each department as a follow up to the Northgate
Planning process that occurred this fall is
scheduled for 2/28/01.
The steering committee is driving hard to complete the necessary items in order
to achieve our non-profit status. Next meeting, March 21st at Northaven,
12 Noon.
Upcoming Events Mar.
21st, Northgate
Chamber of Commerce Luncheon, 11:45 a.m. check-in, Northhaven Retirement Home at
11045 Eighth Ave NE.
Mar.
21st, semi-annual dues due. Mar.
21st, regular Club meeting, 5:30 p.m.
Sat.
Mar. 24th, Area 21/23 International Speech & Evaluation
Contest, 10:00 am-noon, Fairview Church, 79th NE and Roosevelt, Seattle.
Parking one block north on 79th.
Mar.
28th,,
regular Club meeting, 5:30 p.m. Apr.
4th, regular Club meeting, 5:30 p.m. Apr.
7th, Division
B International Speech & Evaluation Contest, 6:00 p.m potluck, 7:00 p.m.
contest. Maple
Leaf Evangelical Church, NE 96th and 12th NE, Seattle. Apr.
9th, newsletter deadline. Apr.
11th, regular Club meeting, 5:30 p.m. Apr.
15th, next newsletter publication date. Apr.
21st, Deadline to register for the Toastmasters Fiesta (Spring
Conference) on Cinco de Mayo.
Notable Northgaters #6949 July 1, 2000 - June 30, 2001 Updated 3/7/2001
NEWSLETTER STAFF Publisher: Ray Roman, CTM, President Editor: Gabriela Remow, ATM-B, VP PR | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Last Updated: Wednesday, April 18, 2001
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To
begin writing a speech, Don suggests starting with a process called Mind
Mapping. The first phase of Mind
Mapping is the Generation Phase. During this process, you will
generate new ideas for a speech topic. Choose a central idea, such as
“career” or “nature”, and write the word or idea down in the center of a
blank piece of paper. Use crayons so that there is not too much detail and take
2 minutes to brainstorm, creating lines and circles 
slated to get a new community center, a library and a park. As the City
began having public meetings, they realized that the business community didn't
have a voice in the discussions. Therefore, they dedicated seed money to
begin a Chamber. A steering committee was formed.