The new Toastmasters year started on July 1st, and we had a great beginning in the new year. In our meeting this week, we had five guests with diverse aspirations and needs, but with a focus on public speaking as the common thread.
So engaged were they that it was astounding that the first volunteer to jump into table topics was a guest. We normally like to have a member go up first so that the guests can see a demonstration of how the segment may proceed. But here we were, with guests taking on the unknown! After the first, one by one the guests volunteered, and before I realized it, we were out of time. No member made it! It was nice to know that at least for one of the guests, the table topics session was the high point of the meeting! He said so.
This was again an unusual meeting because one of the guests chose to come in from far away San Jose just to be able to give an evaluation of a prepared speech. This was an assignment for her college course on Public Speaking! Nice to know we have visibility in San Jose for a person looking for Toastmasters clubs. Her evaluation felt just like what you would hear from a Toastmaster. Good job!
We look forward to more guests, thereby more members, in the months to come.
We had a full slate of three prepared speeches from members to make this meeting well-rounded. The topics presented were:
- Resilience – when life hands you a crap sandwich (We can’t always control what life hands us, but we can choose how we react.)
- Alzheimer’s Disease (A general introduction to the disease: what is it? what causes it? can it be prevented? etc)
- Give the audience what they want (The ‘Know Your Audience’ project from the Toastmasters’ Better Speaker Series)
The evaluation segment was punctuated by three different types of evaluations: evaluation by a member, evaluation by a guest, and round robin evaluations. All in all, a well-rounded and highly engaged meeting that was very productive.
All work and no play is no way to lead one’s life. I am glad Abhishek decided to join us even though it was his birthday! Clearly, this was not work, right? We took this opportunity to make it even more fun for him, by organizing a small party at the end of the meeting. A good time was had by all!
Come and join us. It’ll be worth it. It’s easy. Register here and just come by to your preferred meeting. Guest attendance is free.
Venkat Raman
A birthday party was a great way to end the first meeting of the year!
City Speech Toastmasters 