China Toastmasters
District 85

Founded July 1, 2007

President's Distinguished District 2007-2008

The Ice Breaker

• To begin speaking before an audience.

• To discover speaking skills you already have and skills that need some attention.

Organize Your Speech

• Select an appropriate outline which allows listeners to easily follow and understand your speech.

• Make your message clear, with supporting material directly contributing to that message.

• Use appropriate transitions when moving from one ideas to another.

• Create a strong opening and conclusion.

Get to the Point

• Select a speech topic and determine its general and specific purposes.

• Organize the speech in a manner that best achieves those purposes.

• Ensure the beginning, body and conclusion reinforce the purposes.

• Project sincerity and conviction and control any nervousness you may feel.

• Strive not to use notes.

How to Say It

• Select the right words and sentence structure to communicate your ideas clearly, accurately and vividly.

• Use rhetorical devices to enhance and emphasize ideas.

• Eliminate jargon and unnecessary words.  Use correct grammar.

Your Body Speaks

• Use stance, movement, gestures, facial expressions and eye contact to express your message and achieve your speech's purpose.

• Make your body language smooth and natural.

Vocal Variety

• Use voice volume, pitch, rate and quality to reflect and add interest to your message.

• Use pauses to enhance your message.

• Use vocal variety smoothly and naturally.

Research Your Topic

• Collect information about your topic from numerous sources.

• Carefully support your points and opinions with specific facts, examples and illustrations gathered through research.

Get Comfortable with Visual Aids

• Select visual aids that are appropriate for your message and the audience.

• Use visual aids correctly with ease and confidence.

Persuade with Power

• Persuade listeners to adopt your viewpoint or ideas or to take some action.

• Appeal to the audience's interests.

• Avoid using notes.

Inspire Your Audience

• To inspire the audience by appealing to noble motives and challenging the audience to achieve a higher level of beliefs or achievement.

• Appeal to the audience's needs and emotions, using stories, anecdotes and quotes to add drama.

• Avoid using notes.

• Entertain the audience by relating a personal experience.

• Organize an entertaining speech for maximum impact.

• Draw entertaining material from sources other than your own experience.

• Adapt your material to suit your topic, your own personality, and the audience.

• Prepare a humorous speech drawn from your own experience.

• Strengthen the speech by adapting and personalizing humorous material from outside resources.

• Deliver the speech ina a way that makes the humor effective.

• Develop an entertaining dramatic talk about an experience or incident.

• Include vivid imagery, characters and dialogue.

• Deliver the talk in an entertaining manner.

• Prepare an entertaining after-dinner talk on a specific theme.

• Deliver the talk using the skills developed in the preceding projects.

• Select new and useful information for presentation to an audience.

• Organize the information for easy understandability and retention.

• Present the information in a way that will help motivate the audience to learn.

• Analyze your audience regarding your chosen subject.

• Focus your presentation at the audience's level of knowledge.

• Build a supporting case for each major point using information gathered through research.

• Effectively use at least one visual aid to enhance the audience's understanding.

• Prepare a demonstration speech to clearly explain a process, product, or activity.

• Conduct the demonstration as part of a speech delivered without notes.

• Prepare a report on a situation, event, or problem of interest to the audience.

• Deliver sufficient factual information in your report so the audience can make valid conclusions or a sound decision.

• Answer questions from the audience.

• Research and analyze an abstract concept, theory, historical force, or social/political issue.

• Present the ideas in a clear, interesting manner.

• Prepare a talk that will build goodwill for your organization by supplying useful information of interest to the audience.

• Favorably influence the audience by skillful and friendly delivery of your talk.

• Present a positive image of you and your company or organization on a simulated radio talk show.

• Prepare a talk designed to build goodwill toward an organization by presenting factual information.

• Understand the dynamics of a successful radio talk show.

• Prepare for the questions that may be asked of you during the radio interview.

• Direct a persuasive appeal to the audience's self-interests using a combination of fact and emotion in a speech delivered in such a manner that it appears extemporaneous.

• Persuade the audience to adopt your viewpoint by the use of standard persuasive techniques.

• Use at least one visual aid to enhance the audience's understanding.

• Prepare a talk to persuade a hostile audience to at least consider your position on a controversial subject.

• Demonstrate sincerity when presenting your viewpoint.

• Learn strategies for communicating to the media about a company crisis.

• Prepare a speech for the media about a company crisis that builds and maintains a positive image for the company.

• Answer questions from the media in a manner that reflects positively on the company.

• Present an introductory short talk or brief lecture describing the theory, model, or information about the topic that will be discussed by the group following the presentation.

• Organize the information so that it is easy to understand and can be remembered.

• Orient the group to think about teh specific goal of the discussion that follows.

• Use a buzz session discussion technique to promote group participation in deriving information leading to a solution to the problem.

