Toastmaster - March 2010 · 2020. 11. 27. · Through its member clubs, Toastmasters International...

Lessons fromstorytellers

members.toastmasters.org Be Unforgettable!

The BetterYou Write It,

the BetterYou Say It

A Curmudgeon’sHistory of the

Academy Awards

The

of theGloryStory

®

March 2010

2 TOASTMASTER March 2010

V I E W P O I N TPublisher

EditorAssociate Editors

Graphic Design

Daniel Rex

Suzanne Frey

Beth BlackPaul Sterman

Susan Campbell

International President

Senior Vice President

Second Vice President

Third Vice President

Immediate Past President

Executive Director

Secretary-Teasurer

Gary Schmidt, DTMClackamas, Oregon

Pat Johnson, DTMVictoria, British Columbia, Canada

Michael R. Notaro, DTMAlameda, California

John Lau, DTMKuching, Malaysia

Jana Barnhill, DTM, ASLubbock, Texas

Daniel RexMission Viejo, California

Sally Newell CohenMission Viejo, California

Lyle Appleyard, DTMStonewall, Manitoba, Canada

Sal Asad, DTMRichmond, Virginia

Theo Black, DTMWayzata, Minnesota

Ken Cawley, DTMSan Jose, California

Pamela Christopher, DTMUnion Grove, North Carolina

Susan Dalati, DTMManotick, Ontario, Canada

Kristal DiCarlo, DTMWestlake, Ohio

Emmy Hager, DTMAuburn, Washington

Ron Kirchgessner, DTMGreenwood, Indiana

Pamela McCown, DTMPasadena, Texas

Earleen Norris, DTMTruckee, California

Keith Ostergard, DTMBeijing, China

Michael V. Raffety, DTMChicago, Illinois

Mary G. Russell, DTMTemple City, California

Poh Kim Siong, DTMSingapore

Heath Suddleson, DTMPotomac, Maryland

Tim Swearingen, DTMChandler, Arizona

Annelie Weber, DTMNew Windsor, Maryland

TOASTMASTER

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Gary Schmidt, DTMInternational President

� My purpose for joining Toastmasters was to find employment. Six weeksafter I joined, I found my first job after college, working for U.S. Senator MarkHatfield of Oregon. Yet my journey of self-improvement was just beginning.Even though Toastmasters gave me the confidence to talk my way into a

job with Senator Hatfield, I still did not master the art of self-assurance. Onemonth after I joined Senator Hatfield’s staff, and two months after I joinedToastmasters, worked at an event for the senator that was attended by almostevery past and current politician in Oregon’s recent history. Since I love politics, I was in heaven! I easily could have walked over to U.S. senators,governors, state representatives and judges and asked them questions abouthistory, politics or communication. What an opportunity!What I did was sit in the corner and talk to no one. I was so overwhelmed

and uncertain about what to say that I said nothing. I still regret my missedopportunity to mingle with my political heroes.I discovered that day that I still had more to learn – especially about

believing in myself and my abilities. That is where Toastmasters has madeall the difference in my life. Upon returning to my club the following week,I promised myself I would never again let my lack of confidence stop mefrom following my dreams.Answering Table Topics each week, learning from evaluations, giving

speeches, and serving as a leader in my club and district helped build myconfidence. Day by day, year by year, I still continue to learn and grow.As do you, in your journey of self-discovery.In 2004 I had the opportunity to meet then-U.S. President George W. Bush.

He was shaking hands quickly with onlookers while moving along a ropeline. I really wanted to take my picture with President Bush. When he shookmy hand, I did not let go. As the Secret Service began to notice this, witha smile I asked the president for a photo. My friend stood nearby with a camera and I received a snapshot of my moment with history. Toastmastersgave me the confidence to make my dream a reality.Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh said, “If you hear a voice within you

say, ‘You cannot paint,’ then by all means paint and that voice will besilenced.” Fellow Toastmasters, have belief in your abilities, your talentsand your purpose. Toastmasters gives us the confidence to courageouslyachieve our dreams. Your journey of confidence-building begins now!

The Gift YouGive Yourself

TOASTMASTER March 2010 3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The Toastmasters Vision:Toastmasters International empowers people to achieve their full potential and realizetheir dreams. Through our member clubs, people throughout the world can improve

their communication and leadership skills, and find the courage to change.

The Toastmasters Mission:Toastmasters International is the leading movement devoted to making

effective oral communication a worldwide reality.

Through its member clubs, Toastmasters International helps men and womenlearn the arts of speaking, listening and thinking – vital skills that

promote self-actualization, enhance leadership potential, foster humanunderstanding, and contribute to the betterment of mankind.

It is basic to this mission that Toastmasters International continuallyexpand its worldwide network of clubs thereby offering ever-greater numbers

of people the opportunity to benefit from its programs.

A Curmudgeon’s Historyof the Academy AwardsOscar winners through the years have delivered one bad speech after another.By Eugene Finerman

PAGE 8

The Glory of the StoryHow storytellers and Toastmasterscan learn from each other.By Craig Harrison, DTM

PAGE 16

The Better You Write It,the Better You Say ItRemember these key principlesof speechwriting.By Philip Yaffee, CC

PAGE 24

& 2 Viewpoint: The Gift You Give Yourself By International President Gary Schmidt, DTM

4 Postcards

5 My Turn: Let’s Talk About Woodstock When Good Morning America called, this

Toastmaster was ready for her close-up. By Colleen Plimpton, CC

6 Profile: An Extreme Life Makeover Canadian member with severe

stutter turns a corner at age 60. By Helen Harrison

11 How To: Accept an Award with Class Prepare a few well-crafted remarks

and be brief, gracious and modest. By Patricia Fripp

12 What Do You Say to a Celebrity? Toastmasters share their close

encounters of the starry-eyed kind. By Beth Black

14 Corporate Clubs: Making anInternational Investment

Financial-services giant enjoysa wealth of clubs.

By Paul Sterman

19 Manner of Speaking: Mastering Storytelling Know the three I’s: Invitation,

Imagination and Impact. By Allen Schoer

20 Be Unforgettable! Strategies for making your speech stand out

with audiences tired of information overload. By Emily Osburne, ACB

28 Looking at Language: How to Read Poetry to Others Making sure your best words are heard. By Dian Duchin Reed, CC

30 For the Novice: Putting Poetry in Your Performance How to incorporate a piece of

verse into a larger presentation. By Celia Berrell, ACB, CL

ARTICLESDEPARTMENTS

FEATURES

March 2010Volume 76, No. 3


Charles Barragan ofLakeside Speakeasyclub in Oakland,California, relaxesin the South Pacificisland of Moorea inFrench Polynesia.

POSTCARDS

Picture yourself here! Are you planning to climb a mountain or cross the Sahara? Will you travel to Tokyo, Paris orDubai? If so, be sure to take along a copy of the Toastmaster magazine. Pose with it in your exciting surroundings

– the more challenging and far-reaching, the better. E-mail the high-quality image to [email protected] it might end up in the Toastmaster magazine or on our Web site’s Photo Galleries page. But here’s the hitch:You have to have the Toastmaster magazine in the picture!

Sumi Goto of Thornleigh Vital Toastmastersin Thornleigh (Sydney), Australia, hikesWhistler Mountain, BC, Canada.

Livia Cole, of GoldenSpeakers in Fairfield,Iowa, visits St. Mark'sSquare in Venice, Italy.

District 59 area and division governors Charles Whitmer, MonikaKrolak and Gilbert Bergner pose with Harald Frankenberger, presi-dent of Leipzig Toastmasters club, all holding different issues ofthe Toastmaster in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on theweekend of the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Tony Pinto, of the Boston Toastmastersclub in Boston, Massachusetts, standson a river bank in Gambia, West Africa.

Bernie Kreiner, of the Evergreens Toast-masters in Vancouver, BC, Canada, treksthrough the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal.

Sandy Bentley and Pat Lingenfelter, members of DelightfulGreeters Advanced Club in Bloomington, Illinois, stand infront of the Library of Celsus in Ephesus, Turkey.

The Traveling Toastmaster

By Colleen Plimpton, CC MY TURN

March 2010 TOASTMASTER 5

Let’s Talk About Woodstock� My cell phone rang one day lastAugust as I was feeding brook troutin upstate New York. The receptionwas spotty, but I clearly heard thefollowing: “This is Good Morning America.

We saw your interview on PBS lastnight and would like you to appearon our Woodstock show this Satur -day morning. Are you interested?”Was I interested?! I almost drop -

ped the phone in the water in myhaste to say yes. But seconds later, I thought:

There are only 30 hours to prepareto be on national TV. What will Isay? How will I do? Will I make afool of myself?Enter Toastmasters. I’d been a

member for the previous year anda half. Thanks to my many experi-ences with Table Topics, I was wellversed in thinking on my feet. Also,having done numerous evaluations,I was skilled at determining whatwas important and what was extra-neous in a speech. Heck, I was ready for Good

Morning America !

Taking the Road to Fame and FunIt had already been an excitingyear. My essay on attending theoriginal 1969 Woodstock Music andArt Fair had been accepted in theanthology, Woodstock Revisited(Adams Media). I delivered aToastmasters speech about myWoodstock experience and havingmy essay published. (I got into thespirit by dressing in costume, com-plete with headband, bell bottomjeans and colorful, long shawl.) Amid the approach of Wood -

stock’s 40th anniversary, opportuni-ties arose to publicize the book.

soon overpowered by the realitiesof the moment: The hubbub ofGood Morning America could notbe avoided. The staff pinned uswith microphones, gave us tie-dyed blankets to sit on and instructed us not to speak unlessspoken to. We suddenly found ourselves on the air.

Prepared for the PressureTo my surprise, Bill Weir askedsomething totally different fromwhat I’d been coached on.Prepared by Toastmasters, though,I didn’t buckle under the pressure;rather, I swiftly answered the question and elaborated on thetheme. Then came another takeand multiple trudges across thedamp field with an increasinglywet blanket as the sunlight shifted.In the middle of the three-hourevent, we were all treated to a special surprise: a concert! Webecame an attentive audience toRichie Havens, who’d won fame asthe first performer at Woodstock.When the adventure was over,

all I could feel was relief. My timeon the national stage was brief, butaccording to many who saw theshow and told me about it, I’d comported myself well. I’d usedmy speaking skills and succeededin offering America a taste of myWoodstock experience.Thanks to Toastmasters, I’m

ready for my next close-up.

Colleen Plimpton, CC, is a memberof the Barnum Square club inBethel, Connecticut and an authorwhose recent book is Mentors inthe Garden of Life. Reach her atwww.colleenplimpton.com.

Because of my Toastmasters experi-ence, I felt little trepidation and dida number of book signings, presen-tations and panel discussions. WhenI appeared on the PBS documentary,Woodstock Remembered, I thoughtthe interview went well.It went so well, in fact, that

Good Morning America wanted me.

