Gurney-Hydro Toastmasters Club

Many people have the misconception that toasting is an art form that only the most eloquent   are qualified to lead.   Naturally one will be hard pressed to find willing volunteers for this seemingly monumental task. However giving a good toast is not that hard, as long as you adhere to some simple common sense and logic. There are quite a few misconceptions about performing a toast such as: It is for formal occasions only.   This couldn’t be further from the truth.  You can offer a toast on any occasion for any reason.  It can be as simple as the rare moments when a few friends can spend some time together over coffee, for instance is good enough. You need to use very big and formal words for a toast.   Again, this is not necessarily true.  It all depends on the occasion.  If like above, it’s just a casual get together amongst friends, then there is no need for any formality or pretentious big words.  You may need to use a ...

We see it all the time in new speakers especially.   They stress themselves so much over the content of their speech that they forget the other equally important part – the delivery. We get it, presenting a speech for the first, second or even third time is very intimidating.   You’ll have all eyes on you for that 7 minute period of time that seems to stretch to forever.   The worst thing that can happen to you is that you forget what you want to say. WRONG! The worst thing that can happen is that you remember everything you want to say but still deliver a below average speech because you’re so caught up on the content that you neglect how you’re going to deliver the content. So you end up rooted to the same position, using very little hand gesture and body language, you speak in a monotonous voice and you avoid looking at the audience because you’re afraid that they might throw you off track. A lot of people often forget that it doesn’t matter ho...

Presentation skill is something that all great speakers have to master.   Done right, it shows the audience your ability to organize and convey your thoughts and ideas in a way that words alone can never do. However, if you don’t do it right, then it will show the world in glorious visual Technicolor your lack of preparation. Bear in mind the following and you will be able to sail through. 1) Don’t Put Your Entire Speech In The Presentation A presentation consisting of words alone is boring, although it is unavoidable at times.   However, don’t put your entire speech in your slides and read from them.   By doing that, you’re making yourself redundant.   You might as well give your audience a copy of your slides and they can read from there. 2) Use Keywords Continuing from Point #1 above, instead of putting your entire speech in your presentation, use keywords.   Important keywords pertaining to your topic will be helpful for your au...

Is that person going up on stage to give a speech the same person as the one hanging out with your friends? Often times we create different personas or masks that we put on to suit each occasion as we see fit.   But how well do we carry each of that persona? Many people feel that if they are going to put themselves out there, be seen in public, getting all that attention focused on them for 7 minutes, then they need to become someone very different from the person who is just hanging out with friends eating roti canai at the local makak. There are people who feel they have to ramp up the drama to get attention.   Some feel they need to scale back a little of their personality so that people can take them seriously.   Others try to be a little silly or cute because they think it will make them more likeable. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact, go for it!   Good speakers will bring out different sides of their personality ...

Imagine this:   You’re on stage about to start your speech and suddenly, your mind just became a void of emptiness.   You can’t for the life of you remember what you were going to say or for that matter, what your speech is about. Sounds familiar? Don’t worry, it happens to the best of us, even seasoned professional.   We’re all human, after all.   The nerves, stage fright and the pressure to perform well are the biggest contributors to speakers getting thrown off track all of a sudden. But fear not, we’re here to help =) Here are some things that you can do to prevent that brain freeze. 1) Organize Your Speech in Point Form When you flesh out your speech, get your points together first.   What are the things that you want to convey to your audience?   Then pick out the most important ones depending on the length of your speech.   Looking at your speech as points instead of a collection of about a thousand words will mak...

Persuasive speaking is considered one of the most challenging in the art of public speaking.   Many people find themselves unable to speak in a way that is convincing enough to influence their listeners. Perhaps they think that persuasive speaking is “selling” because this is something that sales people need to master in order to sell their product. However, bear in mind that in every conversation that you have with someone, you are actually “selling” something.   Even if you are asking your friends to go for drinks after work, you are in effect, selling them the idea that it will be wonderful to get together and chill over beer after a long day. No doubt they don’t need much convincing in this scenario but you still need to put the idea in their head in order for them to make an effort to show up at your little gathering. But if you need to convince a tougher crowd like when you're making a pitch for your proposal to investors or a sales event, here are s...

Before you even start thinking about what your speech is going to be about, there is one crucial factor that you have to take into consideration: Who are your audience? You see, it doesn’t matter if you have the best speech in the world.   If it is not relevant to your audience, if they have no interest or knowledge about your topic, then you have no speech.   Period. If you are presenting your speech at your own club, then it is safe to say you probably know your audience.   However, be mindful that you may have guests visiting and they could be sensitive to your topic. Therefore, to be safe, always treat your topic and your audience with respect. In the event that you are expected to speak in front of an audience that you are not familiar with, here are how you can get intel on them so that you can tailor your speech accordingly. 1. Ask the Organizer The organizer of the event is the best source for this kind of information.   ...

