Category: News

Club Awesome Member Austin Felton in Presenting the Community

Posted on (Updated: ) by John M. Quick

Congratulations to Austin Felton for representing Club Awesome in the Presenting the Community project. Austin has been a member and Toastmaster since March 2017 (less than 6 months). He demonstrates the rapid improvement you can achieve as a speaker and makes a convincing argument for why you should come visit us at 7 a.m. on Friday morning.

Presenting the Community invites Toastmasters of all experience levels to share their speaking tips and personal experiences. Visit http://johnmquick.com/hpl and connect with John M. Quick to learn more.

9 Tips for Masterful Stories from the Stage

Posted on by John M. Quick

At Club Awesome Toastmasters, we know that storytelling is one of the most powerful and memorable ways to communicate your message. Telling a good story involves acting it out on stage through your use of body language, word choice, and vocal variety. In the August edition of Toastmaster magazine, Karen Banfield shares 9 tips for presenting stories based on the principles of theater.

  1. Block your speech. That is, think about how you will move to specific places at specific times.
  2. Move with purpose. Avoid pacing and just stand still if you have nowhere meaningful to go.
  3. Learn character voices. Gain attention by changing your voice to match the characters in your story.
  4. Physically separate your characters. When you speak for a different character, make sure to use a different stage position.
  5. Don’t just act, do. When using gestures or props, actually use them, rather than just pretending to use them.
  6. Include details. Add memorable context to the scenes you describe by featuring minute details of interest.
  7. Be tender. Although exaggeration can be noticeable, a targeted attempt to touch the heart can be more powerful.
  8. Focus. Eliminate anything in your speech that doesn’t support your message, no matter how attached you feel to it.
  9. Use your body. Make your audience feel your message by feeling it yourself and delivering it your through your body, not only your head.

For additional details on applying theatrics to tell masterful stories, be sure to see the full article [1].

[1] Banfield, K. (2018, August). How to master the stage: 9 theatrical tips for delivering award-winning stories. Toastmaster, 14. https://www.toastmasters.org/magazine/magazine-issues/2017/august2017/how-to-master-the-stage

Outbreak! Take Shelter in the IceDen

Posted on by John M. Quick

Toastmasters Warning: An outbreak has taken over Coral Springs, FL. We have confirmed that our old meeting location in the Keller Williams building has been affected. It is no longer safe for any Club Awesome members to visit this location. Fortunately, the outbreak started sometime after our final meeting on July 28, 2017. To date, no members have been afflicted.

Avoid our old meeting location!

What We Know: Little is known about the outbreak at this time. Spectators have described the afflicted as lurching around in apparent confusion, banging on doors and windows, and gently weeping along the curbside.

Action Plan: We have relocated our meeting location indefinitely. From August 4, 2017 until further notice, make sure that you attend Club Awesome meetings at our new location: Florida Panthers IceDen, 3299 Sportsplex Dr, Coral Springs, FL 33065 (Directions). Rumor has it that this is the only place cool enough to prevent the outbreak from spreading. Indeed, it may be one of the last viable meeting locations that remains once all is said and done.

Join us at our new meeting location!

Professional Speaker Johnny Campbell and District 47 Leaders Visit Club Awesome

Posted on (Updated: ) by John M. Quick

The members of Club Awesome extend our gratitude to professional speaker Johnny “The Transition Man” Campbell and leaders of District 47 Toastmasters for visiting on Friday, July 28.

Johnny Campbell presents at Club Awesome on July 28, 2017

Johnny, a longtime Toastmaster and professional speaker, inspired us with insights on how we can become more self aware, set better goals, and importantly, put in the effort necessary to achieve our dreams. He reminded us that, although the “elevator to success” may be broken, we can always “take the stairs.” Take the first step by being our Awesome guest at next week’s meeting. Meanwhile, current Toastmasters can see more of Johnny as the keynote speaker at the August Toastmasters Leadership Institute (TLI) events in Broward and Miami.

District 47 Toastmasters Leadership Visits Club Awesome on July 28, 2017

Johnny’s full presentation at Club Awesome is available on YouTube.

 

Attending a District 47 TLI Event? Join the Presenting the Community Project

Posted on (Updated: ) by John M. Quick

Toastmasters of District 47: Are you attending the July 29 TLI this weekend (or an August session)?

You are invited to share your tips and experience in the Presenting the Community project.

Even if you aren’t attending a summer TLI event, you are still invited to participate. In fact, Toastmasters of all experience levels from the 160+ clubs in District 47 are encouraged to contribute. Visit http://johnmquick.com/hpl and connect with John M. Quick to learn more.

Club Awesome Presents Hall of Fame Speaker Johnny Campbell

Posted on by John M. Quick

Club Awesome is proud to host Hall of Fame speaker Johnny Campbell on July 28, 2017. Johnny will present on the Elevator to Success as our special guest. For details on the event, see the attached flyer and be sure to come visit us for this week’s meeting.

Learn more about Johnny at www.transitionman.com and Club Awesome at www.clubawesome.org.

Johnny Campbell Flyer

10 Tips for Impromptu Speaking

Posted on (Updated: ) by John M. Quick

At Club Awesome Toastmasters, we thoroughly enjoy impromptu speaking opportunities. Table Topics is the Toastmasters format for impromptu speaking, which entails giving a 1 to 2 minute speech immediately after being presented with a topic.

In the July edition of Toastmaster magazine, Christopher Cox shares 10 tips for presenting Table Topics:

  1. Don’t panic.
  2. Buy time.
  3. Go with the first idea that comes to mind.
  4. Express an opinion from the start.
  5. Structure your speech into 3 main points.
  6. To develop your argument, ask who, what, why, where, when, and how.
  7. Know when to stop.
  8. Prepare in advance.
  9. Leverage your own experiences.
  10. Be eccentric.

For additional details, and special tip number 11, be sure to see the full article: 10 Tips for Terrific Table Topics [1].

Club Awesome members regularly practice impromptu speaking skills over a meal during our Table Topics Breakfast and Dinner sessions, which occur monthly.

Our next Table Topics Breakfast will take place on July 21, 2017 in Coral Springs, FL, just after our regular meeting. Guests are welcome to join us for the meeting and breakfast. Contact us for more details.

[1] Cox, C. (2017, July). 10 tips for terrific table topics. Toastmaster, 21. https://www.toastmasters.org/magazine/magazine-issues/2017/july2017/tabletopics

Awesome Table Topics Improv: Twin Brothers on a Plane

Posted on by John M. Quick

Thanks to Club Awesome Topicsmaster Liza Davis for a rousing Table Topics session today that involved paired improvisational speaking (improv) activities. One of the activities involved Lorenzo White and Marc Samet acting as twin brothers on a plane with an obnoxious sleeping passenger in the middle seat between them.

Here we see Lorenzo leaning around the passenger to have a word with his brother.

As the brothers negotiated potential ways to get out of their uncomfortable flying situation, the conversation got a bit personal. Here, Lorenzo makes a jab about Marc’s activities the night before while the two were out vacationing together.

 

Back on May 20, 2017, members from Club Awesome and District 47 (South Florida and the Bahamas) attended our first Connect and Grow Speakers Workshop. During the event, professional comedian Casey Casperson engaged the group in learning about and practicing improvisational speaking skills. It’s awesome to see these skills put to the test as part of our weekly Table Topics session.