Recap of our January 15 meeting

This weeks' theme was Promises. What do you think a promise means to you? Do you loosely promise things or do you make sure you keep your promises? Lots of great answers this week. The Word of the week was Insipid which meant uninteresting. The meeting on Jan. 15 was far from insipid. There were two great speeches. Both from two new members Vijaya and Cheryl. Vijaya's speech was on how to make a successful speech opening. Did you know that ideally the opening of the speech is about 5-10% of the speech time? The first steps he taught were key: Get Attention, Introduce the topic, Establish rapport. Cheryl's speech was one she is practicing to give professionally on Medical Identity Theft. Interesting on how people can take your identity. You always learn something new at Toastmasters. The Table Topics was conducted by Rodger in which he gave a word to the participant and had the participants guess what the word meant before Rodger giving the group the real definition. Quite the responses for that question. Great energy and people as always. Till next week.

Ignite San Diego- A new way to give a speech

By: Jennifer Boyd, Saturday Savants, VP of PR

What is Ignite? Ignite is an event held in various cities that encourages thinking and speaking on your feet. Imagine if you had five minutes on stage, what would you say? What if you only got 20 slides and they rotated automatically every 15 seconds? This is Ignite. This happened last night and I look forward to the next event.

My thoughts from this event were inspiring. I learned that practice and knowledge were big keys in giving presentations. But also having lots of fun and being relaxed made the audience at ease. The topics ranged from Waffles to the End of the World. One person even talked about how sitting wasn't healthy for you. This is a different way to give a speech but it is worth a try. If you want to slow it down you can try Pecha Kucha (20 slides, 20 seconds).

That’s what happens at Ignite San Diego. Giving a speech like this is a challenge. Challenge a fellow toastmaster today.

Here are slides from past Ignites.

May 22 Recap of Saturday Savants Toastmasters Meeting

By: Ernie Pallares, Saturday Savants President

The Prelude

Could it be that I do more before 9:00 a.m. than a U.S. Marine recruit?

Probably. Though I think most of what I do might be interpreted as counterproductive a’la Dennis the Menace.

Why you ask?

Let’s see, I successfully set off the church alarm and spilled coffee on my dress shirt -all before our 8:30 a.m. meeting last Saturday. That beats my prior week record! Top that Captain Paco. I dare you.

As I walk outside to grab my sports coat, I run into Judy - the visible accident on my shirt blatantly announcing to the world that “I” have everything under control.

Smooth. Very smooth.

But hey! I drew from my table topics experience and opted for a preemptive evasive maneuver. “Hi Judy. I’ll be right back, I have to grab my coat…”

Yes! That was easy.

On cue, she responds: “You know, when you get older, it’s very common to always be spilling something on yourself.”

Foiled again!


The Meeting

This past Saturday Savants meeting began with an exercise. We began by congratulating each other. For what you ask? For showing up. Showing up in life isn’t always easy. And I couldn’t be more proud of our members and guests.

Besides, the exercise got the juices flowing for the induction of our newest member of the Savants family - Rafiaa Balkir. Welcome aboard Rafiaa. We are very excited to have you be a part of the Savants team.

The Theme

Self introductions began with the theme: Taking a Stand! Let’s just say this was a great grounding experience. It really “primed the pump” so to speak on what transpired next.

The Speeches



1. “Lessons Learned” by Jennifer Boyd–What do you do when you’re caught between making a living (and getting by) vs. doing something you really Love? You get a sincere and authentic speech such as this. “Love your work. Work your Love.” – Indeed. This is by far, Jennifer’s most personal speech to date. Thank you Jennifer for delivering this message to us last week.


2. “My Fathers Love” by Jill Eastman –Leaving home at 17. A fast and early departure for college. because she couldn’t see that her father cared. Years later, she learns to look at “the little things that let us know that people care.” Her father’s love was always there all the time but she couldn’t see it.” Life IS our greatest teacher. With this, Jill attains her Competent Communicator Designation! 10 speeches.

Table Topics.


Now, you might be thinking, “Are the table topics that good? Isn’t this all just a bunch a hoopla?”

NO!

A good barometer to use is the timer. I know our speeches and table topics are on fire when the timer is so engrossed with what’s in front of him/her that they forget to take time! It happened. This means good material. Don’t believe me? Read on…and show up! The following are some of the more memorable high impact quotes that delivered a punch.


Brand Identity.

“What’s your brand? What do you aspire it to be?”



Jubilee Judy: “Freedom. The Spirit of Grace.”



Aaron Friedman: “Honest. Hard working but easy going is the way to go…”



Rafiaa: “Honesty, Integrity, and Freedom. I am my own decision maker”



Peter: “I want to be a man that is known for deep understanding of people - especially the mentally ill.”



Dora: “Taking a stand is the only way to move forward.”



Jennifer: Love your work. Work your love.

Ernie: Leaders learn to manage disappointment.

Word of the day

Feral (adj.) of or characteristic of wild animals; ferocious; brutal.

We try to keep things civilized, but every once in a while there’s a feral “Aahh…” that slips into our meetings.

That's the honest truth.

This Saturday, we have a 3fer !

Cesar Rendon will be taking center stage. Followed by Author and Speaker Dora Klinova, and our very own District 5, Eastern Division Governor Bryan Lubic will be visiting our club for the very 1st time. Oh boy. It’s going to be wild!

Until Saturday...