CONCORD WEST TOASTMASTERS MEETING No: 1119 – Tuesday 13th December 2011

S@A Paul commenced on time.

Presidents Welcome – John welcomed a number of Visitors including; Leo, Mitch, Paddy, Ua and Vijay to our last meeting of the year..

Apologies – Glen H, Meghan, Katrina, Angela and Rino with Bernard due, but running late from a work trip

Chairman First Session – Kimberley

Reading of the Mission of the Club – Tanya.

Introductions – Kimberley’s topic was “What would you like Santa to Bring for Christmas” extracting some very simple and surprisingly unassuming responses.

Agenda Update – Kimberley

Leadership Manual Evaluations – John.

First Speech Session was led by John as Toastmaster and introduced Peter and then Glenn D.

Peter presented a speech entitled “Sam and Sasha”, which was Project 3 “The Moral of the Story” from the Storytelling Manual. Peter delivered an insightful tale how 2 people can approach issues and solutions very differently from each other. The speech narrative that most of us could relate to very readily from our own work or study experience.

Glenn presented a very relevant and thought provoking speech entitled “Going about Change”, which is Speech No: 9 from the Competent Communicator Manual - Persuade with Power. In what was without doubt Glenn’s best speech to date he mixed a thoughtful balance of his deep interest in world politics with some very carefully crafted thoughts on the challenges of change.

Peter was very precisely Evaluated by Natasha who as always carefully considered all aspects of the objectives of Peter’s speech and with due consideration to praise and improvement.

Glenn was Evaluated by Kimberly with equal distribution of critique and encouragement which when applied will continue to see Glenn’s presentations reach new heights.

We went to an early and extended Break in order to enjoy some finger food and an opportunity to informally socialize and mark the end of another great year for our Club. It was a particularly good opportunity for our numerous visitors to get to know some of the Club Members a little better than would normally be the case.

The meeting resumed with Dai Fi in the Chair and a Toast was delivered by our retiring S@A Paul. In what is a very pertinent tribute at this time of the year Paul paid homage to “The Volunteers in our society” across all spheres of society and need.

The Second Speech Session was lead by Natasha as Toastmaster and introduced both Natasha and Chris who presented a unique tandem speech entitled; “Conquering Our Fears” which with slide show accompaniment they shred with us a lot more than just a recent holiday adventure in Africa. We were all challenged in a series of successive narratives presented by both Chris and Natasha to consider our own fears and reservations. A fabulous way to conclude our Toastmaster year.

Mark then presented the unusually challenging Evaluation of 2 speakers both separately and collectively in what was a very well considered and executed appraisal.

Philip introduced Table Topics with a collection of challenges focused around travel and travel experiences – both good and bad – provoking some very amusing anecdotes.

Sam and Brett had the Evaluation duties for Table Topics.

Ums and Ahs were analysed by Dai Fei.

Daniel was a stand-in Grammarian for the evening.

Mark presented Big Ears with some extra-special Toblerone treats.

Tanya delivered the Timers Report on a somewhat unconventional program.

And the General Evaluation was delivered with great expertise by Peter who had stood up to the plate to fill that vital gap in the evenings proceedings.

Forward Planner – Kimberley

President’s Closing Remarks – John thanked the Club Membership for a great year paying tribute to Past President Brett’s leadership over the first half of the year and the dedicated assistance of VPE Kimberley in her tireless efforts to pull the program together each week.

It was also a time to thank retiring S@A Paul for his wonderful assistance over this last 6 months in that vital role and wish him well as he returns to New Zealand to take up a new work commitment. John also announced that Edmund had stepped into the role of S@A for the ensuing 6-month term in 2012.

John also encouraged all ‘qualified’ members to consider entering the Club International Speech Competition, which looms large upon our return in the New Year.

