December 2, 2013 Club Meeting

The following is a summary of the minutes from our December 2^nd meeting.

 Meeting Location:   The Hillsdale Mall, San Mateo, CA     6:15 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Attendees:

Present at the meeting were: Maia Ashkenazi, Samya Boxberger-Oberoi, Lara Miller, Suzanne Mulcahy, David Nazzaro, Sharon Pappas, Venkat Senapat, Xin Tang, and Eric Yan.  Guest was Joseph Chu.  (He was also the guest speaker.)  

Maia was the Toastmaster; Sharon was the General Evaluator; David was the Grammarian; Eric Y. was the Ah Counter; Samya was the Timer; and Venkat was the Vote Counter; and Suzanne was the Table Topics Master.

The theme of the meeting was: “New Year’s Resolutions”; the word of the day was: “Commitment”. 

Speaker #1:  Joseph Chu - “A Gem in You” 

 Manuel Series – Project #9 

Joseph began his speech by engaging the audience in asking for the gems we were wearing.  He then asked us if we had gems within us and all of us raised our hands.  Joseph then explained how the gem had been formed.  First we have a stone and then by cutting and polishing and adding pressure, it becomes a gem.

Joseph took this example and related to Toastmasters.  We start as stones and with polishing and pressure, we can become great speakers.  He emphasized that we joined Toastmasters by choice and all have asked for this process for our own growth, to go from a stone to a gem.

Joseph then went into the benefits of Toastmasters and passed out information of how we could benefit from joining Toastmasters.  Each role in which we participate as well our giving speeches enriches our abilities to become better speakers.  Joseph also emphasized taking on additional leadership roles.

Evaluator:  Group Evaluation                                                   

The evaluations began by saying that Joseph used pauses very well.  When he said something profound, he used “the golden silence” to complete his message.  Joseph used good symbolism, by using the “gem” idea as well as explaining the benefits of Toastmasters.  He started with the real gem, then went into the ideology of gems, and then into Toastmasters.

The suggestions stated that Joseph could use more vocal variety but it was a great speech.  He engaged from the beginning as well as later.  His speech was inspiring, and attention grabbing.  It made us all feel comfortable. 

Table Topics:  Suzanne hosted the Table Topics.  Sharon won the ribbon for the best Table Topics speaker.  

  

Samya closed the meeting.

November 18, 2013 Club Meeting

The following is a summary of the minutes from our November 18^th meeting.

 Meeting Location:   The Hillsdale Mall, San Mateo, CA     6:15 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Attendees:

Present at the meeting were: 

Maia Ashkenazi, Samya Boxberger-Oberoi, Randy Lee, Lara Miller, Suzanne Mulcahy, David Nazzaro, Sharon Pappas, and Venkat Senapat.    

David was the Toastmaster; Lara was the General Evaluator; Venkat was the Grammarian; Randy was the Ah Counter; Sharon was the Timer and the Vote Counter; and Samya was the Table Topics Master.

The theme of the meeting was: “Thanksgiving”; the word of the day was: “Gratitude”.

Speaker #1:  Maia - “Ice Breaker” 

 Manuel Series – Project #1 

Maia gave a wonderful speech about her journey and expressions of her love of art.  She began at the preschool level explaining how she would tie together scarves in creating designs.  Maia shared her constant desire to doodle art work throughout grade school and a middle school experience of having a fashion show where she took clothing, re-designed them, and then made completely new designs.

Maia told about her high school years creating an art magazine and finally college where she explored photography, graphic design, fine arts, and digital media.

Maia concluded with her current passion for art in the form of “patterns”.  She also shared the programs in which she has participated:

·         Became an illustrator and layout design person for a “Coffee Table Book”.

·         Participated at an art museum program for mentoring children in discovering the beauty of art.

  

Evaluator:  Suzanne   

Suzanne began her evaluation stating how confident Maia was delivering her first speech.  Her love of art and enthusiasm shined through from the beginning.  Maia’s speech was well organized and flowed chronologically through her life. 

Suzanne gave the suggestions that she could use an introductory and concluding sentence providing an overview of her speech about her life long love of art, as well as using a personal experience to emphasize her story.

Suzanne concluded by saying that Maia’s speech truly conveyed her passion and love of art and that we were all able to get a glimpse of who she really was as a person.  Maia more that completed her objectives for the “Ice Breaker” speech.   

Table Topics:  Samya hosted the Table Topics.  Lara won the ribbon for the best Table Topics speaker.  

  

Samya closed the meeting at 7:15 p.m.

November 11, 2013 Club Meeting

The following is a summary of the minutes from our November 11^th meeting.

