Talk to the Human™

Today, Toastmasters International held its Annual Speech Contest here at the convention (We also had a business meeting this morning, but an evil virus ate that post…sorry).

Crowned the 2010 World Champion of Public Speaking was David Henderson, with his speech titled The Aviators. Why did David win? I think that beyond the obvious speaking ability and outstanding delivery, he had one of the most touching stories and a powerful message.

David told of how he met and made friends with a girl when he was 7 years old. As friends they used to play aviator together (hence the title). But his freind was soon diagnosed with a potentially terminal illness. Without taking too much from his story, he found himself questioning why he should love someone that was just going to die, and that’s when he learned that losing people is part of loving people and the pain of regret would hurt more and longer than the pain of loss. The story of the next 7 years was so moving that there were actual sobs coming from throughout the audience. He was that good. 

Second place Robert Mackenzie also had an outstanding speech titled My Alter Ego. He told of his alter-ego, Bobby Backwards (Bob for short). He told of how big that alter ego was, because it was fuelled by all of the “no’s” in his life. His message was strong, about the need to say yes to life, rather than retreat into the protection of Bob. My favorite line was, “By 30 I had said ‘no’ more times that Toyota said ‘recall’.” Other top line, told after telling us about having a heart attack and how they say the fear of public speaking is greater than the fear of death: “Not. Even. Close.”

Third place went to Linus Chang and his speech, Being Jane. Rather humorously he told about his experience with the wonderful voice of his GPS, Jane. By pointing out haw Jane never gets angry or terse when you get lost, and is always flexible about your future plans, he drew a correlation to our lives and how we can have more freedom in our lives if we look at things like Jane does.

The remaining contestants were all wonderful too, so I’m glad I wasn’t judging this one. Here’s a bit on their speeches, given in their speaking order (only 1st – 3rd place are announced):

Lisa Panarello‘s speech Mission I’m Possible was the first in the contest. There are mixed reviews as to whether going first is good or bad, and after Lisa’s strong presentation I’d bet that debate will continue for at least one more year. My favorite line: “Break the rules – if the job posting says ‘Don’t Call’, then call. You’ll probably be the only one.” Her three points were:
Plan Ahead
Take Risks
Keep Moving

Kevin McCue – started his speech with remote control in hand. Whatcha Got? was a good reminder that we don’t all have to aspire to be Brad Pitt or whatever. Use the tallents you have and don’t worry about being like someone else. I loved the reference to Pepper Martin of the 1930′s St. Louis Cardinals. Anyone that genuinely loves the Cardinals should win. Just sayin’

Robin Grieve told us that Wings are for Flying. He compared his son’s departure from home at 18 to a baby eagle leaving the nest.  Very nice message that whenever we set something free, we set ourselves free.

Joseph Grondin told us that we should all be Merchants of Hope. Nice story about making the difference in a teen’s life.

Ian Humphrey – I saw Ian’s speech in Semi-Final contest #1 on Thursday, and I have to tell you that I was (a) pulling for him, and (b) a bit surprised he didn’t place. This is why I say the judging would be super difficult at that level. This speech, It’s Not About the Knockdown drew parellels to being knocked down in boxing and knocked down in life.

Jamie MacDonald – His speech Unchained Memory talked about his earliest memory and to be honest I’m not sure I understood his message, so I don’t want to post a poor guess here. He did tell a nice story.

Nothing beats watching the competition at this level. The preparation, the skill, and the execution give all of us something to aspire to. If you missed it, buy the video. If you saw it, buy the video.

TI’s announcement: http://www.toastmasters.org/Members/News/Announcements/2010-2011-World-Champ-Chosen.aspx

Next…on to the Region III reception and then the President’s Dinner Dance.

Are you a member who struggles to understand (or care about) the Distinguished Club Program?

Imagine yourself at a running track, and all of your Toastmasters club members are there too. You are there to improve your communication, leadership and running skills. You join at the starting line, and you receive your CC and CL manuals. Around the corner of the track is a finish line, with your Lt Gov Education & Training (me) holding the tape out for you. Off to the side, our District Governor stands holding a cartooninshly large megaphone and periodically yells “Keeping the Promise!”

A little confused? Think about running the track as completing your next CC, AC, CL, AL or DTM award. Think about your fellow members running at different paces, some looping back once in a while to encourage (mentor) newer members to move forward. Imagine Paul McDonald lapping us all every few minutes.