In conclusion, John wished everyone Season’s Greetings and a fabulous New Year.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Tuesday 24th January – First Meeting for 2012
Tuesday 28th February – Club International & Evaluation Contest for 2012

CALLING ALL PAST MEMBERS OF CONCORD WEST TOASTMASTERS

The ball is rolling in our planning and preparations for the upcoming 50th Anniversary Celebrations timetabled for October 2012. The Club recently contacted the local Inner West Courier Newspaper seeking assistance in getting the message out that we are looking to make contact with past members.
The objective is to build a database of contacts that we can then invite to our celebration dinner on Saturday 27th October 2012.
The paper ran a very helpful early story supported by a photograph of 3 of Concord west’s current members. President John (centre) was accompanied by Distinguished Toastmaster Daniel (right) who has been a member of Concord West Club for 18 years and Immediate Past District Governor Philip, (left) who is also currently a Candidate for International Director.
We are currently compiling names and letting past members know of our plans.

CONCORD WEST TOASTMASTERS MEETING No: 1118 – Tuesday 29th November 2011

S@A Paul commenced on time.

Presidents Welcome – John welcomed back 2 Visitors Angela and Reno as well as Lyndal visiting again from Parramatta and Hunter’s Hill Club.
The President also announced that our Club has had an article placed in the local paper to start the ball rolling in seeking reunion with past members of the Club with the intention of inviting them to next year’s 50^th Anniversary Dinner (see separate Blog Post).

John also announced that Edmond had accepted the position of S@A to replace Paul M who unfortunately is leaving us to move overseas at the end of the year.

Apologies – Glen H and Brett

Chairman First Session – Peter

Reading of the Mission of the Club – Meghan.

Introductions – Peter’s topic was ‘Christmas and Holiday Preparations” which was both topical and seasonal.

Agenda Update – Kimberley

Leadership Manual Evaluations – Kimberley.

Single Speech Session was led by Natasha as Toastmaster who introduced Daniel with his speech entitled: “It’s the Thought that Counts”. Working from the Advanced Leader Manual with the objective: Let’s Get Personal – Daniel took us on a rollicking journey through his youth centered around one particular Christmas when he thought he was going to miss out, but finished with a big surprise.

Natasha then introduced Juliet with a highly informative speech entitled ‘Go Auction’, where Juliet’s assignment was to Persuade. Basing her resources on her line of work, Juliet presented 5 succinct reasons in favour of selling property by Auction spelling the pro’s ad con’s in very persuasive speech.

Daniel was very aptly Evaluated by Mark who carefully considered all aspects of the objectives of Daniels speech and applied praise – improvement – praise in careful measure.

Juliet was Evaluated by Dai Fei in a highly incisive and meticulous manner that showed both great observation and listening skills as well as a genuine response to the core objective of being persuaded.

This special, abbreviated meeting then went directly to the;

Forward Planner – Kimberley

President’s Closing Remarks – John briefly outlined 2 upcoming Area Events before closing the meeting and inviting everyone to adjourn to the Bistro for Dinner.

At the Dinner President John confirmed that the planned Area Christmas Function had infact been called off and handed over to our Guest Reno who stood in at the last minute to propose the Toast for the evening (replacing Chris who was unable to get away to join us in time).

Reno paid tribute to his determination to attend tonight’s special Dinner Meeting and for the support and encouragement that Concord West Toastmasters provides.

A very fitting way to conclude a very pleasant evening together in less formal setting.

UPCOMING EVENTS

                                        Tuesday 13th December – Final Meeting for 2011

Tuesday 24th January – First Meeting for 2012

Tuesday 28th February – Club International & Evaluation Contest for 2012

CONCORD WEST TOASTMASTERS MEETING No: 1117 – Tuesday 22nd November 2011

S@A Paul commenced on time.

Presidents Welcome – John welcomed 2 Visitors Angela and BiJu as well as Lyndal visiting again from Parramatta and Hunter’s Hill Club plus a slightly later arrival Lei Guo.

Apologies – Glen H, Brett, Peter, Katrina, Dai Fei and Bernard

Chairman First Session – Daniel

Reading of the Mission of the Club – Mark (Almost word perfect from memory again).

