Hutchinson Toastmasters II

Descriptive words are the paint brush a speaker uses to create vivid images in the mind of the listener. Pay attention to the words you speak as you craft your speech. Think about the words before you speak them. Do they project an image, or fall flat? . Listen to words others use that effectively describe a word picture.

To this day, I still remember Bob’s description of scalding the hairy pig in Japan and the elephant walking down the streets of Cokato that Kay described.

Be careful when crafting your words that you do not use so many that you need to memorize every word of your speech, as Karen communicated in a previous Tip Of The day. Rather, sprinkle colorful words throughout your speech for impact and dramatization. This practice also is a very effective method in navigating through your speech, as you recall your key words.

Raymond Norton

I am the President of the Hutchinson One Wheelers, the local unicycle club. We have two teenage girls that like to talk REALLY LOUD during practices, and this made me think of my tip of the day for Thursday, May 27th. Here are two things to think of while speaking: volume, and pitch.

Adjust the volume.
Use changes in volume to prevent your voice from slipping into monotonous sameness and to alert your audience to the nuances of your message.

Always speak loudly enough so everyone in your audience can hear you. Speak a little more loudly if the audience is large, even if you’re using a microphone.

Lower the volume for an aside. Raise the volume gradually as you build toward a point.

Change your volume when you’re changing an idea or an approach.

Refine the pitch.
Pitch is the frequency of the sound waves you produce. It is about hitting high or low notes with your voice.

Become aware of pitch and learn to refine it, phrase-by-phrase. Questions, for example, should end on a higher note. Conversely, affirmative statements should end in a level or slightly lower pitch. The ending of statements on a high pitch can create doubt in your listeners.

Vary your pitch throughout your presentation to establish and reinforce your message.

Next time you speak, consider using volume and pitch to strengthen your speech.

Toastmasters encourages you to step outside your boundaries and take risks.  One way I have done that is to use my time in TM as a springboard for job applications which have a larger communication requirement than I was previously comfortable with.  This led me to video tape two speeches for my own use (speeches are not taped at TM meetings except by the speaker’s request).

I adapted two advanced manual speeches from the Speaking from Television manual to record two demo tapes for two different job applications (and will be used for future opportunities when they come along), one for WeatherEye Radio in St Paul and one for WeatherNation in Excelsior.  Even if I do not get the positions, I feel it was worth it to challenge myself to step outside my personal boundaries in this way.

I also plan to work on The Professional Speaker advanced manual in the future (when I finish a couple other advanced manuals).  I am choosing this one because in this economic downturn webinars have become very popular, for job training and quasi-sales presentations.    Speech #4 in this manual allows for a 20-40 minute practice seminar which could be adapted for webinar practice for greater outreach to others outside your local geographic location through the use of modern technology.

This is all above what you get from any weekly meeting with Table Topics, 1-2 minute impromptu speeches on various topics.  These encourage you to speak on your feet which are priceless in the job interview process.  You learn how to think fast to respond to questions as you prove yourself in the job interview process.

We all struggle to think up topics about what to speak on from time to time.  In the past couple of years I have taken on two (and probably a third in the near future) blogging opportunities to keep my name out there in my job transition. I started off using the same thought processes as I do when I write my speeches to write my blog posts.

Blogs are online logs, or online journaling about yourself or whatever interest or passion you are zealous about.  It is a good way to get ideas out of your head and into a different medium (digital in this case).

Since then I have found that almost every blog post I write about is also a 5-7min speech with a few changes here or there.  I can go though my growing archive of writing selections and I estimate there is enough for at least one time through the Competent Communicator manual again or I can just adjust and extend a topic to fit in the extended Advanced Manual time slots and goals.

Now that the Hutch II TM website has entered the Social Media age, start writing about this or that, you may find you have another speech in front of you to present when you are next scheduled to give a speech.  Or, if you write elsewhere online, feel free to use that content for your future speeches.  Log on, get those mental wheels spinning, let your creative juices flow in text form now and later through your speeches.  You can also write your speech, give it, and then write up a summary on the website to share with more people than just those who attended the meeting you gave your speech at.

Toastmasters is more than just about speaking, the parallel Leadership track is just as important.  I want to remind all club members that they can work on their Competent Leadership manual at any meeting.  Now all your hard earned work by helping at meetings can count for something.  You can count almost every role at least once, some multiple times, to get credit for your Competent Leadership manual.

The CL manual starts your journey into more and more leadership opportunities which can help you in and outside the club.  We all would like to take a leadership role at some times in our lives, usually they find us, so it is good to train and prepare ourselves for those times.

So the next time you are Toastmaster, General Evaluator, or even Timer, dig out your Competent Leadership manual, hand it to a fellow Toastmaster, and have them fill it out for you.  A little bit of leadership goes a long way.

Master Your Facial Expressions

Facial Expressions are a very important part of effective communication.

• Start with eye contact. Being prepared- having control of your message is a prerequisite for being able to project and establish a bond with the audience. Don”t just pass your gaze throughout the room; try to focus on individual listeners and create a bond with them by looking them directly in the eyes for five to 10 seconds.

• Smile!

• Avoid distracting mannerisms – have a friend watch as you practice and look for nervous expressions such as fidgeting, twitching, lip biting.
• Stay true to your personality. Don’t copy gestures from a book or other speaker, but respond naturally to what you feel and say.

I write blog posts for a new job search site for the Meteorology community, Whatever-Weather.com.  I wrote about communication skills and Meteorology back in January of 2010.  It was written for non-Toastmasters and I want to share it here.

http://blog.whatever-weather.com/2010/01/communication-skills-and-meteorology/

When you think of Meteorology programs in college, science and math skills are the first to come to mind, not communication skills.  Obviously television and radio meteorologists are expected to have refined communication skills.  In other areas, like research and operational meteorology you do not use communication skills as often but that does not make them any less important.