Now, let’s use that visual to imagine a couple of typical types of clubs:

First, the President’s Distinguished club – all of the members are making progress toward the finish line. Every now and then, someone crosses the line and you hear “Keeping the Promise” come from the megaphone. When a new runner steps up to the starting line, another member loops back to encourage and support them as the begin their run. There are signposts along the path – 3 speeches to go! - to let members know where they are in their progress. No two members are running at the same pace, but everyone is cheering each other on. From time-to-time, club leaders pull off to the side to stretch (officer meetings) and learn some new running techniques (TLI). Twice per year, a few members go back to the starting line and the club president holds up a flashy and colorful finish line for the fall or spring contests. Throughout the year, members work their away around the track and cross that finish line. Ding! The DCP status is updated.

What about the club that doesn’t believe in turning in awards? This club has a group of member all near the starting line. Some of them are jogging in place. Some of them are even sweating pretty hard under the workload. There is lots of talk, and they are having a good time (like the other club). But no one is moving toward the finish line. When a guest comes, they see nice people who seem to be doing good work, and they join. Then, as they finish a few speeches, they wonder why no one seems to be crossing the finish line. While some of the members seem to be in good shape, it’s confusing because they seem to be running in place.

Does running in place help you stay in shape, or get in better shape? Maybe. But running forward (toward your goal) does a better job. Translation: Just speaking in front of a group can help, but using manual objectives and practicing new skills really helps you to become a better speaker and leader.

Is your club running in place? Worst yet, are guests and new members seeing you running in place and getting confused by the message?

Here is the part people get wrong: The DCP isn’t a goal itself, it is a scorecard. There are two ways to improve your score:

1. Run up the score.  This works if getting a high score is your goal. But it doesn’t do much for the club (or members) overall.
2. Achieve your goals and support your fellow members in achieving theirs. Setting the right example personally and directly helping others will make you and your club successful. Plus, the score will take care of itself.

What is the downside of #2? You can’t wait to start that in March and make your goals in June. However, if you start now (in July) and work with all of your members  to find their goals (including the ones who need 12, 18 or 24 months for their next goal) then it will work for you and your club.

Toastmasters can be a fun place when you are running in place, but it can be more fun and beneficial to you when you lace up those shoes (open that manual) and start moving toward the goal. Be realistic, support your fellow members and see yourself improving. Remember, focus on your gaols and those numbers take care of themselves when you are Keeping the Promise!

Are you having trouble seeing a benefit to continued membership in Toastmasters after completing one of your educational goals, such as a Competent Communicator (CC) or Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM)? If you fall into one of those groups, then you are an advanced member. If you feel ready to take on some new challenges then read on!

Speaking about advanced Toastmasters, these suggestions all assume you have at least a CC or equivalent award:

Idea #1. You may not know this, but there is no Toastmasters International (TI) rule on content. That means you can take a speech you have given before, polish it up and give it again as another CC topic. Some members think (erroneously) that this is some sort of foul, but how can it be a foul to improve your speaking with a manual speech? I have yet to hear a really good answer to why you shouldn’t do this. Note: I’m not suggesting giving the same speech the same way 10 weeks straight and taking credit. I’m talking about earning credit by taking feedback and improving a presentation to make it better.

At a recent TM meeting where I spoke about this, there was some discussion during the Q & A about reusing speech titles and TI’s reaction to “giving the same speech twice” when the award is submitted. To that, I’d say if you use the feedback to change the speech, it is no longer the same speech, and just add “Rev A” to the title in the back of your manual (but not during the introduction).

I did receive a reply from TI on their opinion (emphasis is mine):

We highly suggest that a member do a new speech for each manual speech so that they can truly learn and grow as a public speaker. There isn’t any official rule against a member giving the same speech for each project in the CC manual while following and fulfilling the objectives for each project.

Every manual project teaches a new speaking skill, and each project in a manual builds upon the skills learned in previous projects. If a member truly wants to improve their speaking skills, every speech that member gives should be prepared according to a project’s instructions and objectives.   

I only disagree with the “truly learn and grow” implication. I think they are worried about a member simply reciting a speech over and over to claim credit. That is a valid concern. But, in my suggestion I believe that taking feedback from a speech and improving it for the next time is easily as valuable as creating one from scratch. Be your own judge.

Idea #2. Don’t try to work on the specific project objective in a CC speech. This one flies in the face of the TI HQ note above, but we’re talking about advanced techniques for advanced speakers. Since you’ve finished your CC already, you should be integrating all of those CC skills into every speech (within reason). Now, you can use projects 2-8 especially to get feedback on how well you do when you’re giving a presentation that isn’t “designed” for a specific project.

I tried this myself recently with a marketing report I gave to my District Executive Committee (DEC) by using Project 7 (research your topic). I received some very useful feedback that will make my next report much better. If I hadn’t, I’d probably repeat some of the mistakes I made the next time (ever seen that happen?)

