16th Mar 2008
03/13/08 - Interesting Meetings
Fellow 598r’s! It was so nice to see some of you (all 14) at our meeting last Thursday. And for those of you that couldn’t make it, well, it was a good meeting, as usual.
Our theme was “Interesting Meetings” and from some of the initial comments from members, it was a little perplexing as to what that really meant…until our Toastmaster, Howard, shed some light onto the theme. His opinion is that our members and potential new members will become and stay more active in our club if we consistently have ‘Interesting Meetings’. He challenged each member to ignite that creative spark, to take our weekly roles to the next level and to invite more guests.
After the usual General Evaluation roles were introduced, it was time for Carie to run the Table Topics show. As each participant was called upon, a question was selected related to the theme. The responses were ’spot-on’ . . . Hubert felt our success as a club stems from our structured, yet informal meetings; Rose could not identify a bad Toastmaster meeting - she learns from each meeting; Lou joined Toastmasters years ago and is still learning, but better than that, he is now sharing his experiences with newer members. There were many more great responses, but the piece de resistance came from none other than Carol. She was asked if she tried to persuade her friends and family to attend Toastmasters meetings. Her acquaintances and family are not as excited about speaking in public as we are, but Carol showed her supreme ability to think quickly on her feet. She wowed us with the winning Table Topic (again)! Well done Carol and keep trying to persuade your friends, family and foes to visit and join us!
Speaking of extemporaneous, our scheduled Jokemaster was not able to make our meeting, so Ron stepped up to the task and presented a ‘groaner’ of a joke. “Weweechu” really had a better joke! :) Thanks for stepping up to the plate though and for giving it 100%!
Our three speakers came prepared to knock all of our socks off with great speeches. Christine used visual aids to show us the joys and pains of owning pets. She even tried to auction her three dogs off to the lowest bidder, but then rescinded the offer. Her three pups are too much of her family and even with all of the problems they give, the happiness far outweighs any issues. Great use of visual aids Christine!
Rosalynn then presented an “Abstract Concept” on how the colors that we wear can impact our moods. She looked great in her red outfit and the information that was presented was well organized and ‘colorful’. This advanced project is difficult and Rosalynn sailed through the project with flying ‘colors’. Thank you Rosalynn for this great information!
John gave a faux radio interview on the Sophia Project. His interviewer, “Shags”, led John through many questions surrounding John’s favorite cause. This speech was well thought out and informed many of us of the hidden treasure that hides in our Oakland backyard. John, as a Board member of the Sophia Project, spoke eloquently on the worthwhile work and encouraged each of us to check our their link for more info (www.sophiaproject.org). Well done on the speech and great work with our community John!
Our evaluators, Carol, Shags and Thomas V. provided effective and supportive evaluations for each of the three speakers.
The remaining evaluation team members provided their reports with great panache. Our General Evaluator, Alice gave her thoughts on the overall meeting. She was pleased to better understand the theme and agreed that we need to keep our members interested. She did mention that it is somewhat frustrating when attempting to confirm members for their roles and calls or emails are not returned. Editorial comment: Please make every effort to be aware of when you are assigned a role. Confirm your availability with the VP Education, Toastmaster or General Evaluator. If you cannot make your role, the onus of filling that spot falls on you. It just helps the entire process go smoother.
Our Sparkler / Faux-Pas Judge, Pat, presented her Faux-Pas award to Lou. Her rationale was that while counting time down to the end of the break, he noticed that Christine was still preparing the speaking area. Pat felt that he should have ”made Christine feel less nervous by not announcing the time”. Danged if you do and danged if you don’t, Lou! She then presented the Sparkler award to John in his ongoing role as VP Education. She appreciates the four week agenda that is passed out weekly. Well done John!
Okay, folks, time for our drumroll now . . . TTTRRRRRTTTRRRRRTTTRRRRRTTT (or something to that effect), the night’s winners are:
Best Table Topics - Carol
Best Evaluator - Shags
Best Speaker - Rosalynn
Sorry that those that couldn’t make it can’t get the full fun and frolic that we actually experience in our Thursday evening at the Sizzler, but this will have to do.
Hope to see you in person next week at the Contra Costa Water District for our Area B6 International Speech and Table Topic Contest. Remember, it is Thursday, March 20 with doors open at 6:30pm, contest beginning at 7pm. Be there or be square. Oh, just one more thing, bring your check for $39 for dues if you haven’t handed them over to Rosalynn yet. We just have until the end of the month gang!
