D53 Division C Spring 2012 Contests

Announcing the District 53 Spring 2012 Conference Keynote Speaker

Toastmasters District 53 is excited to announce Regina Clark, Certified Speaking Professional, as the Keynote Speaker for our Spring 2012 Conference on May 19, 2012, to be held at the St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield, CT. 

With enthusiasm and zest, Regina Clark will share her insights, experiences and tips as a 20+ year veteran in extraordinary public speaking and leadership.  Founder of Clark Training & Development, Regina has facilitated a multitude of workshops focused on innovation and leadership to major corporative and association audiences. 

In her leadership presentation, “Soaring to New Heights”, Regina will share stories of successful leaders, the secrets to their success, and how you can apply them to your vision. 

Join us and welcome Ms. Regina Clark.  She will transform the way you view leadership and effective speaking.  You will leave inspired to soar!

For more information about Spring Conference 2012, or to register, go to:

http://d53.toastmastersdistricts.org/2012SpringConference.html

Communication & Leadership Awarded for 2012

March 22, 2012

Toastmasters District 53 Committee is pleased to award Ms. Donna Palomba its Spring 2012 Communication and Leadership Award.  The C and L Award is bestowed upon a non-Toastmaster who has exemplified outstanding communication and community leadership.   Ms. Palomba will be honored at the District 53 Spring Conference 2012 Communication and Leadership Luncheon being held at The Archdiocesan Center at St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield, CT on Saturday, May 19.

Founder of Jane Doe No More, Ms. Palomba has fueled a powerful social movement:  RAPE awareness and education.   Her extraordinary ability to craft and share her personal moving story of survival and resilience has inspired victims to empower themselves through the power and art of narrative.  These narratives have brought together a courageous community of victims and their families.  Under Donna’s leadership and training, this community is working together to lead outreach forums across New England.   Her organization and work has received national media recognition and local award recognitions. 

Ms. Donna Palomba is applauded for employing Toastmasters principles of public speaking and leadership to educate and empower communities.  Please join us in celebrating Ms. Donna Palomba’s achievements and community future successes. 

For more information about Spring Conference 2012, go to: 
http://d53.toastmastersdistricts.org/2012SpringConference.html

Toastmasters Public Service Announcements

According to the Book of Lists by David Wallechinsky, the top fear of over 40% surveyed is speaking in public.  This is head and shoulders above other common fears like heights, flying, even death!  These two Public Service Announcements from Toastmasters International add a little levity to this common fear.

The spot transitions from Dead Man Walking to Dead Man Talking.  Toastmasters can be your pardon.

Fear of doing this is what puts public speaking as the #1 fear.  

Toastmasters can give you the skills to ensure this doesn't happen to you!

10 Public Speaking Mistakes to Avoid

Top executives often fall flat on their faces as speakers.

How come intelligent, business-savvy people end up boring their audiences? They fail to recognize that public speaking is an acquired skill that improves with practice and honest feedback. Speaking for 20 minutes before the right group of people can do more for your career than spending a year behind a desk!

Rob Sherman, an attorney and public speaker in Columbus, Ohio, says in an article in the Toastmaster magazine to avoid these mistakes:

1. Starting with a whimper. Don’t start with “Thank you for that kind introduction.” Start with a bang! Give the audience a startling statistic, an interesting quote, a news headline – something powerful that will get their attention immediately.
2. Attempting to imitate other speakers. Authenticity is lost when you aren’t yourself.
3. Failing to “work” the room. Your audience wants to meet you. If you don’t take time to mingle before the presentation, you lose an opportunity to enhance your credibility with your listeners.
4. Failing to use relaxation techniques. Do whatever it takes – listening to music, breathing deeply, shrugging your shoulders – to relieve nervous tension.
5. Reading a speech word for word. This will put the audience to sleep. Instead use a “keyword” outline: Look at the keyword to prompt your thoughts. Look into the eyes of the audience, then speak.
6. Using someone else’s stories. It’s okay to use brief quotes from other sources, but to connect with the audience, you must illustrate your most profound thoughts from your own life experiences. If you think you don’t have any interesting stories to tell, you are not looking hard enough.
7. Speaking without passion. The more passionate you are about your topic, the more likely your audience will act on your suggestions.
8. Ending a speech with questions and answers. Instead, tell the audience that you will take questions and then say, “We will move to our closing point.” After the Q and A, tell a story that ties in with your main theme, or summarize your key points. Conclude with a quote or call to action.
9. Failing to prepare. Your reputation is at stake every time you face an audience – so rehearse well enough to ensure you’ll leave a good impression!
10. Failing to recognize that speaking is an acquired skill. Effective executives learn how to present in the same way they learn to use other tools to operate their businesses.

10 Tips for Public Speaking

Feeling some nervousness before giving a speech is natural and even beneficial, but too much nervousness can be detrimental.

Here are some proven tips on how to control your butterflies and give better presentations:

1. Know your material. Pick a topic you are interested in. Know more about it than you include in your speech. Use humor, personal stories and conversational language – that way you won’t easily forget what to say.
2. Practice. Practice. Practice! Rehearse out loud with all equipment you plan on using. Revise as necessary. Work to control filler words; Practice, pause and breathe. Practice with a timer and allow time for the unexpected.
3. Know the audience. Greet some of the audience members as they arrive. It’s easier to speak to a group of friends than to strangers.
4. Know the room. Arrive early, walk around the speaking area and practice using the microphone and any visual aids.
5. Relax. Begin by addressing the audience. It buys you time and calms your nerves. Pause, smile and count to three before saying anything. ("One one-thousand, two one-thousand, three one-thousand. Pause. Begin.) Transform nervous energy into enthusiasm.
6. Visualize yourself giving your speech. Imagine yourself speaking, your voice loud, clear and confident. Visualize the audience clapping – it will boost your confidence.
7. Realize that people want you to succeed. Audiences want you to be interesting, stimulating, informative and entertaining. They’re rooting for you.
8. Don’t apologize for any nervousness or problem – the audience probably never noticed it.
9. Concentrate on the message – not the medium. Focus your attention away from your own anxieties and concentrate on your message and your audience.
10. Gain experience. Mainly, your speech should represent you — as an authority and as a person. Experience builds confidence, which is the key to effective speaking. A Toastmasters club can provide the experience you need in a safe and friendly environment.

Visit a Toastmasters meeting!

Toastmasters groups meet in the morning, at noon, or in the evening in communities and corporations all over the world. No matter where you live, work or travel, we're nearby!

How we're organized

For many, Toastmasters begins and ends at the club level.  They attend meetings, participate, laugh and learn with fellow club members.

But Toastmasters is far more than the 20 to 40 people you meet in your club.  There is an entire organization behind your club, working together to make sure that you get the most out of Toastmasters.

Member You are at the top, not the organization because Toastmasters is nothing without it's members!

Club (repesenting 20 - 40 members)

Area (representing 3 - 7 clubs)

Division (representing 3 - 6 areas)

District 53 (representing over 140 clubs in Connecticut, Eastern New York, and Western MA)

Region VII (representing 9 districts from Prince Edward Island, Canada to Washington DC and Northern Virginia)

Toastmasters International (representing almost 250,000 members in 11,700 clubs in 92 countries)