You can also do that for contest speeches. Don’t try to do extra vocal variety (or whatever the project calls for) in a contest speech. Just give the speech as you would (you know…to win) and get the written feedback. You’ll get more useful (and focused) information than just asking an audience member “What did you think?” after the whole contest is over.

Idea #3. Conversely, do try to work on the objective. We could all be better at vocal variety or gestures. Give it a second (or fifth) go through the CC manual to stay sharp.

Idea #4. There is also no rule on preparation time. Use that next CC manual to practice impromptu speeches. Consider a question you could have to answer in real life and limit yourself to 5-7 minutes. Or, if you are in a district leadership position, practice those types of presentations you may need to give on a club visit. You are giving manual speeches (or modules) on your visits, right???

Competing an award in Toastmasters isn’t the end of a trip, it’s a milestone on your journey. Use some of these tips to keep your skills fresh, and keep setting a great example for your club. Post a comment to let me know how it works, or if you have some other ideas.

You may find yourself held back by these common myths. Each of these applies to any type of speaking, as well as speaking in Toastmasters. Read on, and learn how to identify and conquer these speaking flaws:

Error #1: Every speech has to be different.
- In professional or business settings, you wouldn’t want to give the same speech to the same audience over and over, but when the audience changes, you can use material that was developed for another audience. All you need to do is know your audience and make the small tweaks where you need to.
- In Toastmasters, this misconception comes from an erroneous assumption that you can’t take credit for the same speech more than once. Change that thinking! Don’t “take credit” for your speech…earn credit for it. Are you wondering what the difference is? Say you are wanting to practice a speech for a big presentation you have to do at work on the Johnson Account (or whatever). You can work on the Competent Communication (CC) manual speech project on Vocal Variety, give your speech and receive some useful tips to improve. Next, take those improvements and tighten it up. Go to the project on Using Visual Aides and practice it again. Now you are better prepared for that work assignment! Note: you don’t have to stop at two times, practice again if you need to.

Error #2: All of your material must be original.
- Clearly it’s a bad idea to plagiarize the work of others. However, if you credit them and include what you’ve learned from experts in your presentation you can add to your credibility and improve the audience’s condition at the same time. Telling the audience how using that other expert’s advice made a difference for you can help them follow a similar path to success.
- In Toastmasters, there are some scripted programs designed to help members succeed with common speaking and leadership topics such as Goal Setting and Planning, Evaluate to Motivate, and Creating an Opening. I once asked a fellow member about giving a speech on Goal Setting. His reply, “I don’t need to do one of those modules right now Rob, I need to give a speech.” I replied “Joe, just give a speech on Goal Setting, you can reference your own experience as well as the module and other sources in your own speech.” This took a bit of back and forth to get through, because of the misunderstanding that he though to talk about one of those topics, you had to use the module. It’s not true, and like any source you just need to cite what you use when you speak. If, however, you want to read the script as designed, then of course that is not a manual speech, but how you present it as a module.

Error #3: Saying you have a plan means you have a plan.
- In Seth Godin’s book Small is the New Big, he talks about working for an Internet company during a period when they were very successful marketing to advertisers. He looked forward to working there because he thought their techniques must be out of this world, with the obscene revenues they were pulling in. He then recounted the first sales call he went on with them. To paraphrase, the presentation was among the worst he’d ever encountered, yet the customer wrote a really big check. The point? You may have a product or idea that is so wonderful that your lack of preparation couldn’t possibly screw it up.  Guess what? Even if you’re right, you soon won’t be.
- In Toastmasters I see some individuals who give manual speeches, but never seem to have the manuals, or turn in the awards. I’ve heard a variety of “not chasing awards” excuses. I’ve also watched their slower growth as a result.

To be honest, I could probably write a “Top Ten” or “Top Twenty for 2010″ post on many other speaking myths out there. These are just three that I’ve seen and heard most recently. The short of it is, stop looking for ”no”. It’s easy to come up with excuses to stagnate and watch crap on teevee. 

If it’s in your head that you need to become a more accomplished communicator, leader, and networker (is that a word?) then move past the excuses and do what you need to do. If you are not in Toastmasters, obviously I’m going to suggest that you join. This is the place to practice and improve, and to move beyond all of the myths to become the best speaker you can be.

What happens when you make things too automatic for your customers, and an annoying error occurs? Answer: You could lose the sale.

In the last few months I’ve been reading some great blogs, and decided to try one of the products I saw. There was a product that was touted as something that would help me see success as a freelance writer. In what is an understandable sales technique, it was offered at a special rate until the end of 2009.

In mid-December, I decided to allocate the required investment (~$87) and clicked on the link to purchase.

The only option for purchasing this product was to use PayPal, a normally reliable service where I have had an active account for about eight years.