Every speech you will give is a story.  You may not think so but that's the reality.  Everybody who excels in the art of public speaking knows how to tell a good story. It doesn't matter if your speech is telling a story about something you encountered, presenting a research or even if you're trying to teach people something.  The formats may be different but you are still telling a story. You may think that it is easy to tell a story.  Here's what happened, here's what you did, this is who were there, here's where it happened... That is just your outline, a shell of your entire speech.  You still need to flesh it out, draw your audience into your world, paint a picture for them.  Otherwise you'll end up with a very dry speech. You have to know how to use descriptive words to bring your story to life. For example, compare: "Today is a nice day." And "It's a beautiful morning.  The sunrise cast its golden hews upon the ...

We are often asked where we get the inspiration for our speeches. When attending a typical Toastmasters meeting, one will find the many varied topics on assignment speeches.   Some speakers even took an unusual spin on an everyday mundane subject and make them interesting for their listeners. So how do they find something to talk about week after week?   Here are our favorite methods. 1) Start a Journal Start of journal of speech topics, that is.   We’re not talking about starting a “Dear Diary, today is just another ordinary boring day…” type of journal.   The truths is, ideas can spring on us any time of the day and the only way to ensure you don’t forget about them later (which always happens), is to record them, either in a notebook or your phone. 2) Research Go online or the old school way – read.   Read as much as you can each day.   Read everything – the newspaper, books, blog posts online, social media posts – there are ...

"My English is not good." Coming from an Asian country where English is not the mother tongue, this is something that we hear all the time.  This has made a majority of the population, especially the younger generation shy away from doing any type of public speaking. The reality is, mastering English is not as difficult as most people think.  English, like any language, is something you get good at with practice and frequent usage.  It's not like history or geography where you memorize facts.  It's something that needs to be practiced in your daily life. Here are some our favorite tips that you can easily incorporate into your life to master English. 1) Read Anything in English This old fashioned method practiced by our parents' generation is still the most effective way to learn English.  If you don't think you're good in the language yet, start with something simple like story books and have a dictionary on hand.  That is your best friend t...

Body language plays an important role in your speech.   They help to drive home a point in a way that is more impactful than mere words can do. However, while your body is very useful as a visual tool , it can be a double edged sword because if your body language contradicts what you are saying, then your message will be lost in translation. This does not only apply for public speaking, but also in smaller scale interactions.   If you say something you don’t mean, there will be small telltale signs that give you away.   People who don’t know you that well may not be able to see it, but those who are observant or who have known you for a long time will pick it up. In fact, the science of interpreting body language is so important that even people in Human Resource have been encouraged to learn something about it so that they can weed out the competent candidates from those not suitable for the job. That’s why there is an assignment speech in the Compet...

At one time or another, you will be asked to present a speech or presentation based on research such as a survey of the current landscape of your industry, for instance. Presenting a speech on research is not as simple as showing the results of your analysis, you also need to prove that you used solid methods and your data is sound. Here are the elements that you must incorporate into your speech to present a solid argument for your case. 1. Your Executive Summary What is your presentation about and why did you want to do a research on this topic?  For the example above on the industry landscape, it could be because your company is looking to expand its business into a new city.  What is the demand/supply in that city for your products or services and level of competition? 2. Citation of Sources Citation of sources is very important in a research paper.  It goes towards the integrity of your data.  If you are citing a previous research done by someone ...

How would you introduce yourself, for example, in an interview where you are asked to tell people a little bit about yourself? You may think it's easy because the subject of "You" is something that nobody knows better than yourself. But you have to bear in mind that there is a fine line between introducing yourself in a way that will make the right impression on people and coming off as a shallow person that nobody can take seriously. Many people, when asked to introduce themselves, will proceed to give a narration of their life story including their first dog, their childhood spats with the rude kid in the playground, a litany of the leadership positions they've held from pre-school through college and the list goes on. You must bear in mind that you have a very limited amount of time to make an impression.  Truth be told, nobody wants to know about your entire life's history and in fact, some things, they don't need to know.  So make sure you make...

