Monthly Newsletter – March 2017

·         How to Lead Through Storytelling ·         All-New Testimonial Video ·         Dates Not to be Missed

How to Lead Through Storytelling

Being a great storyteller is one of the most effective ways to lead. From politicians to business leaders, the best storytellers rely on a mixture of strategy, knowledge and skill to motivate their audience and inspire them to trust in their vision. Focus on these key areas to become a better storyteller and leader.

• Show, don’t tell – A story’s power lies in the details. Help your audience connect with your message by using specific descriptions that allow them to step inside and imagine the story for themselves.

• Be spontaneous – When a story or speech is completely scripted, you’ll tend to read instead of perform, and your delivery will suffer. Practice telling your story with less emphasis on the script and focus on melding your heart, soul and voice into a singular, powerful delivery.

• Use an emotional appeal – Logic can be a powerful tool in influencing a person to trust in your vision. However, appealing to emotion is equally important in winning over an audience and is perhaps even more influential than logic. Look for ways your story can tap into emotions that might resonate with your listeners.

• Stray from your performance comfort zone – The more you’re used to speaking or performing in front of others, the more comfortable you will be doing it. Try theater (or Table Topics®) to help you build confidence and improve your ability to win over an audience.

• Harness the power of your voice – How fast you speak, your intonation and your word choice provide nearly endless options for how you approach your delivery. Great storytellers select a way to use their voice to emphasize and reinforce their message.

Remember, simply telling a story isn’t enough. Use these strategies to help your audience visualize your common goal, the plan to achieve it and—most importantly—why they should care.

All-New Testimonial Video

Watch this powerful video featuring a diverse group of members describing how Toastmasters changed their lives. Share it with current and prospective members to get them excited about everything Toastmasters has to offer!

www.toastmasters.org/Membership/Member-Testimonials

(If the link doesn’t work cut and paste it into your browser)

Dates not to be Missed

o Sat 8^th April – Division L Contest.  Afternoon.  Time & Location TBC

o Wed 12^th April - Standard meeting 6.45pm for 7pm

o Wed 26^th April – Mini Debating session 6.45pm for 7pm

o Fri to Sun 5^th to 7^th May – District Conference and Contests

o Wed 10^th May – Standard meeting and Club Elections – 6.45pm for 7pm

o Wed 24^th May – Standard meeting 6.45 for 7pm

o Wed 14^th June – Past Presidents meeting – TBC 6.45pm for 7pm

o Wed 28^th June – Standard meeting with an end of year party feel!.  Handover to new President.  6.45 for 7pm

Excalibur Meeting Blog, 22 March 2017

 New member Marcin Tolysz, called our latest Excalibur meeting to order in our temporary venue of The Plough.

Our esteemed President, Lynne Cantor welcomed our 11 guests.

Cool, calm and collected under the presence of fear and determined to put on a good show, Errol Williamson was our Toastmaster of the evening.

Highly skilled actress and teacher of the arts, Irene Bradshaw gave us an interesting mini workshop on breathing techniques in preparation for speaking, and encouraged us to push the ceiling! 

Sue Mannering hosted the Table Topics session with a day in the life of…..  Simon Cooper was Bill Clinton, Anne Bingham was Marilyn Munroe, and guests Olga and Tomas were JK Rowling and Graham Norton respectively.

The Instant Evaluators were Marcin Tolysz, Suzi Fish, Tony Winyard and David Lennon.

Our first prepared speaker was Mustapha Hanafi, speaking from The Storytelling manual #5 Bringing History to Life with his engaging story of “Ange Catherine”.  This was expertly evaluated by Janet Tarasofsky.

Our next speaker was Lynne Cantor, speaking from The Public Relations manual #4 Speaking Under Fire “Business Builders & Champions”.  She coped well with the hostile audience firing questions at her!  Katja van Koten was her evaluator.

Our third and final speaker was Tony Winyard, giving us his competition speech “Our boundaries can be found” about first impressions in preparation for the area contest – good luck Tony!. Monika Swiderska was his evaluator.

David Lennon competently facilitated the Speech Open Feedback session.

Simon Cooper efficiently kept us to time so we could head downstairs for our post-meeting drinks and follow up evaluations!

Congratulations to Anne Bingham, the winner of Best Table Topic, Mustapha Hanafi for winning the Best Prepared Speech, and Janet Tarasofsky, for Best Evaluator.

Another great meeting

Dates not to be missed!

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday 12^th April, 6:45 for 7pm prompt start at our usual venue of The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DL. 

As space is limited kindly confirm your attendance on Easyspeak or via excaliburspeakers@gmail.com. Thank you.