 Meeting Location:   The Hillsdale Mall, San Mateo, CA     6:15 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Attendees:

Present at the meeting were: Samya Boxberger-Oberoi, Lara Miller, Suzanne Mulcahy, David Nazzaro , Emily Panos, Sharon Pappas, Ruth Wadsworth and Venkat Senapati, Eric Yan.  There were no guests.

Lara was the Toastmaster; Emily was the General Evaluator; Ruth was the Grammarian and the Ah Counter; Suzanne was the Table Topics Master; and Randy was the Timer.

The theme of the meeting was: “Anxiety”; the word of the day was: “Creeps”.  

Speaker #1:  Venkat - “Why This Zompiephilia” 

 Manuel Series – Project #5 

Venkat began his speech asking the question, “Why do we love Zombie movies?”.  He stated that there was a rise in the popularity of Zombie movies when times were hard.  It has been suggested this is because these movies provide an escape, and a “mindless” way to have fun.

Venkat further stated that “everyone wants to be a hero.  We are told from the movies we see that we will all become movie stars, which is a form of consumerism.  We are, in fact as common people, all special.

Zombie movies serve to release anxiety for the sake of entertainment.  “In the face of adversity, we can stand up and find the good”. 

  

Evaluator:  Sharon   

Sharon told Venkat that this was his best speech yet.  He used good body language and gestures as well as voice animation.  Venkat conveyed total confidence.  He had good use of the stage and was able to move around appropriately.  Venkat also had good eye contact with the audience. 

Sharon gave the suggestion that he could have slowed down on the topic contents and give the audience a chance to catch up.  She further stated that Venkat used great humor, was well organized, and gave an excellent speech.

 

Speaker #2:  David - “Napollo and His Pogo Stick” 

 The Entertainment Speaker Series – Project #1 

David gave a very entertaining speech, which ended up as a “Tall Tale”.  He started by describing a member of his Toastmaster Club that was “going to go over the Toastmaster meeting members” at the next meeting.  David kept us on the edge of our seats as he described in detail this man’s process of using a pogo stick to going home to another planet.  He gave a vivid and startling ending to his story which was well received by the audience.

  

Evaluator:  Samya   

Samya stated that David gave an excellent “Tall Tales” story based on his own personal experiences and conversation with Napollo.  He gave a vivid and very descriptive rendering of Napollo’s trip home.  David built his story to a climax very well.  His speech was great and the construction was really fabulous.

Table Topics:  Suzanne hosted the Table Topics.  

  

Samya asked the members to share any ideas about an end of the year holiday get together.  Everyone generously gave their input and appeared eager to have a dinner together.   Samya then closed the meeting.

November 4, 2013 Club Meeting

The following is a summary of the minutes from our November 4^th meeting.

 Meeting Location:   The Hillsdale Mall, San Mateo, CA     6:15 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Attendees:

Present at the meeting were: Samya Boxberger-Oberoi, Randy Lee,  Lara Miller, Suzanne Mulcahy, Emily Panos, Sharon Pappas, Ruth Wadsworth and Venkat Senapati.  There were two guests, Ayuko and Phoebe.

Suzanne was the Toastmaster; Ruth was the General Evaluator; Samya was the Grammarian; Randy was the Ah Counter and the Vote Counter; Lara was the Table Topics Master; and Sharon was the Timer.

The theme of the meeting was: “Harvest”; the word of the day was: “Reaping”.  

Speaker #1:  Emily - “The Paradox of Choice” 

 Advanced Manuel Series – Project #4

Emily gave a speech about the paradox of choice, specifically, the benefits and the pitfalls of consumers having too many options.  Emily studied marketing during her graduate work and researched advertising and the reasons why people buy.

We make hundreds of choices each day.  Emily shared her passion for jeans and used this as an example of the two main categories of making choices.  That is:

·         Satisficers:   Those happy with their choices and once they make a choice, no longer think about it.

·         Maximisors:  Those that want to make sure that they have made the right choice and keep looking for something better.  They are never happy with their choices.

Most people are on the spectrum from one extreme to another.  Emily gave a wonderful speech with which we could all easily relate.

Evaluator:  Venkat

Venkat stated that Emily used many descriptive words and had the proper use of words.  She used a subject with which the audience could easily identify.  Emily gave her personal experiences to emphasize her topic, which was very effective.  She also used good images.  Emily gave the example of making a health care choice and Venkat suggested that she could have elaborated more on this example, but the overall topic and delivery were excellent.  

 

Table Topics:  Lara hosted the Table Topics session and almost everyone participated.

  

Samya asked for feedback from the guests and then closed the meeting.

October 28, 2013 Club Meeting

The following is a summary of the minutes from our October 28^th meeting.

 Meeting Location:   The Hillsdale Mall, San Mateo, CA     6:15 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Attendees:

Present at the meeting were: Samya Boxberger-Oberoi, Lara Miller, David Nazzaro, Lara Miller, Suzanne Mulcahy, Emily Panos, Sharon Pappas, Ruth Wadsworth and Venkat Senapati.  There was one guest, Peter Wall, Area Governor.

