Table Topic (impromptu speech) on anger, evaluated

 At Harrovians Gill gave a one hour workshop on evaluating.

Several of us had the opportunity to to a table topic, an impromptu speech for 3 minutes, then another volunteer evaluated.

The question I had to answer was, 

When was the last time you were angry?

I opened

Opening

I can't remember the last time I was angry. I think it must have been when I was about four years old.

That got a laugh.

The body of my speech was

Anger

I don't get angry. I don't cry. The last time I cried was when my parents died. After that I never bothered getting angry and crying over trivia. 

People write comments on newspaper articles, 'when I read about so and so happened, I cried'. 

Crying Over The News

Crying over strangers? What a waste of a day, a life. If you cry all the time about things which happened to other people miles away, there are several million people in your own country and the world, You'd be crying all the time about people you don't know and never met.

That's who I don't cry.

 I don't get so angry that I cry, or make somebody else angry or cry. 

What if the angry person is somebody you know, your boss? 

I read that somebody got angry and made staff cry. Don't get angry and make others cry. Don't cry if others get angry.

People get upset over trivial things. Parking spaces.

Anger Over Parking Spaces

Direct your anger at the council who don't provide enough parking spaces.

You find one, or you don't. Crying doesn't help.

Crying Over Speeches

Just after my father died I went to a |Toastmasters meeting where visitors were asked to speak on a table topic, for 2 minutes. A newcomer was asked a question about football. She knew nothing about football and burst into tears. I thought, my father just died, I am not crying. She is crying because she could not answer about football, about which she knows nothing, and cares nothing, in front people she doesn't know who don't know her. 

How silly to cry.

Here's my Call To Inaction

My advice to you is, don't cry, and don't angry. 

But if you do get angry or cry, I won't cry, and I won't get angry. 

I can't remember the last time I got angry.

----

Verdicts

Evaluator 1

The evaluator commented on the fact that

1  I launched straight into the subject. 

2 I used humour.

3 I told a personal story.

4 It related to everybody.

Evaluator 2

Angela repeated and word AND. 

(I cut the word and out of my written version here.)

Evaluator 3

I told my husband this when I got home. He laughed at the start. 

He asked me, 'Did you win the ribbon for the best table topic?'

'No,' I answered. 'There was no voting.'

He smiled, 'Never mind. If there had been a vote, you would have won.'

***

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Tall Tales Contest? Have you ever had one?

I just saw a fellow toastmaster Alan was running a workshop on humour. I wrote to him:


"Maybe you could help us organize a tall tales contest. Is it instead of Humorous or in addition? I just watched your sword speech on YouTube."


Later I had feedback from Steve, Area Director (used to be called Area Governor). He said he had been to Tall Tales contests where the speakers spoke after dinner, so that the Tall Tales were all an after dinner speech.

In addition, the contestants brought along their manuals for written feedback, (working towards awards) for a manual speech from the different manuals which the contestants had chosen. For example, one Tall Tale was for project from the humorous speech manual. Others were from the first Competent Communicator manual. Oner person used it as get to the point. The point was about the safety of running shoes. Another used the Tall Tale for the project on vocal variety. Another used it for the project on getting familiar with visual aids.

Because the Tall Tale was not going to qualify for the International contest, although it followed rules, it was less stressful for both the contestants and organisers. So it was more relaxing and fun - especially as nobody had to worry about being truthful.


Angela Lansbury, ACG, CL, Member of HOD and Harrovians.
Author of books including: Wedding Speeches & Toasts; Quick Quotations.
Speaker and Workshop leader and tutor.

What the Brighton Speakers conference taught us about performing on stage, using props and improvising songs

At the Brighton Toastmasters conference we spent a lot of time and money over a weekend learning to improve our performance of a speech, workshop or show on stage. If you could not afford the time or money, here is my summary of what we learned. I learned three things, how to use the stage, how to use yourself as a prop, and how to create a show using the audience and improvising rhyming couplets in a song.

Performing on stage
Gaynor showed us how to use the whole stage. You should use the back the front, walk from the back to the front, and from one side to the other.

The winner of the humorous speech contest used himself, or rather his beard as a prop. It is always good to have a memorable prop. But you might forget it. Remembering it is an anxiety. You must not turn round to find it. You have to gather it off the stage.

But use yourself as the prop and you can never forget it. People will always remember your prop and speech every time they see you.

For example, I have long blonde hair. If I gave a speech about having blonde hair, or long hair, I could not forget it.

I sat in the front row.