Returning to WoodstockThe night before the show, we metwith staff who informed us whatquestions Bill Weir, Good MorningAmerica’s weekend co-host, wouldask. I’d have only a minute or twoto respond, so I needed to knowexactly what I wanted to express. Once I decided what salient

points to make, I reviewed whatI’d learned from Toastmasters. If Iwanted TV viewers to get to knowme in a brief time, I’d need to revealmyself, Ice Breaker-style, in a fewevocative words. My time on camerawould have to be organized, so Ineeded smooth transitions. Vocalvariety would be important; viewersdidn’t want to be bored. I’d also needto get to the point quickly. Colorfulwords, correct grammar, good pos-ture and gestures were essential. Does all this sound familiar? It

should. These lessons all come fromthe first 10 projects of the CompetentCommunication manual, which I’djust finished. Each of the principlesfrom the prepared speeches I’dgiven over the previous 16 monthsproved invaluable. The next day we gathered at the

original site of Woodstock, wherethe famed Yasgur’s farm once stood.The music stage was long gone, butall else looked familiar. A host ofmemories rushed back but were

When Good Morning America called, thisToastmaster was ready for her close-up.

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PROFILE By Helen Harrison

An Extreme Life Makeoverfeeling from the waist down, andno power or strength to be ableto stand. However, he was fittedwith braces and crutches and even-tually learned to walk. At age 4,Barker developed a severe stutter.When ever he wanted to speak,his breath ing patterns somehowcrossed him up; he couldn’t exhalethat flow of air that enables one tospeak. As his lungs continued tofill, his chest became wracked withpain and his face contorted as hegasped with strangled sounds, untilhis body finally triggered a releaseof the pent-up air. This processwould repeat again and againuntil he was left physically andemotionally exhausted.

Bit by bit Barker was enveloped inthe lonely world of those who stutter.

His stuttering problem onlyheightened in school. Barker sayshis high school teachers becameso frustrated waiting for him toexpress his ideas that they refusedto let him participate in class dis-cussions. Eventually the guidancecounselor suggested he quit schooland get a job.

He was able to obtain training inair conditioning and heating design,but over the years, although hismany bosses were pleased with hiswork, he was let go time and timeagain because of his difficulty com-municating with others. Even in his

For 56 years, Kier Barker lived ina world of despair and futility,his days shrouded by a severe

stuttering problem. But today he is anew man, one whose life is lit withhope and opportunity. Toastmastersplayed a major role in this transfor-mation, as it helped Barker workthrough his stuttering difficultiesand develop communication skills– and confidence – late in life.

Barker’s change started four yearsago, when he was introduced to afluency device, called a SpeechEasy,which helps people learn to managetheir stuttering. He saw progressand a few months later joined theNorthumberland Toastmasters clubin Cobourg, Ontario, Canada.

“With each successive speech,he had fewer lapses into stuttering,”says Bill Netherton, Barker’s clubmentor. “It seemed he learned touse the device more effectively as heprogressed through the Toast mas tersprogram.” Netherton says Barkernow inspires his fellow club mem-bers and says Barker’s “sense ofhumor, colored with a hint of irony,adds to his strong delivery and hon-est, matter-of-fact presentation.”

Barker, who has earned a Com petent Communicator award,says the support and camaraderieof the club has given him “anextreme life makeover.”

The Cobourg resident was bornwith spina bifida. He had minimal

Canadian member with severestutter turns a corner at age 60.

3 Once seriously hampered by a stuttering problem, Kier Barkernow gives motivational speechesto teenagers and nonprofit groups.


1-800-992-9392

3100 Walnut Grove Road, Suite 603P.O. Box 11749 • Memphis, TN 38111-0749

www.stutteringhelp.org

THE

STUTTERINGFOUNDATIONA Nonprofit OrganizationSince 1947—Helping Those Who Stutter

Stuttering Didn’tSilence His Story.

20/20’sJohn Stosselknows news. Healso knows whatit’s like to dealwith a stutteringproblem. Johnstill struggleswith stutteringyet has becomeone of the mostsuccessful

reporters in broadcast journalism today.

For more information on whatyou can do about stuttering,write or call us toll-free.

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volunteer work, his stutteringproved a hindrance. At age 35, hewas deemed unemployable andfinally agreed to sign up for disabili-ty pension. Although he kept busyserving his community in severalcapacities, Barker wanted to workand feel like a contributing memberof society.

First Signs of HopeIn the spring of his 60th year, hissister Donna saw a TV show aboutthe SpeechEasy device and waseager for him to meet with aspeech pathologist about it. Tiredof trying one therapy after anotherover the years, Barker was morethan skeptical about such a meet-ing. “Isn’t a pathologist someonewho studies the dead?” he thought.However, Donna’s eagerness madehim agree to attend the appoint-ment with her. Barker’s first testwith this fluency device showedamazing results: 93 percent improvement. It was his first sign of hopein 56 years. “A voice inside me toldme that if I could get this device,my life would be totally changed,”recalls Barker.

The local Rotary Club helped himpurchase the SpeechEasy, and Barkerthen spent eight weeks in speechtherapy, most of it spent unlearningthe bad habits he had developedover the years in an attempt to cope.A local newspaper did a front-pagestory on Barker, and he was invitedto talk to a couple of communitygroups. Around that time he saw anadvertisement for the Northumber -land Toast mas ters club. He went tohis first meeting, and although feelingnervous, Kier felt warmly welcomed.He was given much encouragementand support, and before long he wasparticipating in the various clubmeeting roles.

In his Ice Breaker, Barker talkedof how he was finally liberated fromyears of being unable to communi-cate well with other people. Club

of a high school where Barkerspoke, recalls how his story of perseverance captivated the stu-dents: “They applauded him for hiswill to achieve and succeed in life.”

For more information about KierBarker, visit www.kierbarker.com.

Helen Harrison is a songwriter, speaker and freelance writer. She is thecreator and director of Kid’s Com -pany, an after-school program run-ning in Stratford, Ontario, Canada.Reach her at [email protected].

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members were clearly moved. Theynote that Barker’s confidence andenthusiasm steadily grew as he gavemore speeches.

“At first, when Kier would speak,his face grew red, there was aquiver in his voice and he wouldoften repeat what he had just said,”says Northumberland member DaleBryant. “Like most new speakers,Kier seemed to be in a survivalmode for his first couple of speech-es, but unlike many new speakers,who would cut their speeches short,he tended to go on longer than thetime that was given to him.”

Barker playfully acknowledgeshis propensity for long presenta-tions: “After 60 years of being veryhesitant to speak, my greatest chal-lenge is to finish before the bell.”

As he finally became comfortableexpressing himself, Barker felt likehis life was just beginning and wasdetermined to get a job. After sub-mitting more than 100 resumes, hewas hired as a telemarketer. Armedwith his Toastmasters training, heforged ahead with his work. “For aperson who stutters, one of themost difficult things to do is to talkon the phone,” says Barker, “but Imake hundreds of calls every day.”

A prime example of how it’snever too late to make a dramaticturnaround in life, Barker now givesmotivational speeches to teenagersand others, urging them to reach fortheir dreams. He has been akeynote speaker for nonprofits,including two student-leadershipcamps, and has shared his storywith hundreds of high school stu-dents. Jeff Kawzenuk, the principal

“After 60 years of being very

hesitant to speak, my greatest

challenge is to finish before the bell.”

– KIER BARKER


ACurmudgeon’sHistory of the

Oscar winnersthrough the yearshave deliveredone bad speechafter another.

By Eugene Finerman

between Shia LaBeouf and Emile Hirsch could earn youthe respect of most teen agers.) Moreover, those of us ofa graying age have a morbid fascination with seeinghow our past favorites now look: Who is still glamorousand who should sue their plastic surgeons? Of course, as Toastmasters, you will want to hear

the speeches. If nothing else, they will make you feelsuperior. The usual speech at the Oscars is terrible –incoherent, rambling and often neurotic. Surprisingly,most of the speeches last only 45 seconds, yet theyseem much longer. Indeed, the Academy tries toimpose a time limit on the speakers. Notice how theorchestra begins playing at the 46th second of aspeech, just as the year’s winning set designer isthanking his acu puncturist. If the speaker ignores thathint, one of the smiling models – who likely haveblack belts in karate – will subtly pinion his arms andnudge him offstage. But despite this terror-imposedpunctuality, a two-hour ceremony somehow lasts fourhours or more. It didn’t start that way. At the first Academy Awards

ceremony in 1929, 10 awards were given in 15 minutes.You probably recognize most of the categories: BestFilm, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, etc. Today,it takes three hours for these awards to be handed out.Of course, Hollywood could not resist filming itself.The highlights of each ceremony were compiled and

distributed as a newsreel to be shown in movie housesaround the world. Until 1952, that was the only way thepublic saw the Oscars, and through the wonders of editing, every winner was concise, eloquent and sober. The public never heard Greer Garson’s acceptance

speech upon winning the Best Actress award in 1942 forher performance in Mrs. Miniver. Not even a transcripthas survived, so only in legend and rumor is it remem-bered as the longest and worst speech in the history ofthe Academy Awards. According to the Guinness WorldRecords, Miss Garson spoke for nearly six minutes.She began with, “I’m practically unprepared” and thencommenced a broad philosophical meandering aboutthe nature of film. No one could remember the details;amnesia can be a mercy. Until Garson, the Academynever thought of imposing a time limit on speakers.After her, the limit was set at 45 seconds.In 1940, Vivien Leigh sounded like a robot put

onstage by the producer. Awarded Best Actress for herperformance as Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind,Leigh said, “Ladies and gentlemen. Please forgive me ifmy words are inadequate in thanking you for your verygreat kindness. If I were to mention all those who haveshown me wonderful generosity through Gone With theWind, I should have to entertain you with an orationthat is as long as Gone With the Wind itself. So if I may,I should like to devote my thanks on this occasion to

s March 7 approaches, you might torment yourself

with the question, “Will I really watch the Academy

Awards again?” Allow me to offer good reasons to

do so. First, if you are a masochist, the gratification

is obvious: hours of stupefying boredom mixed with irritating attempts at

entertainment. Then, there is the cultural obligation: If these people are

“stars,” shouldn’t you know who they are? (Mastering the distinction

A


Academy Awards

that complefied figure of energy,courage and very great kindnessin whom all points of Gone Withthe Wind meet: Mr. David Selznick.”

Such fulsome praise of a pro-ducer is not usual, and it mighteven be mandatory in an Oscarspeech. In fairness, if any produc-er actually deserved that idolatry,Selznick did. Through his constantand tireless work, he really didproduce Gone With the Wind, andit was his gut instinct to cast aminor English starlet as ScarlettO’Hara. But Vivien Leigh’s speechwas so artificial and stiff, it waspractically embalmed. Considerthe use of the word complefied;it is a form of the Latin past par-ticiple for complete. Who in theaudience would have understoodit except some priests and profes-sors – very few of whom were atthe Academy Awards that night.Like the speech itself, the word iscontrived and pretentious. Further -more, Leigh seemed un com fortablein her recitation, as if she werethe hos tage of the speech writer.Perhaps she was, and the culpritwas most likely her fiancé at thetime: Laurence Olivier.