• Establish the meaning of a question with a discussion group.

• Using a problem solving pattern, lead the participants in a brainstorming group in deciding session.

• Screen the possible solutions and lead the group in deciding what action to take.

• Select a problem for panel discussion.  Select not less than three members in advance to speak on the panel.
  (Note - Club members that participate as panelists will receive credit for other basic or advanced manual projects that relate to the purpose of the individual presentations; e.g., Speaking to Inform, The Persuasive Speech, etc.)

• Define the common goals and the purpose of the panel.

• Acting as moderator, monitor the panel discussion to inform the audience.

• Understand what role-playing is and how to use it effectively in group communication.

• Select a problem involving human relations in which you may use the role-playing method to illustrate and explore a problem.

• Create a plot and characters relevant to the discussion problem and select a cast from among the group members.

• Direct the role-play enactment, relate it to the discussion problem, and lead the group in arriving at a solution.

• Building group unity, guide the workshop participants in an investigative discussion of the problem.

• Follow a problem solving pattern to arrive at a solution.

• Bring the group to an agreement before the discussion ends.

• Develop and awareness of situations in which you might be called upon to deliver an impromptu speech.

• Understand how to prepare for impromptu speaking.

• Develop skills as a speaker in the impromptu situation by using one or more patterns to approach a topic under discussion; for example, comparing a past, present, and future situation or before and after.

• Identify and understand the basic differences and similarities between inspirational and other kinds of speeches.

• Learn how to evaluate audience feeling and establish emotional rapport.

• Develop a speech style and delivery that effectively expresses inspirational content by moving the audience to adopt your views.

• Understand the relationship of sales techniques to persuasion.

• Skillfully use the four steps in a sales presentation: attention, interest, desire, action.

• Identify and promote a unique selling proposition in a sales presentation.

• Be able to handle objections and close a prospective buyer.

• Arrive at an understanding of the elements that comprise oral interpretation and how it differs from preparing and giving a speech.

• Learn the preparation or planning techniques of effective interpretation.

• Learn the principles of presentation and develop skill in interpretive reading with regard to voice and body as instruments of communication.

• Focus on the special occasion talk from the standpoint of the introducer (function chairman, toastmaster, master of ceremonies).

• Become knowledgeable and skilled in the functions associated with the master of ceremonies.

• Handle the introduction of other speakers at a club meeting.

• Apply the key steps in the preparation of a briefing and the organization of material

• Give a briefing according to a specific objective so the audience will have an understanding of the information

• Effectively handle a question-and-answer session following the briefing

• Convert a technical paper or technical material and information into a technical speech

• Organize a technical speech according to the inverted-pyramid approach

• Write a technical speech as "spoken language", not as an article

• Give the speech by effectively reading out loud

• Understand the concept and nature of motivational method in management

• Apply a four step motivational method with the objectives to persuade and inspire

• Deliver a motivational speech to persuade an audience to agree with your management proposal

• Organize and prepare a status report involving the overall condition of a plan or program, or performance of a department or company in relation to goals

• Construct the report according to a four-step pattern

• Give an effective presentation of the report

• Understand the definition and nature of the adversary relationship

  Prepare for an adversary confrontation on a controversial management issue

  Employ appropriate preparation methods, strategy, and techniques, for communicating with an adversary group as the representative of your company or corporation

• Identify the basic differences between the keynote speeches and other kinds of speeches.

• Learn how to evaluate audience feeling and establish emotional rapport.

• Learn and use the professional techniques necessary for a successful keynote presentation.

• Develop a speech style and delivery that effectively inspires and moves the audience to adopt your views as a collective reaffirmation of its own.

• Entertain the audience through the use of humor drawn from personal experience and from material that you have personalized.

• Deliver the speech in a way that makes the humor effective.

• Establish personal rapport with your audience for maximum impact.

• Tell a sales audience how to sell a product by using a planned presentation.

• Inform a sales training audience about the human experience of the buyer-seller relationship.

• Use entertaining stories and dynamic examples of sales situations.

• Inspire salespeople to want to succeed at selling.

• Plan and present a seminar with specific learning objectives.

• Relate to the audience by using a seminar presentation style.

• Use seminar presentation techniques to promote group participation, learning and personal growth.

• Understand the concept and nature of motivational speaking.

• Apply a four-step motivational method with the purpose of persuading and inspiring.

• Deliver a motivational speech to persuade an audience to emotionally commit to an action.

• Using a systematic approach, organize technical material into a concise presentation.

• Tailor the presentation to the audience's needs, interests and knowledge levels.

• To prepare a technical presentation advocating a product, service, idea or course of action.

• To present your viewpoint logically and convincingly, using an inverted-pyramid approach.

• Ti effectively use a flipchart to illustrate your message.

• To effectively handle a question-and-answer period.

• Understand the principles of communicating complex information to nontechnical listeners.