Word of the Day [Cogent] Sam as (Grammarian)

Introductions – Daniel’s topic was ‘How did you hear about Toastmasters?” which always proves a very helpful guide for the Executive to know how members and Visitors come to visit a Toastmasters Club in the first place.

Agenda Update – Kimberley

Leadership Manual Evaluations – Lyndel took on this task for the evening but we do need to ensure that people involved in leadership roles do bring their Manuals along please.

First Speech Session was led by Sam as Toastmaster and introduced Josh with his speech with the intriguing title of: “Don’t Empty Your Trough”. A highly informative and somewhat alarming address that delved into the physical and social dangers of recreational drug use, particularly focused on Ecstasy and the harmful affects of over stimulation of Serotonin.

Sam then introduced Meghan with her second speech entitled: “The Joys of Christmas” with which Meghan took us on a poignant journey on the joys and pitfalls of the Christmas season that was cleverly tinged with whimsy and wry wit laying perfect ground work for the audience as we enter the approaching festive season.

John Evaluated Josh’s speech pointing out some noticeable areas in improvement in Josh’s use of the speaking space as well as noting that Josh’s knowledge and research of his topic left the audience wanting an opportunity for Q&A at the end of a highly informative presentation.

Kimberley presented a highly experienced and well structured Evaluation of Meghan’s speech that was both very encouraging as well as providing some very sound tools for improvement on what was a particularly well presented second speech.

Break

Chairman Second Session  – Philip who apologized for his delayed arrival due to work commitments but grasped the mantle of the task.

Toast – Mark lead a Toast to the Leadership Team of the Club in a very warmly presented tribute to the contribution that the Executive makes in maintaining a pleasant and functional Club.

Second Speech Session was led by Daniel as Toastmaster and introduced Edmond presenting a his second speech from the Competent Communicator Manual – Organise Your Speech – with a speech entitled ‘Share Investment Tips for Everyone’. Edmond's knowledge in this area was clearly evident in a well-planned and extremely well presented foray into the complex world of share trading. Edmond clarified the various methods of investing and gave simple succinct outlines of each before wrapping up very sensibly with a Disclaimer of his personal position in relation to investment advice.

Daniel then introduced Juliet with her speech ‘J.O.K.E’ in which Juliet unpacked the very impact that how you feel can influence the nature of person you become and indeed even broader – the people you tend to associate with. Delivered with great thought and conviction Juliet’s personal style and emotional investment were clearly evident in a speech that not only delivered a message but also had us all practicing our smiles.

Edmond was Evaluated by Tanya in her first ever Evaluation role demonstrating some very capable insights into what was a somewhat technical presentation which is not always an easy task in the first place.  Juliet was very capably Evaluated by Chris who is both highly experienced and very meticulous in his observations and recommendations.

Table Topics – was presented by Kimberley who had earlier taken leave to ask us all to write down briefly an interesting fact about ourselves that no other member would be likely to know about us. Kimberley had then correlated this information and asked each Table Topic participant to come out and explain who we thought might have been the author of the particular fact, chosen at random by Kimberley, and to explain why we thought that person was the author.

This was a highly innovative and potentially complex Table Topic execution that was managed superbly by Kimberley and engendered some amazingly good (educated) guesses by some and some wild misses by others but provided an excellent platform achieving the purpose of Table Topics: getting up and thinking on your feet and constructing a mini-speech with an introduction, body and conclusion. Well done.

Umms and Ahs – Kimberley

Grammarian – Sam (with a fairly limited use of the Word of the Day. Come on folks!)

Big Ears – John; presented a couple of tough calls on the collective memory.

Timers Report – Edmond; we were running overtime tonight.

General Evaluator – Natasha: with an excellent summation of the evening.

Forward Planner – Kimberley

Guests Comments – We had comments from all 4 Visitors tonight and hope to see them back at our next meeting.

Announcements – Kimberley reminded us of the upcoming Dinner Meeting next week and stressed the need for people to commit to the Forward Planner.
Kimberley also advised that our next full meeting will be the last for the year and that we will be having some light refreshments served during an extended break.

