By Edita McQuary
Afraid to speak in public? Nerves on edge when called upon to say a few words? Speaking in public is a skill not many people can claim. But there is hope. You can train yourself to become comfortable speaking in public in a safe, friendly environment with the Aptos Toastmasters. Every Wednesday at noon to 1 p.m., a small, diverse group of people meets in the Breakfast Room at the Rio Sands Motel in Aptos to hone their skills and practice speaking in public.
The scenario is formal and businesslike, however, the evaluation and support is friendly and non-threatening. At noon sharp, the Sergeant at Arms called the meeting to order and welcomed members and visitors. Further introductions followed: Ben Sobaje, President, who then introduced the Toastmaster, Devi Tong, who in turn introduced the One-Minute speaker, Dave Empey, and the General Evaluator Alliee DeArmond.
There are ballots on each table and the voting process is explained so that members and visitors can evaluate and vote on the various speeches.
The One-Minute Speech is to relate specifically to some aspect of speaking, Toastmaster roles, or details of the club meetings. Dave talked about the role of the vote counter in breaking a tie, in order to refrain from comments such as “won by a landslide.”
Entrepreneur Jason Boulreault gave the 5-7 minute “The Entertaining Speaker” talk with examples of getting bogged down in rowing the boat (his business) instead of steering it. Members evaluated his speech by voting on his topic, technique and use of language. President Ben Sobaje gave a positive and helpful critique, but also cautioned that Jason’s tone of voice had dropped during a part of the speech.
New member Troy Fisher gave the second 5-7 minute talk called “Tyrants and Leaders” with lots of enthusiastic body language as he compared and contrasted the two roles. The second evaluator, Patricia Noel, gave him a positive critique with some helpful suggestions for a smoother presentation.
A really fun part of this meeting is the Table Topics (impromptu speeches) led by veteran speaker Jean Quinn. Since it had recently been President’s Day, the questions she offered were all about various U.S. presidents. “Who was president when you were born and what did you think of him?” “How can you best serve your country?” “James Buchanan was not married so had his niece serve as his social partner in the White House. What event did you have to attend where you were not the intended invitee?” and last, but not least, “Tell us a funny factoid about a president – real or made up.”
You can imagine the kind of interesting two-minute responses we got. Although they did not win the contest, my two favorites were: “Warren Harding was an ineffective president and was not a role model for me,” and “George Washington was not our first president – there were a couple before him who are lost to history.”
The club had two contests in February where speakers competed in the clubs and then winners will compete in Area, Division, and District contests.
Author and journalist Chris Matthews has said, “Toastmasters changed my life. They really did. Put me on the stage. I don’t know what I would have done without that positive boost.”1 If it did that for him, what do you suppose it could do for you?
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Aptos Toastmasters is a Distinguished Toastmasters Club and is a member of Toastmasters International. Please see their Facebook page or go to 595.toastmastersclubs.org.
1) From Toastmasters International publication “Find your voice.”