No matter what area our professional meteorological careers have taken, we can all benefit by always working on our communication skills, even the accomplished speakers among us.

One way to do it is to search out a chapter of Toastmasters International and work on your communication skills on a weekly basis.  Toastmasters clubs are groups of 15-30 people who meet weekly to help each other improve in communication skills.  On any given meeting, some members give speeches, some give evaluations of the speeches, someone leads the meeting (Toastmaster of the Day), someone leads Table Topics (1-2min impromptu speeches), someone brings an Word of The Day (which members use to improve their vocabulary), someone counts the Ahs, Ums, and grammar gaffes we all make, and someone evaluates the entire meeting (General Evaluator).  Most clubs allow guests to show up at any meeting and learn about the process (the exceptions are closed business clubs which are employees only).

Toastmasters clubs also have speech contests twice a year you can speak in front of others if you choose to do so.  You can progress to regional Area contests or statewide Districts contests and compete against more established competition which challenge your skills even more and you improve by going against other experienced speakers.

There is also a leadership track in Toastmasters you can start on just doing the day to day duties in each meeting.  As you continue to progress you then can join the club leadership team and do anything from being the Club President, schedule people for duties, recruit new members, balance the club’s budget, and keep the club’s records.  You can also go beyond the club level to higher levels and run regional Areas or statewide Districts if you so choose, improving your leadership skills even more.

Every club is unique in their own way, though everyone follows general guidelines and rules in each meeting.  You learn new things when you visit more than one club, in District 6, the greater Minnesota District; there is a traveling trophy called the Elusive Gilded Gavel (EGG) which encourages clubs to visit each other to learn and network with each other.

I have been a member of Toastmasters International since July of 2007 and I plan to be in it for many years as each club has its mix of weaker and stronger speakers so you can help weaker speakers and learn from the stronger speakers.  Even the strongest speakers still enjoy the routine of giving speeches so they can keep improving their skills.  I am currently a dual member of two different clubs, one is the Hutchinson Toastmasters II club in Hutchinson, Minnesota (http://www.h2tm.org) and the other is Techmasters-Twin Cities which meets in Edina, Minnesota (http://www.techmasters-tc.com).  I am also the Vice President-Education for the Hutchinson II club, which means I set the weekly duty schedule a couple months out encourage other members to keep moving forward on their official awards and approve and sign off on awards that members get.

I encourage anyone who is interested in strengthening their communication and leadership skills to go to http://reports.toastmasters.org/findaclub/ and search for the nearest Toastmasters club near you and use it as a professional and personal development opportunity.

©2010 Charles Schoeneberger

Using an accent(s) can add a lot of color and flair to a speech:  if done well.  A mushy, inconsistent or poorly executed accent, however, will likely back fire on you.  Though the study of accents can be a deep and fascinating subject, following are four practical tips to help you.

1. Locate good source material to study.  The internet is a great help.  Clips from movies and documentaries containing the use of accents can be found easily. Also clips of people from various parts of the world speaking English with  genuine accents are easily to locate.
2. Listen to your source material over and over.  Create a phonetic guide to the sounds you consistently hear. Pay attention to characteristic inflectional patterns.  Note exceptions to the sounds you observe. Also try to get a sense of how the sound is produced physically (use of mouth cavity, teeth, tongue, throat and nose).
3. Practice, practice, practice.  Practice reading several paragraphs unrelated to your speech using your newly acquired accent.  Have conversations with yourself using your accent (you may want to to this in a safe, secure, lonely place)! Practice until it feels and sounds natural.
4. Finally – and this may seem counter-intuitive – don’t let your accent become be too perfect (strong).  An audience unaccustomed to hearing this accent will still need to understand what you are saying. Many years ago a friend of mine landed the role of a young Cockney soldier captured by the IRA in a play called ‘The Hostage’.  He worked so hard at perfecting a genuine Cockney accent that he reached a point where no one could understand a word he said.  He eventually backed off and created more of a stereotype of the Cockney accent and turned in a great performance.

Most people work many days crafting their speeches for a 5-10 minute delivery, working hard on memorization, voice inflection and smooth execution. Content and delivery are very important, however, there are other elements to consider as you prepare. As I was once advised, it is beneficial  to practice  in a larger room,  so you will be comfortable with the space available on the day you present your speech.  This will help you project a good stage presence, increasing the audience’s interest in what you are saying.

It is wise to  prepare for as many variables as possible; this includes giving your speech to one or more family members or friends prior to the big day. Observing how people respond to what you have to say will help you adjust your timing and word usage. It will also help prepare you for when people laugh at lines you did not think were particularly funny, or when they are sober faced on a line you thought was hilarious.

Ultimately, preparing for the room environment and observing how people respond to what you say will help you deliver a superb  speech.

Presented by Raymond Norton

Mark Brown, the 1995 World Champion on Public Speaking, and Randy Harvey, the 2004 World Champion of Public Speaking do something attention grabbing in their speeches – they sing!  They sing a line or two from well known songs that convey to the listeners a great deal of emotional content. You remember the song that played on your first date, or first kiss or your first MP3.  We tend to remember where we are in life by the songs we hear. Consider the lyrics, “Take this job and shove it, I ain’t working here no more!” or “I once was lost, but now I’m found, was blind, but now I see”, or even, “How I got here I haven’t a clue, Wasting away in Margaritaville.” You add a couple of lines that can move your speech up to the next level. Be bold and sing it out or without signing, say the lines emphatically.