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| Clare Lu (左一)、Rojer Chen (左二)、 Angel Li (左三) 、Kevin Lin (左四)、Caroline Kiang (左五) |
在Toastmasters 2nd Officer Training 裡，Div. E 請來了Div. A Director, Angel Li, 來為大家做了一場演講。站在台上的是一位年約二十多歲、戴著亮晶晶髮箍如公主般的漂亮寶貝，很難想像她年紀輕輕已是獲得DTM 的Toastmasters最高頭銜。從半個小時的英語演說中，她把參加Toastmasters八年的親身經驗， 與大家分享。
Angel說在大學時期，她觀察Toastmasters 的活動長達一年，完全不敢參加，因為她極為內向害羞，終於有一天，她開始到Toastmasters 的例會活動中坐著當guest，又整整坐了一年，仍是不敢正式加入，也不敢開口講話，到了第三年，她才真正加入。然而她的Toastmasters Journey 並非一路順遂，她曾一度因講評演講受挫，幾乎要放棄，後來受到其他分會的鼓勵，她努力苦練一整年，結果進步顯著，得到許多肯定；唸研究所時期，她用演講舒解實驗室裡寫論文的壓力；研究所畢業後開始上班，在偶然的一次機會中，她毛遂自薦，臨時上台主持一場百人大會，她把平時在Toastmasters訓練有素的演說與主持技巧拿出來用，領導能力也展現無遺，結果順利為公司解決了問題，第二天得到了晉升。
Angel Li 從一個內向害羞的女學生，經過八年的Toastmasters 社團的磨練中，蛻變成有自信上台的講者，並可用生動活潑的方式進行英語演說，Angel 鼓勵大家 Never Give up in Your Toastmasters Journey，她做得到，你一樣可以做得到！！
This is an inspiring workshop in the 2nd Officer Training of Division E, District 67. The workshop trainer was Angel Li, Div. A Director. She shared her 8-year Toastmasters journey with us. Please watch the video to see how Toastmasters turned a shy, introvert student into a confident speaker and how Toastmasters benefited her on her professional career.
Bernie Hsieh （照片右）在我們8/22 的meeting中，榮獲Best Speaker 的獎項。Bernie擔任過Toastmasters Div. E 的總監，長期熱心投入Toastmasters 活動。他的這篇A2 演講 "Bend down together"，是近日對那兩個被蘇迪勒颱風吹彎腰的郵筒有感而發，他看到那兩個郵筒成了特殊觀光景點，從中領悟到要使Toastmasters 吸引更多人的加入，就要能promote, be unique 以及鼓勵會員來bend down together （隱喻會員共同參與活動，例如相邀跑Toastmasters 趴，或是合辦meetings 啦...等等）。Bernie，你把彎腰郵筒事件分析得十分有趣，我們也知道你時時刻刻為了Toastmasters，真是用心良苦呀！
擔任Bernie 演講的講評員(Individual Evaluator) 是他的大學同窗好友Rojer Chen，Rojer 的講評也獲得Best Evaluator的獎項，他上台領獎時，與主持人Kevin Chen做了一個 bend down together 的姿勢，呼應Bernie 演講的主題。
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| （左：Kevin Chen，右：Rojer Chen） |
以下是Bernie 講稿的全文與影片，給大家觀摩，也希望Bernie 的呼籲，能喚起更多人一起來把Toastmasters 活動辦得更好。
Speech Title: Bend down together, (A2 Resource for Entertainment)
Speaker: Bernie Hsieh
There were lots of typhoons in August. Most of them wanted to join YZU Toastmasters Club
meetings. Do you remember Typhoon 蘇迪勒 came to
Taiwan two weeks ago (on our meeting day)? It brought lots of disasters like no water, no
electricity, and there were a lot of fallen trees in the wake of the storm.
In spite of those disasters, it created a new attraction. We call it “Bend down Mailbox”.
If you don’t know what it is, let me tell you. In the evening when the typhoon
came, the strong storm blew off the signboard which hit two mailboxes. The damaged
mailboxes look like humans bending down. They’re very cute. They’ve attracted
lots of people to go there and take photos with the mailboxes. Not only
Taiwanese but also the foreigners went to see these mailboxes, so the
government keeps this attraction to commemorate
this typhoon and doesn’t want to fix the mailboxes.
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| Bend down Mailboxes |
When I
saw this news, I was interested in this phenomenon. I also wanted to let our
YZU Toastmasters Club become popular, so I analyzed how it worked.
I found
three points. First, (to) promote. The mailboxes locate in a crowded city, Taipei.
Lots of people pass by them every day. They would tell their friends they saw cute
mailboxes. And most people will know the mailboxes very soon. Second, be unique.
Mailboxes are seen everywhere. Why these two mailboxes become popular? Because
they bend down. They are different from other mailboxes; they are unique, so
people can remember them. Third, the most important thing: bend down together.
