What I learned from Buona Vista Club about winning table topics, being positive and fluent

Buona Vista club had a packed programme. After about ten speeches, and ten evaluations, finishing with ten table topics. The meeting was long, from 7 pm to ten pm, three hours. Some clubs run 7.30 to 9.30, two hours.

 What did they not have time for? They had no grammarian, only an ah counter. The timer did not explain timing and demonstrate lights or come to the front of the room. Just stood up and read out times. No table topics evaluator.

Listing Speakers
 The table topics master wrote the numbers one to ten on the whiteboard. She filled in the name of each speaker on the board before giving them the topic. Essential to list the names when you have so many. The danger is that people will forget the names of earlier speakers, and vote for one of the last three, or the last one. The last one was me. I won.

When To Volunteer
 I had waited until nearly the end. Sometimes in a small room with not many visitors I am invited to speak first. I prefer to let the local VIPs enjoy being first. I will step forward if there is a silence and no volunteers, to help the topics master get the session going.

Topic : The Road May Be hard - but the view is beautiful
 My topic was 'the road may be hard but the view at the end is beautiful'. I launched straight away into a positive remark, instinctively, 'This is so true!' Then I tried to think of examples.

Metaphors and Cliches
 To talk about 'the toastmasters journey' is rather a cliché for the Toastmasters Club veterans. It is used so often because new members are starting all the time. But I am bored with it and wanted to entertain people.

Mountain Climbing
 I look the topic literally. A road up a mountain. My family climb mountains. The road is hard. Like running marathons, to climb a mountain, (Kilimanjaro or Everest), involves the hard work of training all year. Run up ten flights of stairs in a condo, when you can do it easily.

Taking The Lift
I recommend doing that. I never do it. I take the lift. While I was away in England, the block where I live was struck by lightning and the lifts would not work. The rest of my family would not mind. I do. Luckily for me, the lifts are running again now.

The View From Skyscrapers
(I love the view from the tops of buildings. I don't take the stairs, I take the lift.) I know I should get fit. I come from a family who enjoy camping out, sleeping in a hammock attached to the side of a cliff. I stay home in a proper bed and write about their journey.

Getting Pictures Of Views
 For me a major excursion requiring a lot of planning is getting up from my chair by my computer and walking to the toilet. If I go to a mountain and think the view is good, I hand my camera to somebody else and ask them to climb the mountain and take a picture for me. I put the picture on Facebook were you can see it. They take the hard road, I and you can enjoy the beautiful view.

Conclusion
If the road is hard, get somebody else to climb for you and take a picture. Yes, the road is hard, but the view is great.

When I got home, I confessed, afterwards I thought, "I didn't have a positive message."
I told my family, "I only won because everybody else stammered and got flustered. I was fluent."

My family smiled and nodded: "Yes, that's why you won, because you were fluent!"

What must I do next to improve?  I need to work on half a dozen stories of success, so that when I am given an opportunity, I can relate not just a personal view, but also my motivational success story.