The London Speaker

The Speaker starts this week 7 and 8 April on BBC2

The Speaker is about to hit our screens! 

By now you've probably seen the trailers for the new BBC2 show The Speaker...A group of young people declaiming from JFK's inaugural speech "Ask not what your country can do for you.  Ask what you can do for your country." 

The search in on to find Britain's best young speaker in this show hosted by Jo Brand.  Starting with 1000s of 14-18 year olds one minute application speeches 160 were selected to take part. Put through their paces at regional auditions the final 20 participants are on a steep learning curve to develop their skills and win the contest. 

The show starts tomorrow Tuesday 7th April 8pm -9pm with participants from Glasgow and London. Followed by a second programme on Wednesday 8th April 8pm-9pm with participants from Cardiff and Manchester.  From programme 3 they will work with celebratory mentors Alastair Campbell (persuasive speaking), Kate Silverton (storytelling);

 Lord Spencer (delivering information)

 and Deborah Meaden (speaking with conviction).

If you saw the Yes We Can.  The Lost Art of Oratory.  Last night on BBC2 you will have got the message that interest in public speaking and persuasion is riding high.  Toastmaster club committees can use this interest to generate local pr for our clubs and collectively for their Area. Remember the new District 71, UK and Ireland press kit is available on www.d71.org to help you. This is valuable resource.  As a London Division B we are making contact with London wide press, radio etc and we hope every club/Area will be in touch with local newspapers and other local media.  Please contact Dorothea Stuart if you have any questions or ideas.

As individual members we can also all take the opportunity to encourage friends,family, colleagues indeed anyone who expresses and in interest in the show to come and visit a Toastmasters club.  After all if 14-18 year olds can become great speakers with help and encouragement so can they!

Making the most of Contest Season

As we approach the start of contest season here are a few ideas that could help you and your club to maximise your Toastmasters educational opportunity over the coming weeks both as a contestant and as contest functionaries.

Contestant

For those of you taking part in the Humorous Speech contest, I would strongly recommend that you follow the Toastie maxim that “Every Speech should be a Manual Speech”. Providing that the speech you deliver meets the objectives of a manual speech, so long as the speech evaluated to these objectives and written into your manual, there is no reason why the speech can not count towards a CC or Advanced award. A further benefit is that delivering any speech can count towards projects 4 or 5 from the CL manual.

For those lucky enough to win at a club contest, when you deliver the same speech at the next level you can also have the speech evaluated for another project providing once again that the objectives of the project are met and that you incorporate the recommendations from the earlier evaluation. For example a speech evaluated for the club contest against the objectives of Project 6 Vocal Variety, could also be evaluated against the objectives of Project 8 Getting Comfortable with Visual Aids if the objectives of both are met.

For table topic contestants if you haven’t already done so why not have someone evaluate you for project 1 of the CL award. 

Functionaries

Helping to organise a club speech contest, either for your own club or for another club, in some capacity (except contest chair) e.g. Chief Judge, SAA can be used to fulfil the requirements of project 6 of the CL award.

For those of you who are contest chair you could be evaluated against the objectives from 2 of the elements of CL project 8 or 1 from CL project 10. Being a Contest Chair on more than 1 occasion can help you speed through the CL award.

For a club to really maximise the opportunity, the two contests should be treated separately and different Contest Chairs appointed enabling more members to satisfy the CL requirements.

The key component to these ideas is meeting the objectives of the project that you are undertaking. You need to read what you are required to do in advance so that you can satisfy yourself that you are following the programme correctly and most importantly that you have your manual with you on the night to have the written evaluation completed correctly.

As Toastmasters we all know that Stage time is a valuable commodity. If you maximise all the opportunity available to you over the next few weeks you will be able to make great strides towards becoming a Competent Leader, Competent Communicator or an Advanced Communicator.

Toastmasters learn from the biggest youth speaking event in the world

Have you ever wondered what would have happened if you'd starting your toastmasters career when you were just 15 years old?  If only...

