Meeting Recap: July 25, 2012

Post date: Jul 29, 2012 11:47:42 PM

Dear APS Members and Guests,

The Advanced Public Speakers Club had another productive and thought provoking meeting on Wednesday, July 25. Everyone in attendance got a chance to address the meeting. The theme was the Olympics, especially the jubilation experienced by the competitors. Jubilate was the Word of the Day, joyfully supplied by Word Master Chetan Karande.

Toastmaster of the Day FX Charpentier ran a well paced meeting, and pointed out that even though the Olympics have their origin in ancient Greece it was a Frenchman – Pierre de Coubertin – who was responsible for reviving the modern games. Vive la différence!

Kimberly Taylor gave an advanced speech project from the Speeches by Management Manual. Kimberly was assisted by Christine Navigante in a role playing scenario that showed how to properly use constructive feedback and praise when appraising an employee. Speech Evaluator Gouri Seethram had some important and actionable suggestions for improvement, such as avoiding distracting body language and adopting a more serious businesslike tone for the meeting scenario.

FX gave the “Evaluate to Motivate” module from the Successful Club Series. These modules cover important fundamentals and are intended to be given at every Toastmasters club. FX also included one of his own personal evaluation techniques, using a dual column note taking approach that lists positive and negative attributes. Evaluator Leila Singh praised this approach, but mentioned that a greater use vocal variety would have allowed FX to captivate his audience even more. Leila also suggested including a summary of the main points at the end of the presentation.

As Table Topics Master I reintroduced the subject of competition by using quotations from famous people. Is competition a good thing? The answer could depend on your vantage point. For instance, industrial monopolist John D. Rockefeller seemed to be in agreement with Fidel Castro that competition is a bad thing. The newest APS member Manuel Saldana said that if Rockefeller felt “competition is a sin,” he himself was an unapologetic sinner because he likes to compete in speech contests. District 46 Humorous Champion Brian Robinson seemed to be in agreement with Olympic Gold Medalist Jesse Owens. Brian said that he has made friends in competition, and that it was possible to be a compassionate competitor. Punk Rock Artist Patti Smith said that “an artist is someone who enters into competition with God.” Eloise Johnny was not in agreement however, noting that competition implies being on the same level, and that no person could be in competition with God.

Grammarian/Ah Counter Jose Garcia did a thorough job making members aware of their verbal shortcomings, but he also gave Gold, Silver and Bronze awards for verbal achievement.

The next APS Meeting will be on Thursday, August 9 and will be a special format meeting. More details to follow.

Keep Speaking,

- Todd

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Todd McKinney

President, Advanced Public Speakers