For some reason, PayPal decided to decline me this transaction. Per PayPal’s policy they “don’t care”. Actually, that’s a mis-quote. Their site says something to the effect that if they denied an individual transaction, it was in your best interest to insure people aren’t mis-using your account and they don’t have a method for overruling this on any specific transaction. It’s something they’re proud of. I sent a note anyway asking for assistance. No reply.

Okay. PayPal is PayPal. I’m stuck there, but I still wanted the product. I clicked on the “contact” button in the corner, and sent a note asking, essentially, “may I please buy your product?” I said something about requesting a different form of payment.

My logic was that PayPal might be willing to help eventually, but the seller would want to figure something out right now.

Of course, if that had happened, this would be a review of the product, not a review of not being able to buy the product, right?

I did receive a follow-up e-mail the next day, and was told “they would look into it”. That was, temporarily, comforting. However, the lack of follow through into mid-January is disheartening, to say the least. And of course, now a look on that site shows the product ”is temporarily off the market.” So if I wanted to go out of my way and create a new PayPal account with a different credit card, I’m still out of luck.

From the business point of view, what do you think goes through your customer’s mind when something like this happens? Here are some of the thoughts, temporary and permanent, that I have had in the last month:

Do I still want this product?(no one referred me, so in my mind I was taking a risk anyway)
Do they even care if I want this product?
Will they even miss the lost sale?
What if I had been successful and bought the product, would this be how they would support any future issues?
Are there comparable products out there? (and yes, I am now looking)
How do I handle my disappointment? (clearly I’m blogging it)
Is all of this even worth my time?(hmmm…only for the single blog value)

As I prepare to deploy my own products on-line, here are some lessons this experience has taught me (and yes, I’ve heard many of these before):

1. Decide on a response standard and stick with it. (i.e. one business day)
- No one wanting to send you money should be made to wait more than 72 hours to be allowed to do it.
- Same standard for any reasonable customer requests, even if it’s an “I’ll find out” answer to get time to research a better answer.
2. If you say “I’ll get back to you” to your customer, do it. Especially if you take time to post multiple blog entries in the same time period.
3. Plan for back-up payment options, in case your primary doesn’t work. If your audience is a blog/web audience, they’re probably used to on-line transactions. That doesn’t mean they should have accounts at every payment site out there. That said, PayPal is well known and (usually) reliable.
4. If you leave a product page up with a “temporarily off the market” note, maybe mention why or when it will be back.
5. If you decide to blow a customer off, you might want to make sure she/he doesn’t have a blog!!!

Final note:  This post is based on what is probably a blip in their process. With this site’s reputation, I doubt this happens to many people. My idea here was not to rip them, but to show what can happen when the blips go uncorrected. Maybe their $87 loss will be my gain down the road…

Every now and then I find someone else’s blog that flat out impresses me. Today, one of my friends at work told me about a blog that I will talk about shortly, but that one led me to others that I think are truly remarkable and dare I say it…awesome.

http://www.remarkable-communication.com, written by Sonia Simone isn’t simply remarkable in name. The content, frankly, knocked me out of my seat. Seriously. I read two of her posts, 7 Dumb Things Small Businesses Do and 7 Things Big Dumb Companies Do That You Can’t Afford (Especially Now) and I was thoroughly impressed. These blogs are aimed at small businesses, like my own consulting business. Oh yeah, The Complete Flake’s Guide to Getting Things Done might just be on my top 10 favorites of the year. Not Kidding. If you’re not a flake, you won’t understand.

www.ittybiz.com, written by Naomi Dunford is simply awesome. After reading a couple of posts, I listened to a 20-minute video lesson on how her site makes money. Very informative. Plus, it was very easy to listens to, entertaining, and…oh yes, awesome. The site started out based on her consulting business, helping really small businesses with their marketing. The tagline is Marketing for Businesses without Marketing Departments.

This led me to another blog that I found interesting, and where I found the picture at the top of this post. http://johnnybtruant.com is subtitled the Internet made awesome, which is a phrase that I am now totally jealous of. After reading a few of his posts, I found myself really enjoying his writing style, and laughing quite a bit. His area of expertise is web hosting, blogging and he’s a big proponent of WordPress. All hail WordPress.

Finally, the blog that started it all for me today: http://www.copyblogger.com. This site has a plethora of ideas and how-to’s on writing copy for your blog or business site. Tons of information on social media, writing so people will read your copy, and some solid humor spread throughout. What led me to other blogs was that this particular blog has multiple contributors.

So, the other shoe: be prepared for a bit of colorful language. There’s nothing my 7th grade son hasn’t heard at school (unfortunately), but it’s there none-the-less. It doesn’t detract, but I just wanted to warn you since I’ve written topics about that sort of thing before.