Olivier certainly knew whatsounded Shakespearean but hadnot quite mastered the coherence.Thirty-nine years later, he showedno improvement. Upon receiving aLifetime Achievement AcademyAward, Olivier expres sed histhanks: “In the great wealth, thegreat firmament of your nation’s

Forest Whitaker acceptsthe 2007 Best Actor Oscarfor his performance inThe Last King of Scotland.


generosities, this particular choice may perhaps be foundby future generations as a trifle eccentric, but the merefact of it – the prodigal, pure human kindness of it –must be seen as a beautiful star in that firmament whichshines upon me at this moment, dazzling me a little, butfilling me with warmth of the extraordinary elation, theeuphoria that happens to so many of us at the first breathof the majestic glow of a new tomorrow.” The individualwords were lofty and poetic, and with Olivier’s magnifi-cent voice, the speech sounded wonderful. It just didnot make the least sense. And since Olivier was beingbroadcast live on television, he could not be edited intoa passable semblance of reason.

Television has given the Oscars a worldwide audienceand the winners the temptation to say whatever they

want on almost any subject. We will hear their politicalopinions and learn the names of their agents, childrenand high school English teachers. Some will charm uswith their wit, but more will amaze us with their lack ofit. Others will mistake us for psychoanalysts and divulgeneuroses we didn’t want to know. (Yes, Sally Field, welike you; and please, Gwyneth, stop crying!) Of course,we will wonder why we are watching and make a deter-mined resolution not to look next year. We made thesame vow last year.

Enjoy the show.

Eugene Finerman is a writer, a historian and – youmust have noticed – a humorist. He lives in Chicago,Illinois. Visit his Web site: finermanworks.com.

Toastmasters Tips on Awards

SpeechesRobert and Rande Gedaliah are professional speakers

and longtime Toastmasters. So when they watchthe Oscars telecast at home each year with friends –a treasured ritual – they pay particular attention tothe award winners’ acceptance speeches. They analyzethe content, the length, the body language, the quips,the crying, the thank-yous and other such matters.The speeches – both the good and the not-so-good

– inevitably confirm what the Gedaliahs believe is trueof all awards-acceptance speeches: The best ones areshort, graceful and come from the heart.“Let me tell you the approach that I go by,” says

Robert, a 20-year Toastmaster and member of the SECRoughriders club in New York City. “It’s what FranklinD. Roosevelt said: ‘Be sincere, be brief, be seated.’ ”“What we’ll all remember is: How did that person

feel when they got the award? So be sincere, be brief,say your thank-yous and get out of there.”Be sure to keep those thank-yous to a minimum,

adds Rande, also a member of the SEC Roughriders.Oscar winners who start thanking everyone and theirmother’s brother, ticking off one name at a time, putviewers to sleep, she says. “When they thank every-body, they sound like they’re reading their laundry list.” The Gedaliahs have put their ideas into practice,

having received a number of honors over the years. In1996, the couple, who coach other speakers throughtheir company Speaking for Results, were named co-winners of the Toastmaster of the Year award for Area

42. They delivered their speech in front of a packedauditorium in the New York Times building.“Using humor is a good idea in acceptance speeches,”

suggests Rande. “The acceptance speeches I’ve remembered the most over the years have had humor in them.”

Toastmasters Transforms Forest Whitaker?One well-known actor who struggled with acceptancespeeches was Forest Whitaker. In the spring of 2007, Whitaker was expected to

win a Best Actor Oscar for his performance in thefilm The Last King of Scotland. He had won two majoracting awards for the performance earlier in the sea-son, all leading up to the Academy Award nomination.However, his acceptance speeches at both the GoldenGlobe awards and the Screen Actors Guild (SAG)event had been disasters – filled with rambling, non-sensical mumbling. The public’s interest had beenpiqued and several stories appeared in the newsabout this powerful actor’s inability to deliver an adequate acceptance speech.That’s when Toastmasters stepped in. The organiza-

tion issued a news release to the media that was pickedup by the newspaper USA Today. The newspaper pub-lished a story specifically offering tips from Toastmas tersto help Whitaker give a successful Oscars acceptancespeech. A copy went to Mr. Whitaker’s agent, as well. On Oscar night, Forest Whitaker offered the world

a dazzling speech. Those who watched could see thathe appeared to follow all the tips offered by Toastmas -ters. He paused before beginning, controlled his fillerwords, concentrated on his message, kept names to aminimum and performed the entire speech as thoughit were an Oscar-worthy script that he had writtenand rehearsed. At the end of the evening, his wifeasked reporters, “Wasn’t that a great speech?” It was indeed an Oscar-winning speech.

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By Patricia Fripp HOW TO


Accept an Award with Class� Accepting an award is like walk-ing a tightrope. You need to begracious, grateful and humble –but not so humble or self-deprecat-ing that the audience thinks youare trivializing the honor. Thewarm glow of the occasion cansuddenly turn chilly or sour witha few ill-chosen words.I once coached a man who was

due to receive an award from alarge organization. Two thousandpeople would be in the audience.“I want to be funny,” he told me,“so I’ll start by saying how desper-ate they must be to give me thisaward.” I persuaded him that he’dbe insulting the organization andeveryone who had ever been hon-ored. We worked together to comeup with a gracious acceptancespeech; one that was still funny butwould leave everyone present feel-ing great about the evening, theaward and the organization. Sooner or later, you’ll be pre-

sented with an award. It may be asurprise, or you may have time toprepare. Use your answers to thefollowing questions to weave awarm, wonderful story that willleave everyone with a big smile(and maybe a tear):

� Who nominated you? � Who invited you to join thisgroup or encouraged you to getinvolved in this project or event?

� What is your connection to thisgroup?

� How do you feel about the peo-ple and the organization’s goals?

� Why are they giving you thisaward?

offered by the National SpeakersAssociation. Action-star “Everyman” Harrison

Ford was honored with the Holly -wood Foreign Press Association’sCecil B. DeMille Award in 2002,for “outstanding contribution to theentertainment field” – or more specif-ically, 35 movies over four decades,including Star Wars, Raiders of theLost Ark, Witness, The Fugitive andPatriot Games. “In anticipation oftonight,” he said, “I wrote twospeeches, a long one and a short one.I’ll give you the short one: ‘Thankyou’ But it seems there might beenough time for the long one as well,which is: ‘Thank you very much.’”Whenever you have some

advance notice, be sure to askhow long you are expected tospeak. The shorter your time slot,the more you will need to practice!When the time comes, look directlyat the audience. Never read yourremarks. You can walk up on stagewith notes, but they should consistof a few bulleted points. Whenever you are involved in

philanthropy or leadership in yourprofessional organization, yourcompany or your community, youare likely to get an award someday. It’s better to have a few well-crafted remarks ready just in casethan to be caught speechless. Orworse, saying the wrong thing. Begracious. Be modest. Be prepared!

Patricia Fripp, is an executive speechcoach, professional speaker andauthor of Get What You Want! andMake It, So You Don’t Have to FakeIt! Reach her at www.fripp.com.

� Have you seen someone elseaccept this same award?

� When was the first time youattended a meeting and whatwere your experiences?

People will not remember all thedetails of what you say, but theywill remember the stories you tell.Include a memorable vignette orincident, something entertaining ortouching about your connection.

Inspiration From the OscarsShow biz can provide wonderfulexamples of great acceptancespeeches. When Russell Crowewon an Oscar for The Gladiator(2000), he dedicated it to “every-one who has seen the downsideof disadvantage.” Then he receivedthe 2002 Golden Globe Award forA Beauti ful Mind. First, he gavecredit to the people on whose lifethe film was based, offering specialthanks to “John and Alicia Nash,for living such an inspirational lovestory.” He added, “A BeautifulMind is just a movie, folks, buthopefully it will help us open ourhearts . . . to believe that somethingextraordinary can always happenin our lives.” It’s okay to be excited. Sally

Field’s joy when she won the 1979Academy Award for Norma Rae hasnever been forgotten: “You like me!You really like me!” When she wonthe 1987 Oscar for Moonstruck,Cher said, “I know this does notmean I am somebody, but I am onmy way to become somebody.” Iquoted her when I won the 1996Cavett Award, the highest award

Prepare a few well-crafted remarksand be brief, gracious and modest.

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By Beth Black

What Do You Say to a Celebrity?you are!’ ” But as she regained hercomposure, Lisa figured out exactlywhat to do. She notes, “Being ahuge baseball fan, I could notbelieve I almost asked Kirby Puckettfor identification! I grabbed a scrapof paper and asked for an auto-graph, which he cheerfully signed.”

Clark Luby of the Bay StreetBreakfast Toastmasters in Toronto,Canada, hit a home run as well. “Acouple of years ago, A.J. Burnett ofthe New York Yankees baseballteam was playing for the TorontoBlue Jays,” he says. “While standingin the will-call line, I struck up aconversation with his mother, whowas there to see him pitch that day.Whenever A.J. pitched he got a

Imagine stepping into a small elevator in a quiet hotel, late atnight. You turn to push the “Up”

button and discover someone elsehas stepped inside too. It’s . . . theoriginal ABBA band member you’djust applauded – an hour earlier –with 18,000 other fans at the Holly -wood Bowl. What do you say?Should you say anything?

In some parts of the world (likeHollywood), celebrity sightings aremore common, but no matter howoften you see them, there’s alwaysthat one famous person who willtake your breath away. Even thesmoothest Toastmaster can suffer atongue-tied moment when caughtoff-guard by a close encounter with

a star. Here several members sharetheir stories:

Scoring Points witha Sports CelebrityLisa Jenks, of the Marsh WindsToastmasters club in Plymouth,Minnesota, was surprised when ithappened to her. She says, “I wasworking at a local lumber yard as acashier. Kirby Puckett of the Min -nesota Twins baseball team camethrough my line. It was early in hiscareer, but he was already a verypopular player. He wrote a check,and I began to say, ‘Can I see yourdriver’s license?’ Embar rassed, Icaught myself partway through thesentence – ‘Never mind, I know who

Toastmasters share their closeencounters of the starry-eyed kind.

(Continued on page 23)


luxury box, so his mother invited usup to watch the game with her anda family friend.”

Luby found the experience amaz-ing, yet came to the conclusion thatcelebrities are human like the rest ofus. “The Jays were playing the BostonRed Sox that day and any time RedSox players Manny [Ramirez] or BigPapi [David Ortiz] came up to bat,she couldn’t even watch, she wasso nervous,” he says. “We just actedlike ourselves and didn’t try toimpress, and I think that was thebest way to be. I will always thankher for her hospitality.”

Making a favorable impressionis always a good idea. You neverknow what the future will bring.You might even meet that personagain. It happened to Jenks withKirby Puckett. She says, “I did meethim again a few years later at acharity event and had a brief, but asI recall, funny and engaging conver-sation with him while we had a pic-ture taken together.” Good thingshe’d left a favorable first impression!