20,000 plus Year 10 students across London and Essex have been given the fabulous opportunity to take part in the Jack Petchey "Speak Out" Challenge! organised by SpeakersBank.  Culminating this year in the Gala Grand Final 2008 18 contestants enthralled the audience of 600 people with their extraordinary speaking skills. 

The 2008 winner Sultan Ahmed received a standing ovation after his 3 minute speech.  Combining great humour with a serious message about discrimination he convincingly showed us despite being short he is a giant.

As you might expect members of Toastmasters have been involved with Speak Out Challenge. Working for SpeakersBank Sean Kennedy of London Communicators has project managed the whole endeavour.

Others of us have been MCs and judges at Regional Finals (an extremely hard job!) and a part of enthusiastic audiences.

Iain Duthie, 2007/08 Assistant Division B Governor, attended the 2008 Gala Grand Final.   His first impression? "What struck me most was the exceptionally high standard of the speakers.  The speeches were as diverse as the individuals' backgrounds and some were very powerfully delivered."  Will he be back? "I'll certainly be back for the 2009 Final.  I learned such a lot this year, about techniques for speaking in public and the fact that not all groups of young people want to cause mayhem - they can also be inspiring."

See the contestants in the video clip below from the 2007 Challenge.

 

And the Wandsworth Borough Final 2007:

 

But what happens once the grand final is over?   Sean Kennedy would love to see more Toastmasters clubs getting involved with a Youth Leadership Program or finding other ways to help the students continue developing their promise. Could your club forge links with a local school or holding 'junior evenings' where young speakers can perform?  "As we all know the more we speak the better we get.  Toastmasters have a chance to provide more opportunities for these young people, and connect with a future generation of members."

The Jack Petchey Foundation has increased funding of the "Speak Out" Challenge! so it will be extended to 20 cities in the UK from September.  Members of Toastmasters will be very welcome as guests at Regional Finals and Sean would welcome Club Presidents to join the team of judges.  SpeakersBank are developing the www.speakoutchallenge.com site as public speaking resource for young people.  Video tips and other resources from Toastmasters would be greatly appreciated.  Email Sean to offer your support. 

And for real treat buy the DVD of the 2008 Gala Grand Final and learn from some truly exceptional performances.

Technorati Tags: Toastmasters,Speak Out Challenge,Youth Leadership Program

The Grand Toastmasters Tour of Ireland, Part 2

Having just done Killarney, we’re now off to Kilkenny!

I have just received a short note from Lucia Hughes for readers of The London Speaker. She is the organiser of the Three Castles Toastmasters conference in Kilkenny, Ireland. It is on Nov 7-9th. I’ll let her take it away:

Are you feeling left out of the loop? Are you tired of reading about the great fun fellow members have had at the conference in Killarney? Well, now is your chance to join that great club of conference goers and experience the fun and benefits of attending for yourself. Come along to Kilkenny on November 7th, 8th and 9th for the Three Castles Conference and attend the Humorous Speech Contest, Table Topics Contest and Education Workshops. Both your Division Governor, Dick Dixon, and Area Governor, Freddie Daniells, will tell you, any chance they get, about how they were welcomed and enjoyed coming to Ireland on each of their visits. If you are in any doubt that they are exaggerating (Ed – moi??) ask your Asst Division Governor,Iain Duthie, for verification, because he is not given to overstating the facts!

At Three Castles we can offer you an incentive to attend by becoming your club’s conference booking coordinator. This task could earn you a step along the way in your Competent Leader manual in project 6 ‘Organizing and Delegating’, - module ‘Help Organise a Club Special Event’. If you take on the role of conference coordinator in your club it involves encouraging fellow members, (more than two, in order to derive some value from the exercise) to commit to attending. Help them fill out the form, compile the applications, arrange payment and forward all to the Bookings Secretary Noel O’Farrell (chrisjof@gmail.com).