David was the Toastmaster; Lara was the General Evaluator; Emily was the Grammarian; Venkat was the Ah Counter; Sharon was the Table Topics Master; and Ruth was the Timer.

Samya announced the upcoming District “Humorous Speech Contest” in November.

The theme of the meeting was: “Halloween”; the word of the day was: “Scabrous”.  

Speaker #1:  “The Coach” 

 Advanced Manuel Series – Project #4

Peter began his speech by giving three reasons to require a coach.

·         Need help and do not have the right tools for the job.

·         Not enough time.

·         Not motivated

Peter emphasized that employees must feel that the communication is open so they can express what they feel and share their needs.

1.    Employees may need additional tools for the job and appropriate training.

2.    Employees may need assistance in time management to work more efficiently.  It is also important to let them know what their priorities are.  Peter used the G.T.D. method.  (“Getting Things Done”)  He explained that you place things in three piles, “Never”, “Later”, and “Now”.  You toss the never, and focus on the now.

3.    With employees that are not motivated, there is only so much you can do.  You can find out what motivates them and perhaps transfer them to another group or find out if there are problems that require professional care.  They can also be fired when necessary.

Peter ended his speech by a role play demonstration of how to coach an employee.  It was a riveting speech.

  

Group Evaluation:   

The group shared that they loved the humor that Peter brought into the speech.  He had a good subject matter with which the audience could easily relate.  The group also stated that they appreciated his sincerity and passion behind his speech.  They also stated that a hand out may have helped.  The group ended the evaluation by stating that they liked the way his summarized his speech in his conclusion.

 

Table Topics:  Sharon hosted the Table Topics.  She used the Halloween theme and asked questions as she gave out candy.  David won the best Table Topics Ribbon.

  

Samya asked for feedback from the guest and then closed the meeting.

October 7, 2013 Club Meetings

The following is a summary of the minutes from our October 7^th meeting.

 Meeting Location:   The Hillsdale Mall, San Mateo, CA     6:15 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Attendees:

Present at the meeting were: Samya Boxberger-Oberoi, Emily, Lara Miller, David Nazzaro, Lara Miller, Maia, Sharon Pappas, Ruth Wadsworth and Venkat Senapati.  There were no guests.

Ruth was the Toastmaster; Samya was the General Evaluator; Sharon was the Grammarian; Maia was the Ah Counter; Emily was the Table Topics Master; and Venkat was the Timer.

Samya gave a brief business update and introduced Maia as the newest member to the club.

The theme of the meeting was: “Discovery”; the word of the day was: “Horizons”.  Ruth spoke about the theme, relating it to the upcoming Columbus Day and the discovery of America.  Ruth gave a little information about tonight’s meeting, offering to add a speech if there was extra time since there was only one speaker on the agenda for the evening. 

David, the Evaluator, gave an introduction outlining the speech criteria, including that the speech should incorporate techniques using movement: gestures, facial expressions and eye contact.  David also explained that because the speech was supposed to be 5 to 7 minutes and a toast is 2 to 3 minutes, Lara was including an introduction with her speech to qualify for the right amount of time.

Speaker #1:  Lara:  “Cheers”

Competent Communication Series, Project #5:  “Your Body Speaks”

Lara’s speech began with an introduction about her research into how to make a good wedding toast.  Lara shared a few examples of bad toasts and then outlined steps in what makes a good toast:

1.       Be focused

2.       Be gracious

3.       Be brief

Lara (with Ruth’s help, thank you Ruth!) shared sparkling cider and water with the members of the meeting for the practice toast which she read.  In the actual toast Lara shared the story of how she met the bride, adventures in the years that have passed and how happy the bride has been since she met the groom.  Lara ended with a toast to the happy couple, which the rest of the club chimed in on.

Evaluation:    David evaluated Lara’s speech.  He shared that he first heard of toastmasters because someone he knew started attending toastmasters meetings a year before a much-anticipated family wedding and, as a result of all the practice, made a memorable and enjoyable speech, thus showing David the benefits of toastmasters.  

David said that Lara followed the criteria of the speech well, walking close to the audience, and making good eye contact during the speech.  David said that Lara looked at her notes more during the introduction, but when Lara began the toast, she was much better, not relying on the notes during that portion. David said that bringing cider to share was a nice touch.

Group Evaluation:   

Ruth also noted the use of notes during the intro, and having the actual toast at the end was a good way to end the speech.  Venkat said the speech was an example of research and demonstration.  Maia liked the way that the story of meeting in the darkroom was interwoven through the toast, with related metaphors.  Emily gave recommendations on handling notes, microphone and “toasting” glass.  Sharon indicated Lara needed to slow down and enunciate more.  David further added that the speech had two personalities:  The introduction used notes but the actual toast was more natural.  David also encouraged Lara to work on tone of voice. Samya liked the speech and agreed with the comments. 