Jenks has some advice for thosewho find themselves in a close-upwith a celebrity. “I would suggestbeing respectful of them as people,”she says. “Don’t approach at aninappropriate moment, during din-ner, for example. Be gracious andpolite. And don’t be afraid to speakto a celebrity if the situation isappropriate. You don’t want to regreta missed opportunity, and you mayend up with a great story to tell!”

Seeing Stars from TV and Film

� Gina Salamone, of GMACRToastmasters in Fort Washington,Pennsylvania, met Emo Phillips, acomedian whom Jay Leno refers toas “the best joke writer in America.”

“I had seen his stand-up routinerecently, and after the show I wait-ed in a line for an autograph,”says Salamone. She overheard thepeople in front of her bantering

� Sometimes you can make a starlaugh. Pam Alexandra of Placer’sGold Club in Auburn, California,enjoyed a sweet moment making afamous comic actor laugh. “Early inSteve Martin’s career I had a chanceto see him at a club in San Fran -cisco called the Boarding House.Near the end of his act, he put ona rather large fake nose (a profes-sionally crafted nose – it lookedreal). He was standing outside afterthe show, briefly shaking handswith some of the guests as they

were leaving. I walked up to himand touched his nose (he was stillwearing the fake) and said, ‘Youhave a cute schnoz.’ He laughedand said ‘Thanks.’”

� And sometimes you can enjoymeeting a star with a quick wit.Judith Olsen, who plans to joina Toastmasters club in Atlanta,Georgia, was surprised to discoverthe actor Tom Selleck in an airportin Toronto, Canada. She realizedthis was more than an opportunityto meet a movie star – it was achance to have the last laugh withher sister over an old family tale.She hurried over to him and blurted,“Twenty years ago my sister hadbreakfast in the same restaurantin Honolulu as you did, and she’sbeen telling everyone for 20 yearsthat she had breakfast with TomSelleck!” Without hesitating, Sellecksmiled and replied, “Tell your sisterI said hello.”

with him. He turned to the next inline, Sala mone, and that’s when shefroze. “I suddenly realized I had noclue what to say! I didn’t have aninteresting story or clever remark,”she says.

But she pulled herself togetherand thanked him for telling oneof her favorite jokes that night. Toher dismay, she was so surprisedat being able to get some wordsout, she didn’t catch his reply.Finally, she calmed down enoughto get a picture with him.

Salamone advises others to keepcalm in such situations. “There’sno need to get all worked up andhave to stutter and strugglethrough a simple comment.”

� At times you should avoid theinfamous autograph request – itall depends on the context of thecrossed paths. Joy Montgomery ofthe Amador Valley Toastmasters inDublin, California, explained thatshe was in Santa Barbara, waitingfor her aunt and a friend to comeout of a gift shop when she spiedDennis Franz, of the American TVshow NYPD Blue, coming out of theshop. She had no trouble recogniz-ing the star. He saw the recognitionon her face, then glanced back atthe store and across at the restaurantas if determining which escape routewould prove faster. She merely smiledand said hi – and nothing else.“He looked grateful and continuedacross to the restaurant where hiswife was waiting for him to join herfor lunch,” notes Montgomery. “Itseemed like the wrong time to tryto engage him in conversation.”

“Treat a celebrity as a person –

who might just have something

personal going on at the moment.”

CORPORATE CLUBS


By Paul Sterman

Making an International InvestmentState Street’s leadership believes

in the Toastmasters program somuch that it even provides its ownclub sponsor – Executive VicePresident Stefan Gmür offers sup-port to the groups and championstheir activities among State Streetmanagement.

“The benefits of confident andwell-structured speakers represent-ing our business, both internallyand externally, are undeniable,”says Gmür, “and Toastmasters is anexcellent way to allow employeesto develop these skills.”

Employee EducationClub members come from many different departments within StateStreet. With members often practic-ing their sales presentations orspeaking about business-related topics, the clubs are a great wayfor employees to learn more aboutthe company from each other.

Members of the State Streetgroups talk enthusiastically abouttheir experience, saying that theirnew skills have made them better attheir jobs. Anthony Guiang, whoworks in the Toronto, Canada, office,is a senior manager in the financialreporting department who oftengives presentations to groups of 200employees or more. He joined thecompany club to become more con-fident and says all the practicing inclub meetings has helped.

“I do feel less nervous speakingin front of a large crowd,” says

State Street Corporation is abusiness with a global pres-ence. A provider of financial

services to institutional investors,it’s one of the world’s leaders inthis field, operating in 27 countriesand employing more than 27,000people worldwide. So when itcomes to corporate Toastmastersclubs, it’s fitting that State Street hasan international presence in thatcategory as well.

The company, headquartered inBoston, Massachusetts, hosts severalclubs in the Boston area, and morein Sydney, Australia; Paris, France;and Toronto, Canada. It is currentlyforming new clubs in Sacramento,California; Hangzhou, China; andDublin, Ireland.

More may be on the way.“I have had interest from our

employees in Hong Kong andBangalore, India, who have heardabout the benefits of Toastmasters,”says Heather Thompson, assistantvice president for State Street’s GlobalHuman Resources department. “Manyof our newer clubs have beeninspired by the success of otherState Street Toastmasters clubs.”

Because State Street’s businesslanguage is English, most of theclubs operate in the language, mean-ing that many members of clubs out-side the U.S. give speeches in a sec-ondary language. That can be quitedaunting, notes Thompson, who hasparticipated in the Australia club. Sheis impressed with how employeesovercome this challenge and movefrom being just fluent speakers tobeing confident speakers.

“It really is fantastic to see peo-ple learn to give compelling speech-es and presentations and then torealize it has been done in a sec-ondary language,” Thompson says.

In this global age, internationalcompanies increasingly value com-munication skills, which are not onlyimportant from a business aspectbut from a cultural perspective, as

well. To that end, State Street is astaunch supporter of its Toastmastersclubs. It provides each with a loca-tion to meet as well as a budget thatcovers materials, conference fees,educational events and even employ-ee rewards for achieving Toastmas -ters milestones, such as earning aCompetent Communicator award.

Financial-services giantenjoys a wealth of clubs.

“The benefits of confident and well-

structured speakers representing

our business, both internally and

externally, are undeniable.”


Guiang. “The jitters never really goaway but I’ve learned how to man-age them.”

Natalie Sterck works at StateStreet Global Markets in Sydney,Australia, and is a founding memberof its two-year-old Toastmastersclub. Club president in 2008-2009,she has given speeches on a varietyof topics.

“Being on the club executivecommittee really helped meimprove my leadership skills,including how to motivate andengage a group of people, how tolead the club executive meetings,the basics of planning an agendaand following up action points, allof which were directly transferableto my [job] duties,” says Sterck,assistant to the head of State Street’sAsia Pacific operations. “My manag-er, who is a big supporter ofToastmasters and a new club mem-ber, recognizes the developmentopportunities offered byToastmasters and has included it inmy performance goals and review.”

Tien Truong recalls her first-evervisit to the State Street club at theBoston headquarters, where sheworks: “I was really impressed by aperson I met there, because she wasgiving her first speech and spoke so

“Now I get up there and I feelvery comfortable speaking becauseof everything I learned fromToastmasters. It has built confidencein me. Without Toastmasters, Iwouldn’t have been able to do busi-ness mentoring for JuniorAchievement, where you stand upin front of a classroom of 30 highschool students and help them builda case study in business.”

Truong feels the impact at work,too. Recently, she attended a largemeeting held by top executives inher unit. During the Q&A sessionthat followed, she stood up andasked a couple of questions.“Afterward, my boss said, ‘You didwell. It must be your Toastmasterstraining that really helped you.’

“I said, ‘Yes, indeed it is.’”Ron Dagostino, who works at

State Street Global Advisors inBoston, has experienced a similarimprovement. When he visited hisfirst State Street Toastmasters meet-ing a couple of years ago, thethought of public speaking scaredhim – so he knew he had to join. Avice president and senior softwarearchitect, Dagostino is glad he tack-led the challenge, because theBoston club has given him newskills and self-assurance.

“It’s definitely helped my work,”he says. “I’m much more confidentin any meeting-type situation or anysituations where I have to make aformal presentation.”

Paul Sterman is a Toastmaster inOrange, California, and an associateeditor for the Toastmaster magazine.

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eloquently and confidently, and wasso poised. I was sitting in the back,extremely nervous, and I wished Icould be that person some day. Ijoined the club the very next day.”

Making a Wish Come TrueSince taking that first hopeful stepnearly five years ago, Truong hasindeed transformed herself, becom-ing an enthusiastic and accom-plished speaker. She attends twoState Street clubs in Boston, hasserved in several officer roles –including club president and divi-sion governor – and is close toearning her DTM. During the lastcouple of summers, she has helpedlead a well-received Speechcraftprogram for managers at Boston’sFour Seasons Hotel. Truong alsouses her communication skills tovolunteer in community programssuch as Junior Achievement.

“When I first joined the StateStreet club, I was so nervous that Icouldn’t even get up to speak inTable Topics,” recalls Truong, a vicepresident for State Street AlternativeInvestment Solutions. “I would kickmyself because I knew there wasalways one question I wanted toanswer but I wouldn’t get up toanswer it.

3 Frank Wu, of State Street clubin Boston, Mass., receives his CCaward. He’s flanked by fellowmembers Richard Smith (left) andRon Dagostino (right).


of their space, moving upstage, downstage, to the leftor right – to say nothing of kneeling, teetering andmore. Expand your speaking platform. Own the stagearea and use it to further your presentation. Inhabityour environment.

3 The Power of the Pause – Storytellers understandthat the pause is a valuable mechanism for building

drama, adding suspense and imbuing key words andsentences with added meaning. Pauses signify to audi-ences that something profound, important or specialhas been – or is about to be – said.

Professional speaker and storyteller Lou Heckler isknown as a master of the pause. He expressed itspoignancy well: “The main reason I love to use pausesis that they turn the monologue of the speech into a dialogue with the audience.” He says a pause drawsthe audience in. “While the audience is not really

oastmasters and storytellers have much

in common. Each group entertains,

informs and inspires listeners, and receives applause in return. In

fact, many Toastmasters clubs are dedicated to the art of storytelling, and

Toastmasters conferences and conventions often offer sessions dedicated to this topic. Conversely,

many professional storytellers belong to Toastmasters clubs and use club meetings to polish

their craft and develop new material.

How storytellers and Toastmasterscan learn from each other.

By Craig Harrison, DTM

The

of theGloryStory

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As an active member of both communities, I’vecome to believe each group has valuable lessons toteach the other.

Five things Toastmasters can learn from storytellers:

1Vocal Variety – Stories often feature characters, eachwith a unique voice. Tellers develop the ability to

make different characters distinct by using vocal variety,inflections and nuances, as well as pitch, volume andaccents. In your next speech, instead of describing dia-logue, actually deliver it using different voices for eachparticipant.