This done, you will have learned and used quite a lot of organizing and delegating skills on the way and earned a positive evaluation for your efforts. Many clubs may not have a special event coming up every year, so why not run with this idea. It is a ready-made opportunity to complete ‘Organising and Delegating’ Project 6 (only one module is required).

One more thing, when you are booking could you assist us by having your booking with us before the end of August when bookings are certain to become very brisk with the return of club meetings in Ireland. We at Three Castles are committed to maintaining the sanity of our Bookings Secretary Noel O’Farrell. You can play your part by making your booking sooner rather than later. Noel will be glad to discuss payment methods with anyone who makes contact with him at 00 353 85 1741506.

I look forward to meeting you in Kilkenny for the Contests, Workshops and seeing you sporting your 60’s style for the fun and frolics on Friday evening. Best efforts will not go un-noticed - a weekend break is on offer to the best 60’s guy or gal!

So please get November 7th-9th in the diary! All the information you will need is here on the d71 site:

http://d71.org/portal.php?page=36

Interestingly, I was recently asked my thought on projects that members could do for Project 6 of the Leadership manual. Lucia has an excellent idea. It would be great if each club appointed an aspiring leader to keep conferences in people minds and help co-ordinate registration. If you can get a small group from your club to go it is even more fun. Perhaps bring this up at your next committee meeting?

I had a great time in Killarney so barring major catastrophes you will see me in Kilkenny too! I hope to see you there as well.

Toastmasters Clubs - Special Events

Creating traditions. Making your club even more special.

In London (Div B) we all get involved in annual club contests culminating in the UK & Ireland finals or beyond.  But some of our clubs have special contests of their own.  Unique, fun events reflecting the culture and interests of those particular clubs.  And also giving members another outstanding opportunity to hone their speaking skills.

Two such events will be happening soon. Get out your diary and put in the annual Persuaders Contest at London Corinthians (this Thursday 12th June) and the Socrates Cup (Tuesday 8th July), an annual debate between London Athenians and West London Speakers.

Describing the Persuaders Contest Amy Jackson VPE, London Corinthians says "it gives a opportunity for new members to take the plunge and enter a contest, as well as challenging all the participants." 

How does it work? In the first round everyone gives a three minute persuasive speech on any subject they wish.  Having attended last year I can confirm that there was an extraordinary range of passionately argued speeches both serious and humorous.  The second round, for the five finalists is topics style so you hear very different persuasive arguments on the same subject.  As Amy says, "Persuaders is now a tradition. We couldn't imagine the end of the Toastmasters year without it."

At West London Speakers President Kimra Argus is looking forward to the next Socrates Cup debate.  Having just celebrated their second birthday in effervescent style the "Champagne Club" of Hammersmith is more than ready to field its team for the debate with its sister club. 

Why did they choose a debate? As Hakan Akbas, President London Athenians confirms, with the proud tradition of ancient Greece behind them they really had no choice.  He particularly values the Socrates Cup as "a way to encourage members to think more creatively."  The debate team members use all their Toastmaster speaking skills in a format  demanding persuasiveness and quick thinking.  "The debate brings out the skills we practice in table topics, as well as encouraging the audience to evaluate the arguments put forward. It's also an opportunity to bring the two clubs together in friendly rivalry."

All three clubs would love you to visit them on their big nights.  Perhaps they can persuade you to start up your own special tradition.

Technorati Tags: Toastmasters,debate,speech contest

A great idea - themed evenings (thanks London Corinthians!)

Do you ever feel that your regular club meetings could do with an occasional livening up? As President of Holborn Speakers I knew how hard it was to keep things feeling fresh.

Not long after I became an AG, the lovely Kim Horner, President of London Corinthians, came to GE at Holborn Speakers. As part of her recommendation for the club she suggested occasional themed evenings. I thought it an excellent idea.