If only one mailbox bend down, people will think it is just
damaged. If there are more mailboxes bending down together, I think the site will become more popular.
Let me show you another one: this is a bus stop bending down. See? It doesn’t locate in a crowded city although it is unique but it is alone. So it doesn’t become popular.
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| A bend-down Bus Stop |
So if you
do these three things: to promote, be unique, and bend down together, you
will become popular. Back to my subject, how can we make our YZU Toastmasters Club become popular? First, to promote. We have already promoted our club on
Facebook and website. Sometimes we promote our club in YZU. We’ve already done a
good job. And second, be unique. We have Song Session that is different from
other clubs. We've also done it. And finally, bend down together. Find another
club to promote meetings together and we will become strong and popular
together. Now our Division E members go to other clubs’ meetings less and less than
before. We are not close. We fight alone, so some clubs become very weak. Let’s
bend down together. And we will become better and better.
C2 Speech Title: My Cruel Indifference
Speaker: Mandy Chen
Have you read this novel “The Stolen Child”? It’s about fairies living in a black forest. Some people said they are evils; others said they are legends. They look like children and they never get old. Because they desire to be human, they monitor the human village, waiting for the right time to obtain children's identities. Once the identity of a child had been taken, the fairy becomes the child and lives with the family. And the parent will be cheated throughout their lives, unaware that their children had disappeared.
Ooh ooh!! A boy walked toward the forest to take adventure. Like a catchfly, the fairies caught the boy, fast and silently. Luckily, one fairy was seen by a human who stopped his car. The fairy was frozen. “Where is the strange kid from?” the man wondered. “Who cares! Just a kid.” He drove away and let the criminal go.
Today, I do not talk about the plot. My point is how it (the fairy) occurs without our noticing it. Actually, it can be quite difficult for us to notice it. These fairies are always waiting for the moment when the children leave the vicinity of their parents or guardians. They kidnap the child by putting their hands on the child's mouth, taking him or her away as quickly as possible. The kidnapped child has no ability to resist. Do you think this is a story merely?
It could happen anytime anywhere!!
In April of this year, during my travel to France, I was walking with my sister on the beautiful ancient streets. The sky was colorful and the music from street artists was romantic. As we walked along, we passed by a woman pushing a baby stroller. There was an Oriental faced little boy about one year old sitting in the stroller. His shrilling sounds attracted our attention. Mama, mama, he cried. It looked as if he wanted to escape from the stroller. The woman was young and European looking. No matter how hard the boy cried and screamed, the woman never looked at him and continued to walk.
“Shall we go to talk to the lady to see what’s going on?” My sister asked me. “Don’t poke our noses into other's business. She's probably a baby sitter.” I speeded up and replied.
My indifference blocked out my rational
thinking, so did the pedestrians and the whole street. The news of missing
children was played on TV several times a day. For their parents, definitely, it
is a life sentence. Some bring their children’s photos back to the scene
to search the last hope. In the following days, my sister asked me the same
question, “Did we lose the only chance to save a child? He looked so helpless.”
I had not realized my ugly indifference until then.
In many
disappearance cases, those key witnesses choose to be indifferent to the
crucial moment. Most of them expressed after the incident, “I saw a strange
person took the kid away, but I decided not to poke my nose into other’s
business.” So, what happened? In Malaysia, 13 kids are stolen a day on average.
In China, 54 children are stolen daily. In Taiwan, over 10 children are missing
a day. An international organization called 'KIDPROOF' did an experiment at a
public park. Within 14 seconds, a child was taken away by a stranger who took a
lollipop. If we saw it, would we take any action?
What kind of
future those stolen children have? If fortunate, some could be sold to good
families. But most of them were injured, forced into slavery or child
prostitution. As for the little boy we saw, I hope our suspicion was wrong.
No more
indifference now.
To protect
children, to stop more sad stories, we can report to the police immediately as soon
as we know that a child or children is gone missing. Or make an emergency phone
to call Missing Children Data Resource Center 0800-049880. Wish children around
the world a safe and healthy growth.
7/25的YZU Toastmasters Meeting中，我們來了一位Longtan Club 的嘉賓Eva Yang，她的Vocal Variety與Body Language 生動有趣，並且也把握C4 演講的目標：How to Say it。她分享的如何增進social skills 十分實用，使大家獲益良多。讓我們一起來回顧她的演講影片，也歡迎Eva 與她的男友Li-Wei 以後常來YZU Toastmasters Club 參加我們的meetings！
by Eva Yang
[Opening]-drama first
“Good evening, Dr. Lee. I’m Eva, Yang. I am
from Longtan Toastmasters… Nice to meet you. ” --shy--
“Hi~ Eva, well… Nice to meet you. ”
The biggest problem for Taiwanese to learn
social skills is that we are lack of self-confidence. Mostly, we find ourselves
not so charming, not so intelligent, and even not so professional on the specific
issue. Thus, Silence is gold. We choose to close our mouths all the time. But,
that’s not the way how you improve yourself to a well-connected expert.