2 Stage Presence – Many Toastmasters find themselvestethered to a lectern, planted in front of a micro-

phone or glued behind a table. They rarely make fulluse of the stage or podium. Storytellers take advantage


speaking, the pause allows them time to considerwhat’s going on in the story and makes them guesswhat comes next. Right or wrong, they’ve had a feelingof being on stage with you and it really links them tothe rest of the presentation.”

You can do this, too. Review your speech script or outline and look for key spots to introduce pauses forheightened effect.

4 Imagery – Storytellers paint vivid verbal images ofscenes and settings. They use literary techniques,

such as metaphors and strongadjectives, to convey color anddetail. So should Toastmasters.Sometimes Toast masters give thefacts and little else. Storytellersexcel at all the particulars thatbuild dramatic effect: the sights,smells and sounds of scenes; thenuances and subtleties of situa-tions; the specifics of settings.Each adds to the power of apiece. Use imagery evocatively toenrich your speech, Table Topicor opening and closing thought.

5 Setting the Stage – Every storyis different. Like Toastmasters,

storytellers “paint” through bodylanguage, gestures, facial expres-sions and vocal variety. WhileToastmasters are often givenguidelines and manuals to helpthem structure their speeches, it’simportant not to be too rote inusing speaking techniques or toorigid in following strategies andsuggestions. Each time a story-teller takes the stage or beginsa story, he or she has a blankcanvas on which to paint.

“Since we are not in a theaterthat provides lights, sets andmusic, setting the stage is 100 percent up to us,” says veteranstoryteller Judith Black ofMarblehead, Massachu setts.“We must create the environmentwe want to share our work in.”Black, a Circle of Excellenceinductee of the National Story -

telling Network, says the most important aspect of yourperformance is engaging the audience: “Rather thanhard-and-fast rules whose rigidity could cause a causticresponse from hosts or participants, it works best to ask[yourself] a question: What will best help participantsbecome completely invested in the work? Your answerdetermines the setting you try to create.”

Toastmasters can begin each presentation by settingthe stage appropriately – through posture, voice and gestures, as well as employing elements such as surprise,shock, mystery or suspense.


Five things storytellers can learn from Toastmasters:

1Speaking “In the Moment” – Toastmasters regularlyparticipate in Table Topics, where we are asked to

speak “off the cuff” for one to two minutes on a randomtopic, without any warning or preparation time. As aresult, we become adept at thinking, listening andspeaking on our feet and reacting to whatever comesour way. This skill can help storytellers with their pre-,post- and between-story interactions with audiences, aswell as when the unexpected occurs: A cell phone ringsor, say, a train passes nearby and toots its horn.

2 The Value of the Introduction – As Toastmasters, wepride ourselves on mastering the art of the introduc-

tion. We delight in introducing each other in ways thatdraw in audiences, predispose them to listen, build cred-ibility in the presenter and foreshadow the presentationto come. Audiences are naturally curious about tellers,too. Your introduction can help audiences get to know,appreciate and admire you (or the teller you’re introduc-ing), and deepen their connection to you and your stories.

3 Developing One’s Internal Time Clock – Toastmas terstime all aspects of their meetings, with special atten-

tion to speeches. Whether we give a six-minute speech,a two-minute evaluation or a one-minute Table Topicsresponse, the result is an excellent ability to measurepresentation time. Toastmasters contests are won (orlost) in part through adherence to prescribed time limits.

Professional speaker Patricia Fripp, whose careerbegan in Toastmasters, offers this advice for sticking totime limits: “Use a big kitchen clock to prepare, alwaysprepare your piece to be shorter than the limit andalways prepare in advance.”

Fripp is a meeting planner’s best friend. When a con-ference or convention is running late, she will generous-ly allow the planner to choose whether to receive thefull Fripp program they booked or to cut a piece of herprogram to get the event back on schedule. That showsmastery of her material, to say nothing of great customerservice. It derives from her ability to speak within pre-scribed time limits – a skill honed in Toastmasters.Storytellers, too, can develop a feel for how to tell a two-

minute tale, a seven-minute story or something in between.

4 Live Audiences – Toastmasters clubs provide memberswith a ready-made audience. Tellers can benefit

from an audience of poised listeners who laugh, sighand cry in response to what they hear. How wonderfulfor tellers! Oh, did I mention Toastmasters’ proclivity forclapping? Tellers can only practice so much in isolation.

Storyteller and Toastmaster Penny Post, DTM, explainsit well: “One of the hardest things for storytellers toinvent for themselves is how an audience will react toa presentation. Club after club of Toastmasters will wel-come a guest speaker and be riveted by the emotionalcontent a story provides. The attention alone is inspiring!” Tellers can use audiences to refine their material, fine-

tune their timing and gauge comprehension, apprecia-tion and reaction.

5 Immediate Feedback – Toastmasters evaluate all presentations. We are skilled at acknowledging

strengths and recommending areas for improvement.Our blend of motivation and specific recommendationsprovides tellers with immediate feedback on what is perceived to be effective and where improvement canoccur. Post says the valuable feedback storytellers getfrom Toastmasters is often quite different from the kindof feedback storytellers hear from each other. A veterancoach to other storytellers, Post counsels them to useToastmasters speaking opportunities to gather evaluations– written and oral – from which to improve their stories. Tellers can gather many data points about their stories

through the written and verbal evaluations Toastmastersprovide at each meeting.

Untold Stories – Misnomers on Both SidesJust as many presume storytelling is only for children,so too, do many people regard Toastmasters as only forthose who are afraid to speak. In fact, storytelling is foreveryone, and Toastmasters holds value for both noviceand advanced presenters alike. Storytelling fits well withthe Toastmasters meeting format. Whether in preparedspeeches, Table Topics or opening and closing thoughts,stories are appropriate.

This Story is to Be Continued . . .So what are you waiting for? The story doesn’t end here.You’re the central character in this tale. It’s your move.Find a specialty club in your district that emphasizesstory telling. If there isn’t one, e-mail me and I’ll helpyou build one! A large storytelling community is outthere, just waiting to connect with you.

Craig Harrison, DTM, is co-founder of LaughLovers clubin Oakland, California, and the founding chairmanof the NSA’s Storytellers Professional Emphasis Group.In 2006, he visited the People’s Republic of Chinawith three dozen professional storytellers as partof a cultural exchange. Tell Craig about your experi-ences with Toastmasters storytelling clubs [email protected].

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By Allen Schoer


Mastering Storytelling� You’re on the road to becomingyour company’s Chief Storyteller.Let’s begin with some good news:You’re already better than you mightthink. You tell stories every day.

Here we’ll explore three capa -bilities that will take you well onyour way to becoming a profes -sional storyteller.

Remember the “Three R’s” ofyour early education: Reading, Writing and ‘Rithmetic? Now con-sider the “three I’s” of storytelling:Invitation, Imagination and Impact.Here’s how you can master them:

1. Invitation. Remember Steve Jobs’famous invitation to Pepsi’s then-CEO John Sculley when he luredhim to Apple by asking “Do youwant to spend the rest of yourlife selling sugared water, or doyou want a chance to changethe world?” Engage your listenersby stimulating their curiosity andasking them to share in some-thing exciting with you.

2. Imagination. Enlivening people’simaginations is easy. What hap-pens before you visit the doctor?Or when you’re waiting for theboard’s reaction to your lateststrategic plan? Your imaginationputs on quite a show. Whoneeds PowerPoint or tech -nological wizardry?

In 1961, United States PresidentJohn F. Kennedy recognized theneed for a new narrative to galva-nize the space race. Before a jointsession of the United States Congress,he boldly announced that by theend of the decade the countrywould be dedicated to “landing aman on the moon and returning him

cultivates relationships. When yousee how you move others and aremoved by them, you grow instature and authority.

Keep this in mind: What you’resaying isn’t for you. It’s for yourteam.

Practice TimeTry these techniques at your nextteam or client meeting and notewhat happens:

� Be an “investigator” – not a content dumper. Ask, don’t tell.

� Watch carefully how what you’resaying impacts your team.

� Don’t leap to the next pointuntil you see them absorb theprevious one. Don’t assumeeveryone’s with you. Ask ques-tions like “Are you with me?”or “How do you relate to this?”

� Slow down. Don’t race your narrative simply to get to theend. Consider practicing onsomeone first.

� Create images to get the clientengaged in your story: “Imaginethis . . . ” or “Picture that . . . ”

� Stop occasionally and observeyour effect on everyone in theroom.

Remember, your team and yourclients are your creative partners.Katherine Hepburn said, “If yougive audiences half a chance, they’lldo half your acting for you.”

Allen Schoer is founder and CEO ofthe TAI Group, a consulting firmpioneering new directions in execu-tive leadership and organizationalchange. He can be reached atwww.thetaigroup.com.

safely to the Earth.” Despite wide-spread doubts, and the fact that theNational Aeronautics and SpaceAdministration (NASA) had not yeteven sent a man into orbit aroundthe Earth, he electrified the collec-tive imagination of the country.

Imagination is the direct accesspoint to our creativity. Simply say“Imagine this . . . ” and people’s creative juices start flowing.They’re transported to a differentand vivid new reality without leaving their seats.

3. Impact. We crave impact. Wewant to be seen and know thatwhat we do has meaning. Inbaseball terms, it’s called “lookingthe ball to the bat.” As a story-teller, that means watching youraudience closely to see howyour content is affecting them.

In 1995, Nelson Mandela knewhe had to shore up his government’stenuous hold on post-apartheidunity. Adopting the strategy of“Don’t address their brains, addresstheir hearts,” Mandela convincedthe Springboks rugby team, untilthen the country’s symbol of whitesupremacy, to join him. At the com-mencement of rugby’s World Cupfinal being held in South Africa,Mandela and the team symbolicallybroke all barriers by singing “NkosiSikelel’ iAfrika,” the anthem of theblack resistance movement, to astill-divided nation and a worldwidetelevision audience. The Springbokswon the World Cup and SouthAfrica moved toward reconciliation.

Brilliant ideas without brillianthuman connection usually die fast.That connection builds trust and

Know the three I’s: Invitation,Imagination and Impact.

MANNER OF SPEAKING

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By Emily Osburne, ACB

Be Unforgettable!free of filler words like “um,” “ah”and “you know,” it can still be for-gotten. Even if it’s interesting andrelevant, it can still be forgotten.

The good news is that it is possible to stand out from all themental noise. Here are a few simpletricks to help your overwhelmedaudience retain the information youare presenting:

Start With a PictureOur brains have the ability toremember pictures more easily thanwords. Before developing yourspeech, ask yourself, “What picturedo I want to leave in the minds ofthe listeners?” Forget the famous“three points.” Your listeners canbetter remember one single picture.