So remember, where else can one have so much fun while learning to speak and listen and lead, than right here in our own club where superb speakers and leaders we do breed! Carie
Fellow 598r’s! It was so nice to see some of you (all 14) at our meeting last Thursday. And for those of you that couldn’t make it, well, it was a good meeting, as usual.
Our theme was “Interesting Meetings” and from some of the initial comments from members, it was a little perplexing as to what that really meant…until our Toastmaster, Howard, shed some light onto the theme. His opinion is that our members and potential new members will become and stay more active in our club if we consistently have ‘Interesting Meetings’. He challenged each member to ignite that creative spark, to take our weekly roles to the next level and to invite more guests.
After the usual General Evaluation roles were introduced, it was time for Carie to run the Table Topics show. As each participant was called upon, a question was selected related to the theme. The responses were ’spot-on’ . . . Hubert felt our success as a club stems from our structured, yet informal meetings; Rose could not identify a bad Toastmaster meeting - she learns from each meeting; Lou joined Toastmasters years ago and is still learning, but better than that, he is now sharing his experiences with newer members. There were many more great responses, but the piece de resistance came from none other than Carol. She was asked if she tried to persuade her friends and family to attend Toastmasters meetings. Her acquaintances and family are not as excited about speaking in public as we are, but Carol showed her supreme ability to think quickly on her feet. She wowed us with the winning Table Topic (again)! Well done Carol and keep trying to persuade your friends, family and foes to visit and join us!
Speaking of extemporaneous, our scheduled Jokemaster was not able to make our meeting, so Ron stepped up to the task and presented a ‘groaner’ of a joke. “Weweechu” really had a better joke! :) Thanks for stepping up to the plate though and for giving it 100%!
Our three speakers came prepared to knock all of our socks off with great speeches. Christine used visual aids to show us the joys and pains of owning pets. She even tried to auction her three dogs off to the lowest bidder, but then rescinded the offer. Her three pups are too much of her family and even with all of the problems they give, the happiness far outweighs any issues. Great use of visual aids Christine!
Rosalynn then presented an “Abstract Concept” on how the colors that we wear can impact our moods. She looked great in her red outfit and the information that was presented was well organized and ‘colorful’. This advanced project is difficult and Rosalynn sailed through the project with flying ‘colors’. Thank you Rosalynn for this great information!
John gave a faux radio interview on the Sophia Project. His interviewer, “Shags”, led John through many questions surrounding John’s favorite cause. This speech was well thought out and informed many of us of the hidden treasure that hides in our Oakland backyard. John, as a Board member of the Sophia Project, spoke eloquently on the worthwhile work and encouraged each of us to check our their link for more info (www.sophiaproject.org). Well done on the speech and great work with our community John!
Our evaluators, Carol, Shags and Thomas V. provided effective and supportive evaluations for each of the three speakers.
The remaining evaluation team members provided their reports with great panache. Our General Evaluator, Alice gave her thoughts on the overall meeting. She was pleased to better understand the theme and agreed that we need to keep our members interested. She did mention that it is somewhat frustrating when attempting to confirm members for their roles and calls or emails are not returned. Editorial comment: Please make every effort to be aware of when you are assigned a role. Confirm your availability with the VP Education, Toastmaster or General Evaluator. If you cannot make your role, the onus of filling that spot falls on you. It just helps the entire process go smoother.
Our Sparkler / Faux-Pas Judge, Pat, presented her Faux-Pas award to Lou. Her rationale was that while counting time down to the end of the break, he noticed that Christine was still preparing the speaking area. Pat felt that he should have ”made Christine feel less nervous by not announcing the time”. Danged if you do and danged if you don’t, Lou! She then presented the Sparkler award to John in his ongoing role as VP Education. She appreciates the four week agenda that is passed out weekly. Well done John!
Okay, folks, time for our drumroll now . . . TTTRRRRRTTTRRRRRTTTRRRRRTTT (or something to that effect), the night’s winners are:
Best Table Topics - Carol
Best Evaluator - Shags
Best Speaker - Rosalynn
Sorry that those that couldn’t make it can’t get the full fun and frolic that we actually experience in our Thursday evening at the Sizzler, but this will have to do.
Hope to see you in person next week at the Contra Costa Water District for our Area B6 International Speech and Table Topic Contest. Remember, it is Thursday, March 20 with doors open at 6:30pm, contest beginning at 7pm. Be there or be square. Oh, just one more thing, bring your check for $39 for dues if you haven’t handed them over to Rosalynn yet. We just have until the end of the month gang!
So remember, where else can one have so much fun while learning to speak and listen and lead, than right here in our own club where superb speakers and leaders we do breed! Carie
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