President’s Closing Remarks – John thanked the 4 Visitors again and made brief mention of the introduction of our new portable Lectern and the need to get used to using it as was also pointed out in Natasha’s General Evaluation.

Meeting Closed – a few minutes overtime at 9:40pm.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Tuesday 29th November – Dinner Meeting
Tuesday 13th December – Final Meeting for 2011
Wednesday 14th December – Area 6 Combined Christmas Party

CONCORD WEST TOASTMASTERS MEETING No: 1116 – Tuesday 8th November 2011

Meeting commenced on time.

Presidents Welcome – John welcomed back Paul V and Dai Fei after extended breaks due respectively to work and HSC pressures.

Apologies – Philip, Paul M, Glen H, Katrina and Sam

Chairman First Session – GlennD

Reading of the Mission of the Club – Edmond.

Word of the Day [Shambles] Kimberley (Grammarian)

Introductions – Glenn’s topic for Introductions was ‘Your Best Achievement of the Year’ which revealed some startling revelations including an upcoming marriage proposal. Stay tuned!

Agenda Update – Kimberley

Leadership Manual Evaluations – Brett had about 6 Manuals to complete for participants in the evenings Leadership roles.

First Speech Session was led by Bernard as Toastmaster and introduced Tanya with her second speech entitled: “Forget the Corporate Ladder”. A very detailed appraisal of attitudes and trends in relation to work life and seeking success which had some very profound advise embedded in a well presented second speech.

Bernard then introduced Josh with his speech entitled: “The Benefits of Physical Activity” Josh drew on a significant amount of knowledge and insight in the area of health and fitness to present a somewhat confronting as much as informative speech on the requirements for ongoing good health and well being.

Meghan Evaluated Tanya’s speech focusing on some very astute and helpful observations of the speech content as well as delivery in what is just Meghan’s second Evaluation of a full speech and finished with a good summary.

Chris gave a textbook Evaluation of Josh’s speech that was well-structured, and displayed excellent listening skills.

Break

Chairman Second Session  – Bernard

Toast – Juliet reminded us that in the midst of all the talk of gloom and doom we do have something to be positive about… the Future with her Toast to “Happy Days Ahead”.

Second Speech Session was led by Peter as Toastmaster and introduced John presenting a speech from the Advanced Communicator Storytelling Series – The Moral of the Story – with a speech entitled: “Never Assume” where John retold the unfolding story from his youth of leaving a 13-year old member of a youth group he was in charge of hundreds of kilometers down the coast and how the experience was a life-changing one for the youngster involved.

Peter then introduced Mark with his ‘R’ Rated story also from the Advanced communication Storytelling manual entitled: “The F Word and the Club of Penguins” where he shared with us the joys of the unexpected things that come out of the mouths of babes under the influence of older siblings. A wonderfully amusing tale that all parents could relate to.

John was meticulously Evaluated by Natasha who provided some excellent observation and critique as well as having her own ‘little moment’ of mirth.

Mark was very capably Evaluated by Daniel.

Table Topics – was presented by Brett with an excellent scenario gleened from the Toastmaster Resources on line. Brett gave each speaker the name of an animal which they then had to present their case to ‘Noah’ to gain access to the Ark, arguing their case as to why they (or their species) should be permitted to survive. The audience was charged also with the task of identifying the animal, which was not to be revealed. There were some excellent arguments put forward with enormous enthusiasm and excellent turns of phrase.

The Evaluators were John and Edmond who provided an excellent account in his first ever Table Topics Evaluation which requires a great deal of concentration and precision in delivery.

Umms and Ahs – Dai Fei

Grammarian – Kimberley (with another record number of uses of the Word of the Day)

Big Ears – Paul V

Timers Report – Juliet

General Evaluator – John

Forward Planner – Kimberley

Guests Comments – NA

Announcements – A belated formal presentation was made to Dai Fei for completing her Competent Communicator Manual sometime ago – and in record time.

Kimberley reminded us of the upcoming Dinner Meeting and stressed the need for people to commit to the Forward Planner.