For example, by the end of thisarticle, I want you to remember

How much of your message will a typical audience member

retain one day after hearing your speech?

information we all receive on adaily basis. Workforce magazineestimates that the average Fortune1000 worker sends and receives 178e-mails a day. Dharma Singh Khalsa,in his book Brain Longevity, writesthat the average American seesmore than 16,000 advertisementsa day. We are bombarded withinformation, so it’s our responsibilityas speakers to make sure our listen-ers are not deleting our words likethey disregard spam or throw outjunk mail.

Even if a speech is deliveredbeautifully, with a thoughtful open-ing, body and conclusion, it can stillbe forgotten. Even if a speech is

Strategies for makingyour speech stand outwith audiences tired ofinformation overload.

One week later?One month later?One year later?According to a Dun and

Bradstreet study, 80 percent of theaverage speech will be forgottenwithin 24 hours. You have probablywitnessed this phenomenon. Youcheer for an impressive speech onMonday morning but by Tuesdayafternoon, you struggle to recap themain points to a co-worker. Youmiss a Toastmasters meeting andalthough everyone agrees that Sam’sspeech was top-notch, no oneremembers his title two weeks later.

This low retention rate could becaused by the large amount of


how overwhelmed people are withdata. So picture this: You’re sittingin a white room with stacks andstacks of paper. On each piece ofpaper is a fact that you have beentold at some time in your life. Asyou rifle through the papers, youdiscover one sheet with a colorfulpicture of a lake resting beside amajestic mountain. Which piece ofpaper is likely to take up perma-nent residence in your memory?The one with the picture is mucheasier to remember. You canapply that principle to speak-ing as well. Help your listen-ers by painting a picturewith your words or evenshowing them a picturethat describes your topic.

Tell a StoryAnother way to stand out in theminds of your listeners is throughstorytelling. Not all stories are created equal, though. Accordingto Dan and Chip Heath, authorsof Made to Stick: Why Some IdeasSurvive and Others Die, your storywill likely be retained if it is emotional and unexpected.Emotions are the gatekeepers of themind. The more emotional amoment, the more likely you are toremember it. That explains whymost people remember their wed-ding day or where they were stand-ing when they heard terrible,shocking news. Make sure that yourstory is a little bit more excitingthan the listener’s everyday life. Itcan be thrilling, scary, shocking oreven heartbreaking, but make sureit is not boring.

Twanda Mickle, DTM, has heardhundreds of speeches during herToastmasters career. She says,“The most unforgettable speech I’veever heard came from a speakerwho infused his personal successes,struggles and celebrations into a six-minute emotional roller coaster ridethat left me in tears, laughter and

have probably heard somethinglike this more than once: “Publicspeaking is ranked the highest fearamong adults, even higher thanthe fear of death.” Though this isinteresting, it is not unique. Putyour own spin on an old quote.For example, you could add atagline like: “I say public speakingis ranked the highest in fun amongToastmas ters, even higher than thejoy of ice cream.”

You might also share facts fromrecently published articles. Audience

members should be saying, “I havenever heard that,” or “I have neverheard it explained that way.” Newinformation requires the brain toprocess it, rather than ignore it.

DevicesIn fourth-grade math class, I memo-rized the following sentence:“Please Excuse My Dear AuntSally.” This sentence helped me toremember the order of operations,which are Parentheses, Exponents,Multiplication, Division, Additionand Subtraction. If you provide theaudience with more than threepoints, look for a mnemonic deviceto aid long-term memory.

Out-Think the CompetitionUrgency is the name of today’sgame! We receive urgent e-mails.We send urgent overnight expressdeliveries. Our co-workers send usemergency text messages at allhours. Your speech is competingwith the urgent messages floatingaround in the minds of your listen-ers. Make sure to show the audi-ence why your message is urgentand relevant enough to earn theirattention, make them take notes andtake up space in their brains.

utter exhilaration. I didn’t hear aspeech; I felt it.”

Lesson learned: Don’t be afraidto be vulnerable and openlyshare yourself and your story inyour speech. The audience willrespect, appreciate and rememberyou for it.

Audience ParticipationTo engage your audience mem-bers, thus stimulating their brains,craft interactive moments thatrequire your audience to move,

talk or role play. Involvement suchas raising hands or signaling with“thumbs up” or “thumbs down”can be helpful. Ask your audienceto make a decision or rate afavorite item or idea. Solicit feed-back that requires a thoughtfulresponse or a healthy debate. Dis -agreement is better than dullness.Wake up those audience memberswith hands-on activities thatrequire movement and interaction.

Many years ago, I attended aworkshop where the speaker want-ed us to learn to buy stocks basedon trusted market signals ratherthan emotions. He asked us tohold up a piece of paper and pre-tend it was a stock we had justbought. He asked us to kiss thestock. We felt silly, but we kissedit. He told us to hug the stock. Wefelt ridiculous, but we did it. Whatwas the point? It’s just as silly andridiculous to be emotionallyattached to a stock! Although thatseminar was seven years ago, Ihave never forgotten the point.

New InformationAvoid using examples and statisticsthat your audience is alreadyfamiliar with. As a speaker, you

“Emotions are the gatekeepers of the mind.”


one of these techniques did theadvertisers use?”

� Did they flash memorableimages in front of you or didthey tell a story?

� Were they trying to bring innew information?

� Did they repeat their sloganmore than once?

This small trigger reminds yourbrain to think of this article again.As a speaker, give your audiences atask so they will ponder your wordsagain in the future.

It is estimated that more informa-tion has been generated in the past30 years than has been generated inthe 2,000 years before it. We haveunofficially moved from the Infor -mation Age into the InformationOverload Age. Your audience members are receiving messages

via TV, radio, cell phone, Internet,publications and books on a regularbasis. Their brains will naturallydisregard anything that does notappear to be relevant.

So help them out! Make it easyfor them to remember your mes-sage. Apply one or two of thesetricks and your audience willremember you for a few weeks.Apply three or four, and they mightremember you for a few months.Apply all eight tricks and yourspeech will stand out in the mindsof your listeners for a lifetime.

Emily Osburne, ACB, is a member ofHenry County Toastmasters inStockbridge, Georgia. She is theauthor of Everyday Experts onMarriage and leads marriage work-shops with her husband. Reach herat www.emilyosburne.com.

Use RepetitionAdvertisers know that if you heartheir short, silly jingle enough times,it will be ingrained in your memory.In fact, you can probably sing songsfrom commercials that have notaired in 10 years. Repetition works.The simpler the better. Repetitionworks. Try it. You will not be disap-pointed. Repetition works.

TriggersWhat is the likelihood that youraudience members will even thinkabout you after leaving the audito-rium, classroom or conferenceroom? Give your audience anassignment so they will reflect onwhat you have said shortly afterhearing you. For example, I wantyou to think about this articlewhenever you watch a commercialon television. Ask yourself, “Which

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What Do You Sayto a Celebrity?(Continued from page 13)

found herself in an unusual pre -dicament in a public restroom.She was reaching for the last papertowel to dry her hands, and herrival for that towel turned out tobe singing star Gloria Estefan.What could she do? Each took halfand both left with smiles.

Movers and Shakersin Business and PoliticsCurt Johnson of the Portland Clubin Portland, Oregon, met Bill Gatesat a Microsoft company party 19years ago. Gates was talking aboutone of his passions – fast cars.Johnson wanted to chime in, but hewas speechless and regrets it to thisday. “I just listened. Alas,” he sighs. Frank Felsburg of Picket Post

Toastmasters in Berwyn, Pennsyl -vania, offered a little more loquacitywhen he saw former U.S. DefenseSecretary Donald Rumsfeld at an icecream shop in St. Michael’s, Mary -land. “I told him the rum raisinice cream there was very good,”notes Felsburg. He declines to saywhether Rumsfeld took him up

on his suggestion.Phyrne Parker of

the Inspiring VoicesToastmasters club inToronto, Ontario,Canada, recalled heradventures with alocal politician. Sheonce met the Lieu -tenant Gov ernor ofthe Province ofSaska tchewan. “A fewweeks later, I wasgrocery shopping andshe came toward mein the aisle.” In thenext aisle, they metagain, and again inthe next. At whichpoint Parker quipped,“You know, thiswould never happenin Toronto.” TheLieutenant Governor

of Saskatch ewan stopped andasked what she meant. Parkeranswered, “Well, for one thing theLieutenant Governor of Ontariodoesn’t go grocery shopping, letalone meet the general public inthe aisle like this.” But the politician had the last

laugh with a funny story sheshared. She said a bureaucrat fromOttawa had called her assistantbecause he was conducting a sur-vey of the Lieutenant Governors’offices in all 10 provinces. Oneof the questions they asked con-cerned the number of servantsthe Lieutenant Governor had.The staffer laughed and said,“Perhaps that can best beanswered by my telling you shedoes her own grocery shopping.”At that point the bureaucrat decid-ed they hadn’t really wanted toinclude Saskatchewan in the sur-vey anyway!

Should Stardust Blur Your Vision?John Haran of the Simi ValleyToastmasters club was born andraised in Los Angeles and has seencelebrities many times. What’s more,he’s worked with them. “I was abodyguard for a couple of themat movie premieres or providedsecurity at their homes,” he says.“Put simply, they are just peoplelike everyone else.”Judging from the variety of close-

ups that Toastmasters have sharedwith celebrities, one important mes-sage seems clear: Follow the Cele -brity Golden Rule. Treat a celebrityas a person – who might just havesomething personal going on at themoment. Be aware of that, and berespectful. Beyond this simple cour-tesy, try to be friendly! You neverknow who might smile back.

Beth Black is an associate editor ofthe Toastmaster magazine and amember of Unimasters Toastmastersin Lake Forest, California.

Hitting a High Notewith a Famous MusicianPaul Gleditsch of Lunch Out LoudToastmasters in Parker, Colorado,took the initiative to meet GingerBaker (former drummer for the rockband Cream) after a polo match inColorado. “As he was taking hishorse back to his trailer, I told myfriend that we needed to go intro-duce ourselves,” says Gleditsch.“Off we went to his trailer, intro-duced ourselves as fans, and shookhands. The conversation endedquickly as he was off to entertaineveryone in his [current] jazz trio.”It was a memorable day for Gleditsch,who enjoyed meeting one of hisrock heroes. This was prior toGleditsch’s Toastmasters training,he notes. “Today, we could keep alively conversation going forever!”Florence Ferreira of Boca Raton

Toastmasters in Boca Raton, Florida,

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The Better YouWrite It,

the Better YouSay It

Excluding pure entertainment, the objective of mostspeeches is to convey information, or to promote ordefend a point of view. Certain tools, such as vocal vari-ety and body language, can aid this process. But theycommunicate only emphasis or emotion.

If your words are incapable of getting your messageacross, then no amount of gestures or tonal variety willdo it for you. Thus, when preparing a speech, your firstobjective must always be to carefully structure yourinformation and look for the best words or phrases toexpress what you want to say.