Please support Freddie Daniells and Simon Cooper at the Area 9 Contest on Thursday 30^th March, 6:45-7pm, venue at The Plough, 27 Museum Street, Fitzrovia.  Did you know, seven of our members are entering the speech and evaluation contests in different areas!  

The Division L Contest will be the afternoon of Saturday 8^th April at the London Business School.

The District 91 2017 Spring Conference for the International Speech and Evaluation Finals will be at The Grand Harbour Hotel in Southampton on 5-7^th May 2017.   Put the date in your diaries and book your ticket now!

 

Social Media:

Please like, comment, tag photos and share our posts on our Facebook page. Excalibur Advanced Speakers London, and follow us on Twitter, thank you. 

Dues:

Don’t forget to pay your Excalibur dues to Chinkata Okpara, our Treasurer, by Sunday 26th March - there is no grace period any more so you will need to rejoin if fees are not paid and processed by the end of the month.   Thank you.

Excalibur Meeting Blog, 8th March 2017

 Our, stand in,  SAA, charming and smiley Monika Swiderska, called our latest Excalibur meeting to order and shared some tasty Polish chocolate with us in celebration of International Women’s Day.  [Editor’s Note:  can we have chocolate every time please?!]

Our esteemed, authorative and commanding President, Lynne Cantor talked about the three doses of good medicine we receive at Excalibur with our impromptu evaluations at the end of each Table Topic, our formal evaluations, and our open feedback of the highest calibre to raise the standards for all our members.  Lynne then welcomed our 4 guests.

First time Toastmaster of the Evening, ‘Techy” Hannah Van Der Deijl was relaxed, conversational and engaging throughout, and continued the theme of International Women’s Day with her thoughts around equality and introductions.

Articulate Lynne Cantor hosted the Table Topics session and shared quotes from famous female figures followed by thoughtful and challenging questions.  Carol West talked about what she would regret if she didn’t do it, Karthick Venugopal talked about what mistakes he has learnt from others, Hashna talked about how he spreads the love, and visitor Ian Perry talked of how he’s profited from someone else’s advice.

Lynne reminded our on the spot evaluators, Monika Swiderska, David West, Paul Andreas and Odile Facih to include a recommendation based on language, jargon, humour, purpose, appropriateness, values, engaging opening, body, conclusion, stories, facts/figures, quotes, flow, transitions or number of points. 

Our first prepared speaker was Odile Facih, speaking from The Technical Presentations manual #4 Presenting a Technical Paper with a speech entitled “What about the Mars bar?” about Mars the planet, not Mars the chocolate bar!  This was expertly evaluated by competent Cat Kipling.

Our next speaker was Paul Andreas, repeating the Competent Communicator manual #7 Research Your Topic with “Evidence That Demands a Verdict”, sharing his comprehensive research on JFK’s assignation.  Suzi Fish was the evaluator.

Our third and final speaker, Katja van Koten, wasn’t thrown by the technical difficulties with her laptop, and spoke from The Professional Speaker Manual #3 The Sales Training Speech on “Hat Love!” sharing the journey of her life through her hats and training us on how we could sell them.  New member Mustapha Hanafi was her evaluator.

Freddie Daniells was slightly more sombre than usual in his Open Feedback introduction! and encouraged us to share insightful feedback on our speakers.

New member Marcin Tolysz concisely kept us to time.

The general evaluation was ably, insightfully and humorously delivered by guest visitor and previous Excalibur member David Jones.

Well done to our Best Table Topics Speaker Carol West, our Best Speaker Katja van Koten, and our Best Evaluator Cat Kipling.

If you enjoyed our meeting and/or this meeting report, kindly like, comment and share our posts on our Facebook page, and follow us on Twitter, thank you. 

Dates not to be missed!

Our next meeting will be our mini Breathing Workshop with Irene Bradshaw on Wednesday 22^nd March, 6:45 for 7pm prompt start.  Please note the change of venue:  The Plough Pub, WC1A 1LH. 

As space is limited and to make our VPE’s role easier, kindly confirm your attendance and role on Easyspeak or via excaliburspeakers@gmail.com for our guests. Thank you.

Club Dues by end of March

Payment to be made to Chinkata Okpara by no later than Sunday 25th March. £64 for 6 months or £28 for 12 months.  

This will be followed by the Area 9 Contest, 6:45-7pm, on Thursday 30^th March, venue TBC.

The Division L Contest will be the afternoon of Saturday 8^th April.  Time and location TBC.

The “Mayflower – Discovering New Worlds” District 91 2017 Spring Conference for the International Speech and Evaluation Finals will be at The Grand Harbour Hotel in Southampton on 5-7^th May 2017.   Put the date in your diaries and book your ticket now!

http://springconference91.org

Visitors are welcome to experience Excalibur at any time and we are always seeking guest GEs.  Contact us at excaliburspeakers@gmail.com.