President’s Closing Remarks – John informed Members of plans to update some equipment and confirmed arrangements for the Dinner Meeting and announced the formation of a 50^th Anniversary Planning Sub-Committee.

Meeting Closed – A little bit overtime at 9:25pm.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Tuesday 22nd November – Normal Meeting
Tuesday 29th November – Dinner Meeting
Wednesday 14th December – Area 6 Combined Christmas Party

CONCORD WEST TOASTMASTERS MEETING No: 1115 – Tuesday 25th October 2011

Meeting commenced a few minutes behind time

Presidents Welcome – John welcomed Tanya after an extended absence and Chris and Natasha after their overseas trip.

Apologies – Peter, Paul M, Glen H, Meghan and Mark..

Chairman First Session – Daniel

Reading of the Mission of the Club – Natasha.

Word of the Day [Prudent] Chris (Grammarian)

Introductions – Daniels topic for Introductions was ‘How did you hear about Toastmasters’ provoking a surprisingly diverse range of responses.

Agenda Update – Kimberley

Leadership Manual Evaluations – Brett had about 5 Manuals to complete for participants in the evenings Leadership roles.

First Speech Session was led by Natasha as Toastmaster and introduced Bernard with his assignment – Vocal Variety – with a speech entitled: “My Brother-In-Law Ted”. Bernard delivered a very personal and emotive story outlining the struggles experienced by his Brother-In-Law in getting to Australia and adapting to the radical new way of life here. It was an exceptionally well delivered and thought-provoking story told in a sincere and poignant manner. In many peoples view it was Bernard’s best speech to-date.

Natasha then introduced Sam with his speech assignment – Speak to Inform – entitled: “Oils ain’t Oils” where Sam drew on his career experience as a Solicitor to deliver a highly informative and detailed insight into a number of legal issues that confront us.

Kimberley Evaluated Bernard’s speech with great warmth and expressiveness that reflected the subject while focusing on the objectives of the speech.

Sandra gave her first speech Evaluation of Sam’s speech using the Praise, Improvement, Praise formula to great effect. 

Break

Chairman Second Session  – Juliet

Toast – John presented the Toast mindful of the time of the year with exams and in particular those students sitting the Higher School Certificate. John went to the issue of the lifespan importance of the HSC with a toast to: “Life after the Higher School Certificate”.

Second Speech Session was led by Brett as Toastmaster and introduced Tanya presenting her Ice-Breaker Speech for a second time: entitled: “My Escape from Vietnam” where Tanya re-countered the harrowing story of her families flight from the dying days of the Vietnam War. For those of us that had heard this speech before it remained as vivid and gripping as the first time and speaking from the heart, provided an ideal vehicle for Tanya to deliver a highly emotive account of those days in her childhood.

Tanya was Evaluated by Bernard who provided some excellent observation and critique as well as being able to relate to the highly emotional tenure of the presentation.

Table Topics – was presented by Sam with a very different take on providing the speakers with a topic prompting line. This time the first line from a reasonably well known novel which had to be expanded upon to build a 60 second presentation. This concept worked exceptionally well inspiring some very interesting evolutionary storylines.

The Evaluators were Glenn D providing his unique wit and humour to his astute observations and Natasha with some textbook Table Topic Evaluations.

Umms and Ahs – John

Grammarian – Chris (with a fair number of people using the Word of the Day)

Big Ears – Kimberley

Timers Report – Kimberley (with Tanya’s assistance)

General Evaluator – John

Forward Planner – Kimberley

Guests Comments – NA

Announcements – Final call for Name Badge Upgrades and Dinner Meeting in November.

President’s Closing Remarks – John stressed the importance of having Leadership Manuals completed and keeping track of and individual members keeping track of their progress.

Meeting Closed – A little bit overtime at 9:25pm.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Tuesday 8th November – Normal Meeting
Tuesday 22nd November – Normal Meeting
Tuesday 29th November – Speech & Dinner Meeting
Wednesday 14th December – Area 6 Combined Christmas Party

CONCORD WEST TOASTMASTERS MEETING No: 1114 – Tuesday 11th October 2011

We welcomed back a number of Members who have been away on holidays and had another well-attended meeting.