It's probably easy for most of us to connect with someone else through a one on one or small group conversation.  Not so easy to do it with a room full of people, though. So how do you get up on stage and deliver a winning speech that will wow your audience, making them feel like they have received tremendous value from you? Most people will say it's charisma, that special kind of charm successful public speakers possess that captures the audience's attention the minute they get on stage.  While it's true that some people have that kind of "presence" about them, remember that charisma wears off very quickly.  Without substance, charisma is a flimsy facade that will fall apart easily. Follow our tips below to make your audience hang onto your every word from start to finish and win in the art of public speaking. 1) Know Your Audience This goes without saying.  You have to know to whom you are speaking to before you even start to craft your speech. ...

Being confident when you are speaking in front of a room crowded with strangers can be very daunting.  While there are those who seem to be born with buckets of confidence, it is a very different story for us mere mortals. Fortunately, confidence is like a muscle - it can be built if you work at strengthening it.  Bear these pointers in mind and you can become a more polished speaker with a natural poise. 1) Knowing Your Personal Style You know yourself better than anyone else.  You know what style of speeches you are most at ease doing.  Maybe you always fall flat when giving academic style speeches but excel at telling stories.  Therefore tailor your speech to suit that style.  It will bring your speech to life rather than put your audience to sleep.  Our Toastmasters meetings are the best place for you to experiment with different styles and find your own voice. 2) Use Your Personal Experiences Personal experiences are the best places t...

What is it about your speech that will make your audience pay rapt attention to you from start till finish? Is it your wit? Your irresistible charm? Your presentation skills using mind blowing PowerPoint? How well you dress? Your speaking skills? Here's a piece of public speaking tip that you should always bear in mind when crafting your speech.  What's in it for them - your audience? Let's face it...nobody cares about you.  That's the sad reality. Nobody goes to hear a speaker because he/she is really good and speak really well. They go to hear a speaker speak for the benefits that they can gain from the speech, because of what they hope to learn from the contents of the speaker's topic. Those who really excel in the art of public speaking realize this fact. So the next time you are crafting your speech project, think of what benefits you can offer to your listeners. What can they learn from you that they can apply immediately? What per...

There are many different types of speeches and depending on the audience and/or topic, a good public speaker will be able to tailor his/her speech in the right format, delivery and style accordingly in order to have the most impact. Here are the most common types of speeches and our take on how/when to use them. 1. The Narrative The narrative speech is most suitable for when you are telling a story.  This is the easiest speech but yet so many people fall flat when attempting it.  Everyone thinks that telling a story is a piece of cake, but it is an art that takes some finesse. The most important ingredient in a narrative speech is being as descriptive as possible but keeping your language plain and easy to understand.  Remember, this is your story and you want your audience to be interested in it.  The only way they can follow the story is through your words.  You need to be able to paint a visual picture so that they can see in their imagination how ...

The best speeches made are not the ones that are fully memorized and delivered flawlessly.  The best speeches are the ones that the speakers are so adept at covering up their mistakes, you think it's part of the speech. Let's face it, it is not always possible to memorize an entire speech.  Even actors don't do an entire movie at one go.  They have rehearsals and work based on one scene at a time.  Sometimes they need several takes to get it right and if they don't, they have editors to make one scene flow seamlessly into the next one. Here are some our best loved tips to delivering a speech, not necessarily without flaws. 1. Have Cue Cards Most speakers have cue cards containing the main points of their speech that they refer to periodically, but that's all of their speech that is written.  The others they expand from their main points, not necessarily word for word from what they originally planned on doing.  This is part of the art of public s...

Here is a quick public speaking tip for you to grow as a polished public speaker as fast as possible - join speech contests. At a speech contest or any contest for that matter, you can be sure that people will bring their A-game to the table.  You'll want to be around to see that. More than just a chance for you to challenge your skills and see where you stand, speech contests are where you can see how the best of the best do it. It is also your opportunity to tap into the expertise around you.  That's the biggest advantage to joining a Toastmasters Club.  There will be senior members in your club who already have a contest or two or ten under their belt.  They will be more than happy to share their experiences with you. After all, you could be the one representing the club to the next round of the contest, so they will want to make sure they help groom you from a candidate with some promise to a sure win candidate. When you're at the contest, don't stay...

" So , you know , like sometimes when you hear someone talk, they like say a lot of like totally unnecessary words and umm , that sort of like , makes the sentence like really, really long.   Umm , what's with that?   Like it's just so like ah , strange, you know , that they can't say something so ah , simple like straight to the point, you know ." The above is an example of excessive use of "sentence fillers".  The words in bold are the unnecessary words that we use all the time unconsciously in our daily conversations.  In other words, we stuff our sentences. This may not be practiced in written form, but record yourself when you're having a conversation with a friend and you may surprise yourself at how you literally stuff your sentences with all these fillers. When you come for a Toastmasters meeting, you will notice that there are people taking up various roles such as grammarian, timer, evaluator and this strange role called ...