This is why the Toastmasters Competent Communi -ca tion manual devotes the first four assignments toorganizing the speech itself, including a chapter specifically on the importance of words in conveyingmeaning and feeling. Only in projects five and six doesthe manual cover body language and vocal variety.

But if writing your speech is the key to success, howshould you go about it?

Have you ever heard the adage that communica-

tion is only seven percent verbal and 93 percent

nonverbal? If so, I recommend you ignore it.

Remember these keyprinciples of speechwriting.

By Philip Yaffe, CC

Getting StartedThe problem with most articles and books on good writing is that they are – well, poorly written. This isbecause they concentrate on the use of language andnot on the fundamentals of writing itself. The principlesof good writing are few, and they’re easy to understand;all too often, the absolute essentials are buried under anavalanche of verbiage about technique.

For example, I recently searched the Internet for“clear writing” and came up with a list of “10 principlesof clear writing.” Each principle offers good advice;however, the list has a fundamental fault: These 10 prin-ciples are not really principles at all, but rather tips andtechniques.

What’s the difference? Tips and techniques tell youwhat to do; principles tell you why you are doing it.Understanding why you are doing something, i.e., thebenefits you will gain, helps ensure that you will do itconsistently. Too often, when we are told only what


to do, we follow the instructions half-heartedly, incon -sistently or not at all, with disastrous results.

During my senior year at the University of California,Los Angeles, I tutored writing to earn much-needed cash.One day, a first-year student showed me a note fromher professor that said, “Young lady, I advise you eitherto leave my class immediately or prepare to fail it.” Idetermined that she had been misapplying a fun -damental writing principle in her class work, so Iexplained it to her and had her do a few simple exercis-es to be certain she understood it. By the end of theterm, the expected “F” shot up to a gratifying “B.”

This was not an isolated case. In my experience,when students have difficulty writing, it’s generallybecause they are: 1) unfamiliar with a fundamental principle, 2) inconsistently applying it, 3) improperlyapplying it or 4) not applying it at all.

The same thing occurs with speechwriting. Duringmy 40-year career in journalism, marketing and

communications, I have been continually appalledby how poorly top business executives, academics,researchers and other clearly intelligent peopleexpress themselves.

The Principles of SuccessSome years ago I analyzed this discouraging phenomenonand defined three key principles that underlie virtuallyevery kind of nonfiction writing as well as public speaking. For added strength and substance, I cast theprinciples in the form of semi-mathematical formulasAs formulas, these principles not only tell you what todo, they also tell you why you are doing it and how togo about it correctly.

In fact, these principles act like tests for effectiveness.If your speech fails these tests, it must be revised. If itpasses them, then – and only then – should you look atthe other aspects of public speaking to make youralready good speech even better.


Learn these principles, the formulas and the tests tobetter control the words in your speeches:

1Clarity – Being clear is not a matter of personalappreciation. Do you find your text clear? You

should – after all, you wrote it. But how can you be certain that it will be clear to others? According to theclarity principle, to be clear you must follow this formula:

Cl = EDE

� Emphasize what is of key importance. Beforeyou start writing you must first determine the mainideas that you want your readers or listeners to takeaway from your text. This is not always easy. It’s farsimpler to say that everything is of key importance,so you put in everything you have. However, unlessyou do the work of defining what you really wantyour audience to know, the audience won’t get yourpoint. They will simply get lost in your verbiageand either give up or never realize what they weresupposed to have learned.

� De-emphasize what is of secondary importance.Next, as you write your text, you must be certainto de-emphasize what is of less importance. Why?Because if you really want your readers or listenersto recognize and retain the key ideas, you don’t wantthem getting lost in the details. Details (informationof secondary importance) explain and support thekey ideas. They must never overwhelm them.

� Eliminate what is of no importance. Finally, youmust ruthlessly eliminate what is of no importance.Why? Because any information that adds nothing toexplaining and supporting the key ideas will tend toobscure them, which is exactly the opposite of whatyou want.

2Conciseness – In order to be concise, your text mustfollow this formula:

Co = LS

According to the formula, your writing should be:

� As long as necessary – “As long as necessary”means covering all the key ideas you identified under“clarity,” and all the information of secondary impor-tance needed to explain and support them. Notethat nothing is said here about the number of words,because it is irrelevant. If it takes 800 words to be“as long as necessary,” then 800 words must beused. If it takes 1,800 words, this is alright, too.

� As short as possible – “As short as possible”means staying as close as you can to the minimum.Not because people prefer short text; in the abstract,the terms “long” and “short” have no meaning.The important point is: All words beyond the minimum tend to damage clarity. Subconsciously,readers will continually try to understand why thosewords are there, and will continually fail becausethey serve no purpose.

3 Density – Density is a less familiar concept than clarity and conciseness, but it is equally important.

According to the density principle, your text should follow this formula:

D = PL

This means dense writing should contain:

� Precise information – Using precise informationrather than wishy-washy weasel words aids clarity.For example, if you say it is a “hot” day, what do youmean? Mention a temperature and everyone will bet-ter understand your meaning. Using precise informa-tion also builds the audience’s confidence in yourknowledge of the subject.

� Logically linked – Precise facts – data – areinsufficient alone. To be meaningful, data mustbe organized to create “information.” Apply thesetwo important tests when converting data intoinformation:

Data Test One: Relevance – Is a particular piece ofdata really needed? Any information that fails to aidunderstanding or promote audience confidenceshould be rigorously eliminated.

Data Test Two: Misconceptions – The logical linkbetween data must be made explicit to prevent theaudience from coming to false conclusions. Toensure that a logical link is clear, place the twopieces of data as close to each other as possible, preferably right next to each other. When data are widely separated, their logical link is masked.

Now, the 10 Tips and TechniquesKeeping these true principles – clarity, conciseness anddensity – firmly in mind allows us to re-evaluate the following oft-quoted “10 tips of clear writing,” therebymaking them more meaningful and useful.

� Keep sentences short. This is usually interpreted to meanan average sentence length of 15 to 18 words. Readers


and listeners could handle longer sentences; however,when the length rises above this average, sentences arelikely to be poorly constructed, thereby damaging clarity.

But remember, an average sentence is 15 to 18 words.Don’t shun longer sentences. A well-constructed longsentence is often clearer than two or more shorter ones.Why? Because the longer sentence might better show thelogical linkage among the various elements, which oftenis lost by splitting it apart.

� Prefer the simple to the complex. If the precise wordis long, don’t be hesitant to useit, because not using it woulddamage clarity. On the otherhand, if a shorter word woulddo just as well, choose it. Forexample, dog is usually betterthan canine, and changeworks better than modification.

� Prefer the familiar word. This is a variation of the second point. If you have a choice between two words,use the one that most people are likely to recognize. Forexample, daily is more commonly used than quotidian.

� Avoid unnecessary words. Be concise.

� Use active verbs. Active verbs tend to enhance clarity;conversely, too many passive verbs tend to damage it.

� Write the way you speak. This is a useful technique,but don’t take it literally. When we speak, we generallyuse simpler vocabulary and sentence structures thanwhen we write. Writing the way you speak is a goodway to produce a first draft. However, when we speak,our sentence structures are often confused and ourvocabulary imprecise. These faults must be rigorouslycorrected in the second or third drafts.

This is even more important for writing a speech thanwriting a document. In a printed text, if people don’tunderstand something, they have the luxury of reading itagain. If you say something they don’t understand, it’sthere, and then it’s gone.

� Use terms your audience can picture. In other words,follow the density principle. When making a statement,be sure to support it with concrete data.

� Tie in with your readers’ experience. Again, this isabout density, about using precise information. The

words you choose should be compatible with your read-ers’ experience. If you need to use a word that’s new toyour readers, define it the first time you use it. If it’sreally key, define it again later on.

Also be wary of words that look familiar but changemeaning in the context of your subject. Example: Insultis medical jargon for an injury or trauma. Talking aboutan insult to the heart without first explaining the medical

meaning of the word might leave your audience scratch-ing their heads.

� Make full use of variety. If you conscientiously applythe principles of clarity, conciseness and density, youwill almost automatically introduce variety of sentencelength and structure into your presentation.

Avoid introducing too much vocabulary, though.Constantly changing terminology for the sake of varietyaffects clarity. If several words mean essentially the samething, pick one or two of them and forget the others.

� Write to express, not to impress. The purpose of mostnonfiction writing and public speaking is to inform orinstruct. In fact, the better you write your speech, theless people are likely to notice. Keep your audience’sattention by focusing the speech on a message ratherthan a series of facts.

So there you have it: a list of 10 writing tips and howthey relate to the three fundamental principles of writ-ing. With these principles – clarity, conciseness and den-sity – you can make your speeches shine.

Philip Yaffe, CC, a member of the Claddagh Toastmastersin Brussels, Belgium, is a former reporter for the WallStreet Journal who teaches persuasive communicationtechniques. This article is based on his new book, TheGettysburg Approach to Writing & Speaking Like aProfessional. Reach him at [email protected].

“If you conscientiously apply the

principles of clarity, conciseness and

density, you will almost automatically

introduce variety of sentence length and

structure into your presentation.”

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LOOKING AT LANGUAGE


By Dian Duchin Reed, CC

How to Read Poetry to Otherscoffee shops to libraries. To findone nearby, search on the Internetor in your local newspaper. Arriveearly at such events to put yourname on the sign-up list, as avail-able time slots often fill up fast.Use a larger font size (say, 14 pointinstead of the typical 12 point)when you print out the poemsyou’ll be reading, especially ifyou’re headed for a dimly lit café.

� Prepare a short introduction. Theaudience will appreciate your poet-ry more if they feel a connection toyou. Over the years, I’ve attendeda lot of poetry readings, given byboth amateurs (who do it just forlove) and professionals (who areoften on tour promoting their latestbooks). The best readings occurwhen the poets connect with theiraudience members by sharingsomething about themselves, theircreative process or the origin orinspiration for a poem. Even ifyou’ll only read for a few minutes,start off with a personal touch:Comment on the season or on whatprompted you to write this particu-lar poem. Preferably, this commentwill segue seamlessly into the firstpoem you plan to read.

� Maintain your connection. Practice,practice, practice. Be so familiarwith the poems you’ll read thatyour eyes are free to rise from theprinted page occasionally. Makingeye contact maintains your con -nection with the audience, just asmoving out from behind the lectern

Since becoming a poet – follow-ing a career as a technicalwriter in California’s Silicon

Valley – I’ve found that I have alot of company. Each year Poetrymagazine receives more than90,000 submissions from all overthe world, and every month onemillion poets and poetry lovers visitthe Academy of American Poets’Web site (Poets.org).

Like many of my fellow poets,however, I found I had a big prob-lem: Reading my poems in front ofan audience terrified me. After par-ticipating in several poetry readingswhen my work was published in lit-erary magazines, it became clearthat I had a lot to learn. In fact,until I discovered Toastmasters, Ihad no idea that more was required

for a successful reading than simplyreciting the poems from the page.