Meeting commenced at 7:17pm

Presidents Welcome – John welcomed 2 Visitors Nick and David as well as Bernie Fisher current President of Erskenville Toastmasters and a member of RPA Toastmasters. Bernie is also better known as the audio genius who wires up Contestants at Division Competitions.

Apologies – Natasha, Chris, Philip, Meghan and Paul V.

Chairman First Session – Mark

Reading of the Mission of the Club – Bernard.

Word of the Day [Smackdown] Glenn D (Grammarian)

Introductions – For the Topic of the Introductions we were asked to consider the comparative significance of both Isaac Newton and Steve Jobs. It provoked some astounding and didactic responses but one of the most insightful observations came from one of our Visitors, David who drew the link between the 2 men as being – the apple!

Agenda Update – Kimberley

Leadership Manual Evaluations – Kimberley had only about 5 Manuals to complete for participants in the evenings Leadership roles.

First Speech Session was led by Glen H as Toastmaster and introduced Daniel with his assignment – How to say it – with a speech entitled: My Favourite Books. Daniel very enthusiastically embroiled us in the drama, intrigue and violence of a famous Australian crime writer’s series of icon Australian crime novels.

Glen then introduced Paul M with his speech assignment – Get to the Point with a Speech entitled: Culture Shock in which Paul took us on a roller-coaster ride of moving overseas for work and adapting to local customs both domestically and professionally.

Bernard Evaluated Daniel’s speech with great incite and ever increasing confidence providing praise and points for improvement.

John Evaluated Paul’s speech using the Praise, Improvement, Praise formula applied to what he observed, what he heard and how he responded to an excellent speech. 

Break

Chairman Second Session  – Katrina

Toast – Bernard presented a timely Toast to the Socceroo’s and their current involvement in the World Cup qualifiers.

Second Speech Session was led by Sam as Toastmaster and introduced Juliet presenting

a very uplifting speech entitled: Change. Juliet revealed the need for change when you take the huge step of immigrating to a new country, settling in and finding work and adapting to the significant and sometimes subtle changes you have to deal with along the way.

Kimberley then took up the challenge of delivery a ‘standby’ speech fulfilling the assignment – Your Body Speaks – with a speech entitled: Around the World in 8 Days. Kimberley took advantage of very recent personal experiences in relating the humour, frustration and drama of travel, transport and car hire in Germany.

Juliet was Evaluated by Brett providing both well considered praise points as well and some minor points for improvement while demonstrating how Juliet’s speech and subject matter was a great model for addressing the specific nature of the speech objectives. 

Glen H Evaluated Kimberley’s excellent speech, which by its structure, delivery and level of development, defied the fact that it was virtually an impromptu presentation. Glen utilised his dry sense of humour in relating to his travel plans to the same region in Europe in a very short period of time.

Table Topics – was presented by Paul M who presented each speaker with a different Ink Blot and challenged them to present a response that included what they thought it was – and how it made them feel.  

The Evaluators were our Guest, Bernie and Mark for the odd and even numbered speakers provided careful observation, advice and encouragement in their Evaluations. Bernie being an old hand reminded the Speakers that it is important to listen to – and respond to the question put by the Table Topics Master in order to both respond appropriately and to assist with making your response easier.

Umms and Ahs – Edmond

Grammarian – Glenn D (with record number of people using the Word of the Day)

Big Ears – Glen H

Timers Report – Edmond

General Evaluator – Peter C

Forward Planner – Kimberley

Guests Comments – David, Nick and Bernie all provided some very positive comments and observations of the evening’s proceedings and we look forward to seeing them at future meetings.

Announcements – Combined with Closing Remarks

President’s Closing Remarks – John reminded the Executive of the meeting to follow and encouraged all members to plan their speeches and put their names down for the Forward Planner. We have just 4 more normal meetings to the end of the year.

Meeting Closed – A little bit overtime at 9:25pm.