Table Topics:  Emily hosted the Table Topics.  All the participants were within time and used the word of the day.  Maia proved to be an attentive ah counter, making this a very lucrative meeting.  Samya won the ribbon for the best table topics speaker. 

General Evaluation:  Samya reminded the group to be on time and that it is generally the responsibility of the toastmaster to fill roles for a meeting.  Samya reminded the club that no meetings would be held on 10/14 and 10/21.  Samya stated this “break” would be a great time to work on speeches for the next few meetings.

Samya closed the meeting.

September 30, 2013 Club Meeting

The following is a summary of the minutes from our September 30^th  meeting.

 Meeting Location:   The Hillsdale Mall, San Mateo, CA     6:00 p.m. – 7:27 p.m.

Attendees:

Present at the meeting were: Samya Boxberger-Oberoi, Eric Yan, Lara Miller, David Nazzaro, Sharon Pappos and Ruth Wadsworth.  There were three guests;  Katherine Pratt, Maia and Deryk.

Eric was the Toastmaster; David was the General Evaluator; Lara was the Grammarian; Ruth and Katherine were Ah Counters; Ruth was the Table Topics Master; David was the Vote Counter; and Emily was the Timer.

Sharon gave an energetic introduction to the meeting,  Samya updated the club on how well the booth did at the Bacon and Brew festival over the weekend.

The theme of the meeting was: “Job Interview”; The word of the day was: “Success”.  Eric spoke about the theme, how he originally joined Toastmasters to brush up on his interviewing skills because he used to be terrified of interviews and now, after practicing with Table Topics, Eric wants to interview for fun!

Sharon, the Evaluator, gave an introduction outlining the speech criteria, including that the speech should incorporate techniques to arouse emotion.  Eric, the Toastmaster, gave an introduction to Samya’s speech, indicating that Samya would be completing the Advanced Communications Series:  “Storytelling” and that all the characters in her story were real.

Speaker #1:  Samya:  “In That Heart Felt Moment”

 Advanced Communications Series:  “Storytelling”

Speaker #1:  Samya’s story took place in the Himalayas.  She began the story telling of how she had been sick for a week and how her friend was looking after her.  While watching her friend knead dough, he had a seizure. Samya’s story transported the listeners with the urgency of the situation: not sure what to do. She called out for assistance.  Samya’s story ended with description of how her friend touched her heart.

Evaluation:    Sharon evaluated Samya’s speech.  She said that Samya conveyed the emotion effectively with her audience.  Sharon encouraged Samya to include more details, if time wasn’t an issue.  Sharon also indicated Samya’s enunciation and voice projection were very good. Samya’s story was very touching.

Speaker #2:  Special Guest Katherine Pratt:  “Radio 99.1 KTMI”

Public Relations Manual: Project #2 (3-5 minute speech with a 2 minute Q & A session)

Katherine was speaking as if on a radio show.  David played the host “Dazzling D”.  Katherine gave an interview-style speech talking about the upcoming District 4 conference scheduled to take place on November 9^thand 10^th at the Embassy Suites in South San Francisco.  The theme is “Passport to Possibilities: Your journey begins”.  Lance Miller, a toastmasters champion, will be speaking at the conference about ideas for promoting and marketing clubs.

Dazzling D continued his role as host for a brief two-minute Q & A session (part of the speech outline), asking unscripted questions of the audience.  Samya, Ruth and Emily participated.

Group Evaluation:   

Lara and Deryk indicated that the interview format was with the dual role-playing was a terrific way to inform the audience about the upcoming conference.  Samya liked the format as well. Sharon said Katherine projected confidence and made good eye contact.  Maia suggested next time Katherine decide in advance if she would hold the script.  Emily said the speech was an example of where our skills can lead us.  Ruth said the speech was well-spoken but that Katherine should slow down with the information.  Eric agreed that Katherine should slow down and also said Katherine has a great radio voice.

Katherine also shared with the group how to become a DTM (Distinguished Toastmaster): 

·         Practice, practice, practice!

·         Finish several levels of manuals (including Competent Communication and Leadership)

·         Being an officer, in order to complete more projects

Table Topics:  Ruth spoke about how Table Topics was the best practice for job interviewing.  Ruth asked questions related to jobs interviews. 

General Evaluation:  David applauded the members for taking advantage of the unique meeting format and commented how the group is continuing to evolve and improve.

Samya reminded the club that no meetings would be held on 10/14 and 10/21. She asked for the guest to share comments and closed the meeting.

Meeting was adjourned at 7:27