So what common threads do I like about all of these? I’m glad you asked! First, they totally strike me as real. That may come off as understated, but if (like me) you have read some of the crap out there in blog-land, you will know what I mean by real.

Second, they all provide plenty of free content to try for yourself (and it’s really good). I signed up for a couple of their e-mails, and they are not “sell you crap” marketing zombie-ware.  

Third, they all have a genuine “get off of your a..” style that makes America great, and lets you know you are in for some work if you want to be successful. Not a “click here to get rich” concept like you have no doubt seen on other sites. It was an odd coincidence to me because I saw (and responded) to a LinkedIn post today asking, “how can I make money with a blog?” I had a lot in my brain when I read that, and I responded to tell him to have some worthwhile content, do his homework, and expect to do more work than just wait to get rich. Later, when I was reading these blogs, I felt the same sense of “it’s not easy, but it’s worth it” from all of them. Gotta respect that.

A couple of quick disclaimers: all of the links above are direct links. No affiliate links to make me money or anything. I’m telling you I like it because I like it, straight up. It’s not that I’m opposed to affiliate links. In fact, I expect to have some up on my site next month, and that will include one for Johnny Truant’s site (the human that makes the Internet awesome). But those will be on a separate page, and not hidden scammily into my daily posts. 

If you know me at all, you know I enjoy writing my own blog, and I enjoy knowing people read my work. Also, you know I enjoy reading too, and that’s what led me to those blogs. If writing or blogging is your thing too, start with the copyblogger site, and make sure to check the rest out as you have time. Of course, my blog still belongs in your “must visit” list, but what kind of a human would I be if I kept all the awesome stuff on the Internet to myself?

“How can you tell the difference between being confident as a speaker and when your just comfortable?” 

One of my Facebook Fans recently asked me this question, and I realized it was a bit more common of a concern for new speakers than you might think. Or, you have been sitting there wondering “When is Rob going to post on this obvious topic?” Either way, by the end of this post you will understand the importance of the difference, and you will have a few tips on how to be better prepared and confident for your next presentation.

Simply put, comfort and confidence relate in a very specific way. Think about this question: What do you need to have to be confident in yourself as a speaker?i’ll paraphrase, but I first heard this answer as these three stages from the 1990 World Champion of Public Speaking, David Brooks: 1. Be comfortable with yourself; 2.  Be comfortable with your message; 3. Be comfortable with your audience.

Be comfortable with yourself. This one is tougher than is sounds. Luckily, this is what the Competent Communicator (CC) manual was designed to help you with. If your not a Toastmaster, go join now (but keep reading). As a Toastmaster, the ten projects in that CC manual are your key to overcoming the first hurdle in being a more confident speaker. Becoming more comfortable with your speech organization, gestures, voice, visual aides, and other basic skills can really build a solid foundation toward your future speaking skills.

While working on those skills, you can also learn to become more comfortable with your message. As you progress and work on some of the Advanced Communications manuals, you can refine that message and really strengthen your abilities. Working on these first two stages is where the stage time opportunities in Toastmasters can really pay off.

However, moving to that third phase is where so many speakers find themselves stuck. In fact, it’s been said that the majority of speakers out there never really move past stage two, and that’s where you can really gain the most advantage from your practice and improvement efforts.

To use this to increase your comfort and to bolster your confidence, let’s say you are going to speak in front of a totally new audience. How to you find any comfort level to help with your confidence? Two stories come to mind.

In late January 2009, I had the good fortune to hear a local speaker, John Madden (no relation to the coach) speak a couple of times here in Wichita. What I saw him do at one of those presentations really stuck with me. If you would have been with me, arriving at the session about 15 minuts early,  you would have seen John meeting and greeting the attendees prior to the start.

In fact, you would have seen him have a number of conversations, finding out where people worked in our company, and asking about how things were going. You would have also heard him ask if there were any paticular concerns for us right now. As it was, this was right after the first layoff in our company (at the end of 2008) and many of us were concerned about the pending layoffs expected in February 2009.

John was able to take some of that information and incorporate it into his presentation, but my point here is that meeting and greeting the guests gave him a far better comfort level than had he simply met and talked to the meeting coordinator. Further, he was able to connect with us all by mentioning some by name during his presentation. That connection served to increase his comfort level more, and show him as a confident speaker to all of us.

The second instance is from my year as an Area Governor in Toastmasters. If you are not familiar, an Area Governor (or AG) is in a support leadership position, usually serving 4 or 5 clubs in their geographic area (5 clubs in Downtown Wichita, for me). One of the expectations for an Area Governor is to provide either a training or inspirational type of presentation during their minimum two visits to each club during the year.

