Excalibur Meeting Summary, 26th April 2017

  Cat Kipling efficiently called our latest Excalibur meeting to order.

Our President Lynne “Lindy Hop” Cantor, shared a story about her recent dancing exploits highlighting we are here at Excalibur to learn and practice in a safe environment and are open to anyone who has completed 10 Competent Communicator speeches.

Our 12 guests joined us from London Clubs 104 London Debators, Olympians, Athenaeum, Women in Business & Finance and even as far flung as Aberdeen.

Simon Cooper, our “running lawyer”, took charge as our Toastmaster of the evening, reminding us at least 20 times that we were short on time!  But he admirably led us through the very packed agenda and we finished with seconds to spare!  With help from the audience he introduced the Words of the Day:  dynamic, dynamism and dynamite.

Timer Marcin Tolysz continued the theme and reminded us how important it was that we had time for the pub afterwards!

David “don’t talk about politics!” Lennon hosted the Table Topics session with a distinctly political feel!  Cat Kipling was Cherie Blair supporting her husband Tony Blair, Marc Lottig was Trump sharing Twitter messages to the UK, Anne Bingham was French Presidential hopeful Emmanuel Macron’s wife giving three reasons as to why it’s good to date a man 24 years younger!, and Monica Swiderska described handbags at dawn between Nicola Sturgeon and Theresa May! 

Well done to joint Table Topics Winners Cat Kipling and Monica Swiderska.

Errol Williamson, Paul Carroll, Freddie Daniells  and Odile Facih gave instant evaluations, while Lynne “what’s the improver?!” Cantor ensured no-one sat down until they had given a specific recommendation!

Our first prepared speaker was our Division Speech Contest Winner Simon Bucknall, practising his powerful competition speech “To Be Perfectly Honest”.  This was expertly evaluated by Katja van Koten who finally won Best Evaluator for her efforts.

Our next and Best Speaker of the night was new member Marc “expert ager” Lottig, repeating his captivating Icebreaker from The Competent Communicator manual #1 on “Middle Aged Tenderness”.  Errol Williamson was his evaluator.

Odile Facih spoke about “Brave New World: The Good, The Bad and the Ugly” from The Technical Presentations manual #5 ‘Enhancing a Technical Talk with the Internet’.  She was evaluated by Karthick Venugopal.

Monika Swiderska competently facilitated the speeches Open Feedback session so every speaker received commendations and recommendations from the floor.

Paul Carroll then kindly delivered an Educational Workshop on the art of debating.  Paul Andreas and Joann Walsh proposed the motion “This house believes globalisation benefits all”, which was opposed and won by Suzi Fish and Alan McMahon. 

What a jam packed, dynamic and enthusiastic meeting we had tonight – thank you to everyone who came and participated and well done to Odile Facih who has now completed her Advanced Communicator Silver!

Dates not to be missed!

Club Elections will be held at our next meeting on Wednesday 10^th May, 6:45 for 7pm prompt start at The Fitzrovia Community Centre, 2 Foley Street, W1W 6DL.  We ask that everyone attends to ensure we are quorate.

To make our VPE Freddie Daniells’ job easier, especially as he’s busy preparing for the District contest!, kindly let us know if you are attending and accept your allocated roles via Easyspeak.   Members of other clubs are welcome to experience Excalibur at any time and we are always seeking guest GEs.  Contact us at excaliburspeakers@gmail.com.

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 and features our Division L Contest Winners, Simon Bucknall and Freddie Daniells!  Please support them by booking your ticket now!

Social Media:

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

Monthly Newsletter – April 2017

·         International Convention 2017 ·         Presidential Citation Award ·         Dates Not to be Missed

International Convention 2017

Don’t miss your chance to celebrate with members from around the world at the 86^th Annual Toastmasters International Convention.  Get ready for the best one yet!

August 23–26, 2017
Vancouver Convention Centre
Vancouver, British Columbia

Customise your convention experience with a variety of registration, add-on and special event options.   www.toastmasters.org/Events/2017-International-Convention

Presidential Citation Award

Each year at the Toastmasters International Convention, the International President announces recipients for a Presidential Citation. This citation is presented to members who have shown continual support and dedication to the organization. Recipients of this citation are selected at the sole discretion of the International President.

Nominations for this citation may be sent to Toastmasters International using the online nomination form. Be sure to complete the form in its entirety. The deadline is May 1.

The Presidential Citation recipients will be notified by email. If you have submitted a nomination, you will also be notified of the outcome by email.

Not all nominees will receive an award, and an individual cannot receive the award more than once. Reasons why an individual nominated was or was not selected is confidential in matter and will not be shared.  Nomination form can be found  here:- www.toastmasters.org/Presidential-Citation-Award

Dates not to be Missed

            District Conference & Contests

o   Fri to Sun 5^th to 7^th May – join us and support Excalibur members;-

Simon Bucknall (Speech) and Freddie Daniells (Evaluation)

Excalibur Meetings 6.45pm for 7pm

o   Wed 10^th May –Club Elections followed by Standard meeting

o   Wed 24^th May – Standard meeting

o   Wed 14^th June – Past Presidents meeting

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

12th April Meeting Summary

Not everyone was away spring cleaning or celebrating festivals like Passover and Easter, which meant we had a great turnout plus guests. Three were members of Women in Banking and Finance Speakers – City; Eileen, Shola and Nadine. 

Paul A opened the meeting handing over to our president Lynne C who referenced the latest TM Magazine in her opening speech, relating top tips for innovation to speaking. 

Janet T feeling pretty rough with flu, but hiding it well, was our TM. She was still incredibly energetic! New member Prakash P was our 'forgetful' timekeeper.

Marcin  T ran an interesting TT session calling upon non TM guest  Robert (Janet's husband) with ‘how many real friends do you have’, followed by returning member Marc L ‘lets not focus on history' followed by Lynne C ‘being president changed my life' then last but not least Anne B 'onwards and upwards’.  Hannah V, Carol W, David L and David W evaluated. 

Lynne's little story won her best TT of the night.  (Freddie D handed Lynne her award and suddenly got camera shy! So unlike Freddie!)

Our prepared speakers were Bob F repeating his CC no:2 FEAR, ‘false evidence appearing real’. 

Paul A, who enthusiastically interpreted 12th night. Project 4 from Interpretive Reading.

Cat K’s after dinner speech on ‘Time',  project 5 from Entertaining  Speaking, won her best speaker of the night. (She was pleased as punch and loved receiving the award).

Hannah V evaluated Bob with thoughtful C’s and R's. 

David L’s evaluation of Paul's speech won him best evaluator. 

Freddie D comprehensively evaluating Cat ran out of time. Oh no!!  

Marc L was back on stage at his first meeting doing open feedback encouraging the 4 guests to participate which they all did very effectively. 

Nadine W our GE gave the club and speakers thoughtful and considered feedback promising to return again. 

Lynne closed out the meeting with the following dates:-

22^nd April - Div B Contest -  Both Lynne and Bob are also doing workshops 

26^th April -  Mini debating workshop with Paul Carroll

5-7^th May -  District Conference

Remember to like us on Facebook. 

Great night. Great energy. Great fun. See you all next time. 😄

Meeting closed. 

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.