The turning point in facing mypublic-speaking fears came one daywhen I was signing up for an openmic poetry reading, thinking outloud about which slot to choose.“If I go first,” I muttered, “I’ll get itover with quickly. Then I can relaxand enjoy hearing the rest of thepoets read.”

The poet who was next in lineoverheard me. He chuckled andsaid, “You sound as if you’re about

to go to the dentist.” It was obviousthat he, on the other hand, wasactually looking forward to his turnat the microphone.

Clearly, it was time for an atti-tude change. I went to my firstToastmas ters meeting the followingweek and have been a member ofEvening Toastmasters in Capitola,California, ever since.

Not only has Toastmasterschanged my attitude toward publicspeaking, it’s enabled me to learnspecific tips and techniques that canmake an ordinary poetry readingextraordinary. Whether you’re a featured reader at a well-publicizedprogram or a fledgling poet partici-pating in an open-to-all event, hereare some ways to ensure the successof your next poetry reading:

� Start small, aim high. Hone yourtechnique with short readings atopen mic events before moving onto half-hour-or-longer presentations.(The terms “open mic” and “openmike” are commonly used abbrevia-tions for “open microphone,” refer-ring to an event that anyone canparticipate in.) Such programs pro-vide an excellent opportunity toshare your work with a ready-madeaudience. Open mic poetry pro-grams often take place on regularschedules in places ranging from

“Poetry consists of the best words in their best order.”– SAMUEL TAYLOR COLERIDGE

“Presenting poetry to an audience

makes use of the same set of skills as

delivering any other kind of speech.”


brings you closer to your listenersand makes you appear more acces-sible to them. Patrice Vecchione, apoet who runs a writing programcalled The Heart of the Word,finds it helpful to also “imagine theaudience as your friends. Almostalways I find one person who isclearly interested and kind-looking.I speak to that person, continuallyreturning to look at him or her, tofeel their encouragement.”

� Speak slowly and clearly. As thefamous poet Samuel TaylorColeridge onceobserved, poetryconsists of “the bestwords in their bestorder.” Poems tend tocompress language and stripout the redundancy that’s typ-ical of conversation. Becauseof this, you’ll need to give theaudience members enough timeto take in the poem they’rehearing so they can understandit properly. On his Web site forPoetry 180 (which encourages poetry readings in high schools),Billy Collins advises, “A poem can-not be read too slowly.”

Vecchione agrees. “Slow down!”she says. “This may feel like slowmotion to you but not to the audience. Remember, it takes timeto digest what one hears. A slowerpresentation relaxes the audience,helps them to trust the presenter.”Used in appropriate places, suchas after the title or at the end ofa sentence, pauses can be power-ful. They add interest, as well asproviding additional time for anaudience to comprehend whatyou’re reading.

� Vocal variety. According to poetand teacher T.C. Marshall, it’s important to “vary the cadence [of yourvoice]; don’t get caught in ‘the offi-cial poetry sound’ that too manyreaders use.” Vecchione recom-

it is to provide transitional materialthat will carry the audience graceful-ly from one poem to another. Someof the things you might want tomention are the circumstances youwere in when you wrote the poem,a specific event that triggered thewriting, or a theme that seems tokeep showing up in your work.

� Respect time limits. If you area featured reader, end while youraudience still wants to hear more,not after their eyes have become

glazed from overload. If you areat an open mic event, stayingwithin your allotted time limitshows respect for your fellowpoets, who are also eager toread. Refrain from crammingas many poems as possibleinto your reading, as thiswill result in either reading too

fast (and sacrificing clarity) orgoing over the time limit. Ratherthan squeezing in one last poem,leave your audience witha memorable ending.

Thank you, Toastmasters! These days, when I read poet-ry to an audience, I find I’mmore at ease ad-libbing(thanks to Table Topics), andmy throat no longer gets sodry that I can’t swallow.Every Toast masters meetingteaches me something new,which I can then put togood use at my next read-ing. Because of Toast -masters, sharing my workwith an audience is nolonger terrifying, but it’sstill a thrill.

Dian Duchin Reed, CC,is a member of EveningToastmasters in Capitola,California. Her new bookof poetry is titled Medusa

Discovers Styling Gel. Reachher at [email protected].

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mends that readers “take a deepbreath before you begin andbetween poems or sentences.”

� Use transitional material betweenpoems. Some ofthe least inter-esting readingsI’ve heard con-sisted of goodpoems . . . andnothing else.The longerthe reading,the moreimportant

By Celia Berrell, ACB, CL


Poetry is for Everyone,Including YouAdding poetic segments to yourspeeches provides a great opportu-nity to expand your gestures andvocal techniques. It’s an excuse tobecome more theatrical in yourdelivery. As a prolific writer ofrhyming verse, I have incorporatedpoetry into my speeches sincebecoming a Toastmaster more thanfour years ago. Audiences haveoffered plenty of positive feedbackand encouragement. They’ve saidmy face lights up, and I grow moreanimated and enthusiastic. To effectively present a piece of

poetry within a speech, it is best ifthe poem is fairly short (maybe acouple of verses at a time). It ispos sible to fit more than one exam-ple of poetry into a five- to seven-minute speech, but you need tomaintain a balance between thepoetry and your prose so that thepoem doesn’t take over your speech.

Rehearse the VerseMemorize the verses thoroughly andyou’ll enjoy many benefits. Theybecome an anchor-point within yourspeech, making it easier to remem-ber the other parts of your presenta-tion. Thus, you become less depen-dent on your notes and freer as aspeaker. Most important, when youmemorize the poetic section of yourspeech you feel more confident,which energizes your presentation. When you have a poem that

encapsulates the sentiments of yourspeech, it’s tempting to place it atthe beginning – and start with a bang.Unfortunately, this is like giving astranger an enthusiastic hug beforeyou’ve been introduced. It may be

� Poems can be powerfully moving,evocative and even funny. Using apiece of poetry within your speechcan add quality and depth to yourmessage.Throughout history, prominent

leaders have incorporated poetryand lyrics into their speeches.When William Lloyd Garrison,a 19th-century American socialreformer, gave his speech “On theDeath of John Brown” – in tributeto Brown, an abolitionist – heincluded his own lines of verse:“Onward, then, ye fear lessband/Heart to heart, and hand tohand/Yours shall be the Christian’sstand/Or the martyr’s grave.”Speaking to an audience about

the assassination of the Rev. MartinLuther King Jr., Robert Kennedyquoted the ancient Greek playwrightAeschylus: “Even in our sleep, painwhich cannot forget falls drop bydrop, upon the heart, until, in ourown despair, against our will, comeswisdom through the awful grace ofGod.” The late Edward Kennedy,longtime senator of Massachusetts,gave what is regarded by many ashis finest speech ever when hedelivered the keynote address atthe 1980 Democratic Convention inNew York City. Titled “The CauseEndures,” it included bits and piecesfrom the Tennyson poem, “Ulysses”:

“I am a part of all that I havemet…

Tho’ much is taken, muchabides…

That which we are, we are; One equal temper of heroic hearts… strong in will. To strive, to seek, to find, and not

to yield.”

appreciated, but your audience isleft wondering, “Wow. What wasthat about?” A good speech needsan introduction – and so does apoem. Prepare your audience sothey will be able to savor its subtleflavors when it’s delivered within thebody or conclusion of your speech. If the poem is not of your own

creation, you need to acknowledgethe author. This is best done beforereciting the poem so that the factualinformation doesn’t interrupt themomentum and emotional impactof the poetry.

The Beauty of PoetryReading poetry on your own canbenefit you in many ways, whetheror not you incorporate it into yourspeeches. If you are struggling tofind a topic for your next speech,poems can provide what you’reseeking. Many poems can be inter-preted in different ways and touchour hearts and minds with their rev-elations. When you find a line ofverse that positively resonates with-in you, it will help to fire up yourwriting for that next dynamic speech.Poetry is not to everyone’s liking

and can be an acquired taste. Butyou must start somewhere to acquirethat taste. Through your speeches,you might be the ideal person tointroduce poetry to your club mem-bers, providing them with theopportunity to enjoy this diverseand inspirational art form.

Celia Berrell, ACB, CL, is past presi-dent of Mt. Sheridan Toastmastersin Cairns, North Queensland,Australia, and she writeseducational science poems. Visitwww.sciencerhymes.com.au.

Putting Poetry in Your Performance

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How to incorporate a piece ofverse into a larger presentation.

FOR THE NOVICE

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___ B8 (.9375 lbs) ___ 262 (1 lb) ___ 269 (2.2063 lbs) ___ B17 (.1813 lbs) ___ 226Z (3.2500 lbs)

___ 310 (2.3938 lbs) ___ B925 (4.7563 lbs) ___ 1167D (.0500 lbs) ___ 4008DVD (.2188 lbs)

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The Better Speaker Series Set (Item 269). These 10-minute educational speeches to be given to your club can be used to fulfill your Advanced Communicator Silver award. Not quite there yet? Use these modules as a reference for useful tips when giving your own speeches. Set includes 10 modules with PowerPoint presentations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $40.00

The Leadership Excellence Series Set (Item 310). The modules in this series are great for providing necessary information on the various aspects of leadership. They can also be used to fulfill AdvancedLeader Bronze requirements. Set includes 11modules with PowerPoint presentations. . . . . . . . . . . . . $43.00

Effective Evaluation (Item 4008DVD). Giving a solid evaluation is part of earning your Competent Leader award. Use this DVD to gain valuable information to hone your skills. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 6.95

High Performance Leadership (Item 262). Develop your leadership skills using this five-project programand start to see results in all aspects of your life. Fulfills one of the requirements for Advanced Leader Silver award. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $12.50

Essence of Public Speaking Series Set (B925).Whether you want to write a great speech, motivate your audience or “grab your audience” using stories and humor, the books in this series provide valuableinsight. Set includes each of the eight books in the series. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $90.00

Don’t Worry, Be Funny (Item B17). Adding humor can help make your speeches more memorable andentertaining. This unique e-book (PDF file on non-audio CD) provides dozens of Web sites that will auto -matically generate humorous material for your next presentation, as well as how to use them. . . . . . $15.00

The Exceptional Presenter (Item B8). Being a great presenter can benefit you not only in Toast masters,but in your career as well. This hardback book by Timothy Koegel breaks down the art of presenting into a series of skills and then provides a systematic formula to master each skill. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $21.95

Advanced Communication Library Set (Item 226Z). These five-project manuals allow you to choosefrom a diverse set of topics and hone your speaking skills in a variety of areas, while working towards earning your ACB, ACS and ACG awards. Set includes each of the 15 Advanced Communication manuals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $60.00

A Toastmaster Wears Many Hats (1167D). Did you know that just by participating in club meeting roles and having your performance evaluated, you could be working toward earning your CompetentLeader award? This handy brochure includes information and tips about each of those roles and is a useful guide for all Toastmasters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $ 1.00

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Toastmaster - March 2010 · 2020. 11. 27. · Through its member clubs, Toastmasters International...

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