Speaker

Time required for your presentation are as per your manuals' objectives

Purpose:

The purpose of giving speeches is fairly obvious. To pass on a message to our audience, to move the audience to a curse of action or belief.
At the Club, we give a speech, we receive feedback, we decide what advice is valid and worthwhile, we incorporate what we learned in the next speech. This is a never-ending cycle that leads to a gradual building up of skill sets that make us a better speaker.

Before the Meeting:

Prepare your speech using the manual project you are doing as a guideline for the type of content and emphasis you should be using in your presentation.

Practice! This step is crucial.

Jot down a few notes for the Toastmaster to use in introducing you if they have not already contacted you. If you are unsure what is required, review the section in the Communication and Leadership Manual on introductions.

At the Meeting:

Ensure that the Toastmaster has your introduction information.

Ensure you give your evaluator your manual so that he/she can fill out the evaluation guide for your project.

Relax. You have a while to wait, so sit back and enjoy.

When introduced, proceed to the lectern, shake the toastmaster's hand and proceed once he/she is seated.

When you have completed your speech, indicate to the Toastmaster that you are done and wait at the lectern until they return to shake your hand.

Following the meeting, ensure that you have the Educational Vice-President initial in the back of your manual that you have completed the project.

Tips and Traps:

First tip, contact your mentor or any member of the club that you feel can assist you if you want someone to get ideas, to talk to about your presentation or to practice in front of. You can even contact someone on the Contact your Educational Vice-President and request that a mentor be assigned from the available volunteers, if you want.

Be sure you understand your manual project before you start to write your speech. If you are short on ideas for a topic, reading the project over several times may spark an idea for you.

Practice is important. Utilize the tools available to you to practice. If you have a video camera, great! If all you have is a tape recorder, it will help you as well. Try a mirror. Take advantage of any tools you can find to practice your speech until you feel ready to deliver it to your "live" audience.

Nervousness is one of the biggest problems faced by speakers. Be aware that "butterflies" exist and that for you to perform at your peak they are an advantage, not a disadvantage, especially if you learn to have your "butterflies fly in formation." A few deep breaths before you go up to speak can help to calm down the butterflies so that you can use that adrenalin surge to add energy and impact to your presentation. Remember, no one has yet to die from giving a speech.

If your mouth becomes dry while giving your presentation, try gently biting the sides of your tongue to generate moisture in your mouth. If you have the opposite problem and have excess moisture, breath in through your mouth to dry it out.