Since I felt it would be at least a little strange to call a club president and offer up a couple of speech options without ever having met them or their club, I followed some expert advice to visit each of my clubs unofficially in June, the month before I began my role as AG.

By making the early visit, I was able to accomplish 3 specific things to help with my comfort level, and subsequently my confidence:

1. I knew the location of the club’s meeting place (and parking, traffic, etc.)
2. I knew the room, it’s layout, and capabilities (powerpoint, lecturn, etc.)
3. I met the members and officers, and they could put my face with the name when I scheduled my next visit.
Bonus. If I was able to do a table topic, then they had at least heard me speak a little…every little bit helps.

Both of these examples share something in common: get to know your audience as best you can before speaking to them as a group. Having the comfort of knowing some audience members, and even a few of their stories will make a noticeable difference in your own confidence, and in the quality of your presentation(which can get you asked back again).

Is there a difference? It doesn’t matter, as long as you understand how comfort and confidence can relate, and how you can use the right techniques to increase them both. Then, you’ll have the comfort and confidence you need to be successful.

Have you ever heard someone tell you that you shouldn’t use notes in a speech? It almost sounds impossible, doesn’t it? Imagine having to give a lengthy presentation, and you suddenly draw a blank. How do you handle it without a reference to where you should be? Here’s the secret: Go ahead and use notes. But wait, that’s just the tip of the iceberg!

Let me guess, right now you’re thinking that Toastmasters tells you not to use notes, right?

Wrong.

Again, I know what you’re thinking. Yup. You’re thinking that the last objective in Project 3 of the Competent Communicator manual says “Strive not to use notes”, right? You’re right, it does say that! You might also be thinking that CC Speech #9 says “Avoid using notes…” on page 46 and again in Speech #10′s description on page 50. Right again. Sounds like you really know your stuff.

So, was I wrong when I said Wrong? No.

FAQ: Toastmasters helps people to be confident and competent speakers by (among other things) helping eliminate the reading of their speeches and the unnecessary use of notes. Some people translate that to mean “Toastmasters says don’t use notes.” 

I disagree. I believe the concept is to instill good habits in the CC process, such as organizing your speeches, improving yor delivery (voice, gestures, etc.) and reducing your dependency on notes. After all, after just a little experience you should be able to practice and deliver a 5-7 minute speech without needing notes.  Editors note: One important time to avoid notes is in Toastmasters contests. There is no rule about it, but in my experience judges tend to be less impressed by a contest speaker using notes.

Now for the real-world application:

Let’s say you need to present a 30-minute talk to a group of college students on preparing for their first interview. Let’s use a simple breakdown:

3-5 minutes – opening: Connect, deliver your promise, cover the roadmap (tell your 3-main points)
5-7 minutes – first main point: Research the company
5-7 minutes – second main point: Prepare your message
5-7 minutes – third main point: Dress the part
2-3 minutes – closing: wrap up

How would your notes look? This is a partial example that should serve to make the point work for you.

Opening:
Story of my first interview
Promise: “in just 20-minutes you’ll have the foundation you need to prepare for that first interview”
Roadmap: Research, Preparation, Presence
Transition: “in order to be present, you must do your homework”

First point:
Question: “Have you picked a place to work yet?”
Discussion: You need to know them as bad as they need to know you
Transition: Now that you know your audience, let’s prepare your message  

Second point:
Story about the interviewee that couldn’t answer the question”Why do you want to work here?”
Question: “Would you hire someone who said they were just in it for the money?”
Topic points: 3-keys to your personal brand
Transition: Your brand won’t impress if your clothes are unpressed

Third point:
Demonstration of two well dressed candidates and two less dressed candidates (PowerPoint)
Topic points: The right colors, the “half step up” rule, local resources
Transition to close: how the 3 points fit together

Conclusion:
Finish first interview story – I received an offer
Recap the Roadmap: Research, Preparation, Presence
Final thought: Know your audience, know yourself, and know your shoes and you will be the one that gets that offer everyone is hoping for. 

You may be able to get by without even glancing at these notes at all. However, if something distracts you and throws you off course, all you have to do is glance at the notes and see what is next. For instance, if you look at the beginning of the second point, you know to launch into that story of the kid that said “I wanna get paid”. Also, if you notice you’re running behind in point two, you can glance down and mentally line out “The right colors” in point three to help you recover some of that time.

Remember, notes shouldn’t be a crutch or something you read. Notes are a tool to help you stay on track and provide the best content possible. After all, you goal isn’t to win “memorizer of the year”. Your goal is likely to be to help the audience with the topic you’re speaking on. If it means you glance down once in a while…so be it. Better to glance down occasionally and get it right, instead of missing a main point you were expected to cover, and then never being asked back.