Kim doesn't just say, she does! At London Corinthians there are regular themed evenings. The last meeting was Spanish themed and yesterday I received a mail about this weeks:

Men’s Night @ London Corinthians – Thursday 31^st January 2008- 7:15pm for 7:30pm

Join us this Thursday for our annual, unique, testosterone-filled meeting, Men’s Night! All roles will be taken by the hairier sex, with men and women doing Table Topics.  It promises to a great evening; a celebration of all things male. But anyone of any sex is very, very welcome.

So why don’t you come along to Victoria and practise those all important public speaking and leadership skills and, at the same time, have lots of fun. Go on. You know that you want to!

Location:

Buckingham Suite, Ground floor, Thistle Westminster Hotel, 49 Buckingham Palace Road (corner of Bressenden Place), London, SW1W 0QT

I think this is great. Their next meeting is the Alternative Valentines night (details here) on February 14th and then the a Women’s Night (with men and women doing Table Topics) on Thursday 28th February. I think it is great to see people play with the format to add interest. Well done Kim!

Let us know at London Speaker Towers of great themed evenings that your club has had. Please drop us a mail or leave a comment below. Maybe other clubs would be keen to adopt these themes for themselves too?

PS Its not me in the mask! ;)

The Missing Presidents Awards

One of the biggest joys I had as President of Holborn Speakers was giving out the awards at the end of each meeting. It is always great to be able to recognise peoples achievements as Best Speaker, Best Table Topics or Best Evaluator.

However, without question, my favourite award was the Presidents Award. This is an award that I gave at my own discretion and did not have to be awarded every week.

I regularly GE at other clubs and it recently occurred to me that I hardly ever see it awarded when on my travels. Before everyone writes in, I am sure that some clubs do give out this award but many don't. I think this a big shame.

It is similar to the Most Improved award at school. At my school, the same people tended to win the main place prizes but there was always a chance for us all to be recognised as the Most Improved. This immensely powerful tool for encouragement and recognition is available to us as Toastmasters too through the Presidents Award.

I would give out Presidents awards for a number of reasons. They were :

1. Someone who had done a role for the first time. We separately always gave out an Icebreaker Speech certificate to first time speakers - does this happen at other clubs too?
2. Someone who evidently was overcoming huge obstacles by just standing in front of an audience.
3. Someone who had stepped into a role or speech at the last minute.
4. Those who had gone above and beyond the call of duty by perhaps taking on a job that they hadn't needed to or excelled at their job beyond what was reasonably expected.
5. The silent people without who the club would not operate. For example, it was always good to remind the audience that the room wasn't just set up this way and that every week the Sergeant at Arms made it that way.

It is one of the strongest tools we have for encouragement of the good things we want to see from our members at our clubs.

I take no claim for this idea - David Jones, Deborah Ilott, Atul Patel and prior Presidents at Holborn had instilled it as part of our club culture.

I hope that this post reminds a few people of its value and we see more clubs awarding it in future.

Let me know your thoughts on this in the comments below.

Sermon over! ;)

PS Looking at the Toastmasters shop, this award may have been renamed as The Outstanding Toastmaster certificate. Link here: Outstanding TM Certficate. However, the point remains!

PPS If you have good things happening at your club that you think others may benefit from please let me know and I will get an article up here!

Adding video to your Club meetings

When President of Holborn Speakers, we discussed several times the idea of video recording speeches for members to watch later. However, we quickly realised that someone would have to take responsibility for taking the video home and making it in some way viewable by the membership. Given our other commitments we decided to pass.

The President of Grosvenor Square Speakers, Carol West, however, has come up with the answer! Nowadays, many cheap video recorders record in PC and MAC friendly formats. Additionally, they
use simple media such as DVDs. At Grosvenor Square, they will buy the camera but tell members that they are responsible for supplying the media. No doubt they will keep a few spare DVDs that they can sell at cost to members (approximately £1-2). This is brilliant! It gives members the facility but doesn't burden the committee with yet more responsibility. Good cameras that suit the need can be had for £200-300. Hopefully we might see a few other clubs adopt this idea.