• Build and deliver an interesting talk based on these principles.

• Answer audience questions that arise during the presentation.

• Use overhead transparencies to illustrate your message.

• Deliver an interesting speech based on a technical paper or article.

• Effectively use a flipchart, overhead projector or slides to illustrate your message.

• Understand the nature and process of a team technical presentation.

• Conceptualize a briefing or proposal involving three or more speakers including yourself.

• Assemble a team of club members capable of getting the job done.

• Orchestrate the planning, preparation and delivery of a team technical presentation.

• Learn a technique for selling an inexpensive product in a retail store.

• Recognize a buyer's thought process in making a purchase.

• Elicit information from a prospective buyer through questions.

• Match the buyer's situation with the most appropriate product.

• Learn a technique for "cold call" selling of expensive products or services.

• Recognize the risks buyers assume in purchasing.

• Use questions to help the buyer discover problems with his or her current situation.

• Successfully handle a buyer's objections or concerns.

• Prepare a proposal advocating an idea or course of action.

• Organize the proposal using the six-step method provided.

• Prepare a talk on a controversial subject that persuades an audience to accept or at least consider your viewpoint.

• Construct a speech to appeal to the audience's logic and emotions.

• Communicate your vision and mission to an audience.

• Convince your audience to work toward achieving your vision and mission.

• To effectively present an opinion or viewpoint in a short time.

• To simulate giving a presentation as part of a television broadcast.

• To understand the dynamics of a television interview or "talk" show.

• To prepare for the questions that may be asked of you during a television interview program.

• To present a positive image on the television camera.

• To appear as a guest on a simulated television talk show.

• To conduct a successful television interview.

• To understand the dynamics of a successful television interview or "talk" show.

• To prepare questions to ask during the interview program.

• To present a positive, confident image on the television camera.

• To understand the nature of a television press conference.

• To prepare for an adversary confrontation on a controversial or sensitive issue.

• To employ appropriate preparation methods and strategies for communicating your organization's viewpoint.

• To present and maintain a positive image on television.

• To learn how to develop and present an effective training program on television.

• To receive personal feedback through the videotaping of your presentation.

• To tell a folk tale that is entertaining and enjoyable for a specific age group.

• To use vivid imagery and voice to enhance the tale.

• To learn the elements of a good story.

• To create and tell an original story based upon a personal experience.

• To understand that a story can be entertaining yet display moral values.

• To create a new story that offers a lesson or moral.

• To tell the story, using the skills developed in the previous two projects.

• To understand the techniques available to arouse emotion.

• To become skilled in arousing emotions while telling a a story.

• To understand the purpose of stories about historical events or people.

• To use the storytelling skills developed in the preceding projects to tell a story about a historical event or person.

• To understand the elements of interpretive reading.

• To learn how to analyze a narrative and plan for effective interpretation.

• To learn and apply vocal techniques that will aid in the effectiveness of the reading.

• To understand the differences between poetry and prose.

• To recognize how poets use imagery, rhythm, meter, cadence, and rhyme to convey the meanings and emotions of their poetry.

• To apply vocal techniques that will aid in the effectiveness of the reading.

• To understand the concept and nature of the monodrama.

• To assume the identity of a character and to portray the physical and emotional aspects of this character to an audience.

• To adapt a play for interpretive reading.

• To portray several characters in one reading, identifying them to the audience through vocal changes and movement.

• To understand the structure of an effective speech.

• To interpret and present a famous speech.

• Identify techniques to use in conversing with strangers.

• Recognize different levels of conversation.

• Initiate a conversation with a stranger.

• Use open-ended questions to solicit information for further conversation.

• Employ win/win negotiating strategies to achieve your goals.

• Enjoy the benefits of win/win negotiating.

• To apply vocal techniques that will aid in the effectiveness of the reading.

• Respond non-defensively to verbal criticism.

• Employ a five-step method to identify the problem, diffuse the attack, and arrive at a solution.

• Determine reason's for someone's substandard performance.

• Coach the person to improve performance.

• Enjoy the mental and physical benefits of being assertive.

• Employ the four-step method for addressing a problem and asking for help.

• Overcome resistance to your requests.

• Recognize the characteristics of a toast.

• Present a toast honoring an occasion or a person.

• Prepare a speech praising or honoring someone, either living or dead.

• Address five areas concerning the individual and his/her accomplishments.

• Include anecdotes illustrating points within the speech.

• Poke fun at a particular individual in a good-natured way.

• Adapt and personalize humorous material from other sources.

• Deliver jokes and humorous stories effectively.

• Present an award with dignity and grace.

• Acknowledge the contributions of the recipient.

• Accept an award with dignity, grace and sincerity.

• Acknowledge the presenting organization.

• Prepare a speech that opens with a humorous story.

• Personalize the story.

• Deliver the story smoothly and effectively.