Notes aren’t the enemy. Practice those 5-7 minute Toastmasters speeches without them, but then when your rep is on the line at work or on the stage, use the tools you need to be successful. Trust me, all the best speakers have used them at one time or another.

Bonus tip: If your speaking in an environment where others will speak before you, have a couple of spare note cards to jot down things you may be able to call back to in your speech.

What is the point of a blog? I’ve heard, read, and even asked this question myself in the past. In an early assessment, I thought that a blogger fell into one of these categories:

1. Someone who wanted to be discovered as a writer or reporter.
2. Someone with way too much free time on their hands.
3. Someone with a bone to pick with a segment of society (i.e. politicians, other bloggers or the local electric company).
4. Someone just slightly insane.
5. All of the above.

Upon further review, I’ve discovered an interesting mix of the above, as well as some completely normal people out there using blogs to get their message out. And, believe it or not, there are some pretty good messages working their way out into the world. This brings me to the point of this post: How blogging can help your writing and speaking skills. 

A few months back, I read a book called World Class Speaking, and in that book one of the authors, Craig Valentine, talks about the power of writing every day and how it was integral to his success. He issues the challenge to the reader to make a personal pledge to write a set number of words each and each day. His number was 747, which has an obvious connotation for most people. When I first read this, I thought, “Gee, that sounds like a good idea…”. Then I went on with my life.

After a bit of time, and an opportunity to meet Craig in person, I realized that this goal wasn’t just integral to my future success, it was critical! As a person who wants to see success as a speaker, writing is – frankly – the only way to get there from here. If I ever want to create anything in life, I need to be a better writer. Some examples include:

1. Any type of speeches
2. Books
3. Checklists (like I have on my website)
4. Training Sesions
5. Newsletters
…you get the idea

Some of you might be thinking “I can give speeches without writing…”. Here’s the truth: Not if you want to be successful doing it.

As for the rest, it’s the same answer, but you may question the need to write every day, or post to a blog every day like I do. My answer? You don’t need to blog every day,or post your work to be seen by others. It’s a pretty big leap of faith to feel comfortable putting your words on display at all, much less every day. Should you write every day? Yes. 747 words? hmmm…that’s your call. I personally shoot for 300, but I do make a note when I have more than 747, just because I find it interesting to meet that challenge from time-to-time.

For my goal, the idea was to write a topic about speaking, leadership or project management every day. The reasons I chose the blog (and WordPress) format are:

1. It allows me to see how my work looks “in public”
2. It allows me to collect comments and feedback
3. It keeps me honest (I’ve been asked, “What are you going to write about today?”)
4. I thought it might be fun (!)
5. I wanted to protect my “Talk to the Human™” idea, so this made it publically mine.

This doesn’t mean every post has to be my best work. Heck, did you see the post from 23 September? Ack. Not my best work. However, for every one of those “ack” posts, there is at least one I think would make a good article, of feed into a chapter in a book. Just the day before, my post on reading was pretty well received.

In the end, only you can decide if blogging is the way you want to put your thoughts on paper, or if actual paper might be the better choice. If you do decide to blog, I recommend you follow these few tips:

1. Don’t commit to posting every day. Try every week, then add “bonus content” if you want to post more.
2. Don’t worry about the theme at first. Find your voice and the theme will present itself.
3. Don’t worry about background colors at first either. You can (and should) make changes over time.
4. Don’t type anything in a blog you wouldn’t be willing to say in a meeting with your boss and their boss.
5. Don’t do this all by yourself. Encourage “guest columnists” and Talk to some Humans™ about your posts.
6. Be explicit about your goals, and don’t post material unless it helps you reach those goals. Unless it’s funny.
7. Sharpen the Saw…oops, that’s Covey’s seventh thing. Well, do that too. Take a college class to brush up on your skills. It will show!

Whether you blog, write to a file, or handwrite your thoughts, taking the time to write everyday can make a powerful difference in who you are, who you become, and what you’ll accomplish. Not only will your writing improve over time, but you’ll find stories about yourself that you had forgotten, as well as some great ideas for new ones. If you’re a speaker, you’ll be amazed at all of the “new” content that was already available in your very own head. Getting it out on paper will make it forever accessible, and set you up with topics to inspire audiences far and wide (disclaimer: your audiences may vary). Give it a 30-day trial run. Do 300 words a day for 30 days, and send me a note when you get there. I’d like to hear the results, and I’ll be glad to post your thoughts on my blog (it will save me some work).

Start with this line: I _________________ will write no less than _______ words per day for the next 30 days.

You can do it, human.

The Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM) designation can sometimes cause some lively debate, especially among DTMs who earned their designation meeting different requirements (i.e. before 2001) and those looking for fresh excuses not to meet the current ones. If you’re not a Toastmaster, don’t take this to mean there are issues with the program.

The fact is Toastmasters is a fantastic organization with members far and wide ready to support you and help you be more successful, whether you just want to overcome your fear of speaking in front of an audience, or you want to become a DTM and beyond. But because less than 1% of all Toastmasters ever finish their DTM requirements, there are a lot of misunderstood facts about the program.

For those of you that aren’t aware of the specifics, the DTM designation is the highest award an active Toastmaster can earn under the organization’s educational program.  Here’s how the award breaks down:

Communication Track
Competent Communicator award (10 Speeches)
Advanced Communicator Bronze (10 Speeches)
Advanced Communicator Silver (10 speeches and 2 modules)
Advanced Communicator Gold (10 speeches, 1 advanced program and mentor a new member)

Leadership Track
Competent Leader (10 Leadership projects completing about 20 individual tasks)
Advanced Leader Bronze (6 months-1 year as a club officer and 2 modules)
Advanced Leader Silver (1 year as a district officer, leadership project w/2 speeches and providing specific support to another club)

Some of the specifics take a bit of explanation, but you can tell from this is that it is a very real effort to complete this award, and anyone who takes the time and effort to get there has earned the respect of their peers. Period.

As for timing, this is an individually paced program, but here are some specifics:
All told, there are 40 speeches that will mostly fall into the 5-7 minute variety, but can include some 8-10 or even optionally 20-40 minute ones as well. Very few people speak at a “speech-a-month” pace or better (especially in their first few years), so this normally takes four or more years to complete (on average).
The four modules are basically prepared speeches of about 12-15 minutes each on specific educational topics.
The one advanced program is a seminar-style presentation that can range from 60 minutes to 4 hours. This takes extra preparation and special scheduling considerations.
The High Performance Leadership Program (HPL – I refered to it as a leadership project above) can take any amount of time, but expect 4-9 months, on average.
The 6-month to 1-year as a club officer should be done before being a district officer, and usually folks will serve in (at least) one position before being a club president. Then they’ll look toward district leadership.

So what does that mean in terms of a timeline? I’m glad you asked. I know a person who was able to go from joining to DTM in under 3 years, a member of one of my clubs did it in ~3.5 years, and I was able to do it in under 4 years. I also know folks who finished in 10 or more years, but those weren’t concentrated efforts. I don’t have a good number for an average, but it seems that there is such a broad range of answers that saying “8 years” or something would be misleading.

Speaking of misleading, there are a few misconceptions I’ve come across in my experience attaining my DTM. Disclaimer: These are my opinions, not anyone elses. I do not represent the Toastmasters organization with these comments, just my own opinions.

Misconceptions

1. The process for attaining a DTM has become too easy.
- MythBuster: The process actually became a bit more difficult in 2006 with the addition of the Competent Leadership (CL) Manual. Plus you’ll notice from the other requirements that this isn’t going to be replaced by a three-week bootcamp anytime soon.
- Fact: the entire process is self-paced and integrity-based. There are standards to be met (as shown above), but you don’t have to earn “straight As” to finish. In fact, the whole process is about gaining experience and increasing your confidence. If that is easy to you, then you’re probably not actually doing it.

2. A DTM should be able to speak like a professional speaker.
- MythBuster:  The accredited speaker program is for those wanting to validate their professional abilities.
- Fact:  Many DTMs start out having never spoke in front of an audience. It’s tough to be a pro after 400 speeches, much less 40.

3. A DTM should know everything there is to know about Toastmasters
- MythBuster:  Any DTM you meet will know more than many non-DTM Toastmasters, but it’s not a PhD in Toastology.
- Fact:  DTMs are encouraged to continue learning and serving, but it’s not a requirement: http://www.toastmasters.org/ToastmastersMagazine/ToastmasterArchive/2007/February/Departments/IdeaCorner.aspx

 4. Some DTMs took a “shortcut” to completing their requirements
- MythBuster: There are no shortcuts. Some Toastmasters do accomplish more than others, but I’ve personally never met a DTM who didn’t meet the requirements.
- Fact: This is just mean. If you think someone isn’t measuring up to the standards, man-up and talk to them, not about them.

5. All DTMS are perfect, or are supposed to be.
- Mythbuster:  You may think that’s what I’m trying to say, but it’s not.
- Fact:  If you expect perfection in anything human, you’re going to be disappointed.

The Distinguished Toastmaster award is a difficult to attain and meaningful program for any Toastmaster to complete. It’s challenging, but if you have the time and the desire to serve and improve, you can reach the level of DTM and see the increased confidence, experience and skill that the journey will bring you.