[Body]
1.
First of all, shake off your face! Not to
be afraid of being refused since nobody is perfect. I would like to offer my
personal remedy for self-confidence. Give yourself some remarkable titles such
as “the best-looking girl in the office” (Actually I am the only female). Face
the mirror and give compliments to yourself. When building up enough courage
and confidence, you’ll be brave in a social situation.
2.
Successful social skills require smiles.
People tend to adore cheerful guys, rather than blue ones. Laughter is the
shortest distance between two people. During the conversation, body languages
also reveal a person’s thinking. For example, crossed arms could build up a
defensive wall and block out any new friends. Next time, try to expand your
body like doing catwalk. These movements can signify confidence and make companions
at ease. In addition to proper gestures, a sincere heart can warm up the
conversation as well. Always be honest to your partners; otherwise, they will
escape. The most important thing of all, try to avoid being "the King of Period", which means a person who often puts an end to a conversation
unintentionally.
--an ideal conversation--
A: Hey, haven’t seen you for a long time.
How’s everything going?
B: Pretty good! I went to Kenting and
enjoyed surfing last week. Do you want to see the photos?
A: Wow, and you buy a new phone! ...(go on
with the conversation)
--King of Period--
A: Hey, haven’t seen you for a long time.
How’s everything going?
B: Good! (and awkward silence…)
A: Uh! How’s your vacation? Did you take a
trip to somewhere?
B: None, can’t afford/no money! (and
awkward silence again…)
Unless you meet with a talkative person or
you want to ruin the conversation, it is better for you to answer the question
in detail.
3.
Once you grasp the essence of social
skills, you can step further to broaden your horizons. If you are lack of
opportunities to communicate, why not just join some [Toastmasters] clubs that
you are interested in? In a regular meeting, you can implement all the social
skills and earn the precious experiences.
[Conclusion]
All in all, social skills training can be
divided into 3 parts. Brave yourself first. During the conversation, you can
pay attention to sweet smiles, body languages, honest heart, and not to be the
king of period. Finally, you can take every chance to practice these social
skills.
Through meeting various friends, you can
build up your own social network in the daily life. Keep in touch with some of
them. Maybe next time they can do you a favor surprisingly.
Speaker: John Lo
C1 Speech: Ice Breaker
Caught in the Limelight
Hello. My name is John Lo. As of today, I am a member of the YZU Toastmasters’ Club. I understand that Ice Breaker speeches are supposed to let everyone get to know who you are, but I feel I should leave trivial things like hobbies to private conversations. And instead of cramming a large amount of information in a 5-minute speech, I want to concentrate on one topic. So for my C1 speech, I want to tell you why I joined Toastmaster.
English has always been my strong point. It’s one of the things I’m good at. It’s the only thing I’ve ever exceled at. However, even after years of honing my reading, listening, and writing, I still couldn’t handle speaking, at least not until my second year in high school. Yet, teachers always see fit to choose me as the class representative in English speaking contest. For years to come, I would automatically be chosen to represent my class in the schools’ speech contest whenever one comes along. I contended proudly and willingly at first, but with each failure under the limelight, I started to fear the stages more, and the fact that I became a lot quieter in middle school didn’t help. I made three speeches when I was in middle school, and they all went down the same way. I would walk onto the stage, start to make the speech, and before I had reached half of it, I would forget the rest. What followed would be a few seconds of awkward silence which I was so sure was measured in hours. The rest of the speech would feel like a blur. I would try to at the very least give the speech a proper closing, but it wouldn’t change the fact that it was a complete mess.
When I became a junior in high school, I was once again chosen, along with another classmate, to represent our class in a speech contest. For some reason I looked up tips on how to give a good speech, and came across this book, Public Speaking for Success by Dale Carnegie. The book is filled with great advices and stories. For example, it taught me that in order to remember my speech; I shouldn’t recite it without emotion, but simply rehearse it with conviction many times. I followed the instruction, repeating the speech in front of a mirror on the days before the contest. When the big day came, I got on the stage.
All seemed to be going well through two-thirds of the speech, and then suddenly I once again forgot what I was supposed to say next. But this time, the silence only lasted for a fraction of a second. Because before I could even start to remember, the next sentence came out of my mouth. Do you know that feeling you get when you leave your house every morning, you open the door, you close it, and then you lock it without even thinking about doing it, the feeling that your arms and hands were on autopilot? That is what I felt! The speech became a habit to me. The sentences were linked, and one could not come out without another one following. I finished the speech, and for the first time in my life, instead of wanting to rush off the stage and bury myself, I felt great after a speech. I couldn’t help but smile on the way back to my seat offstage.
I got the second place, temporarily, for that was only the first round of the speech contest. The second round was impromptu speech, and I reverted back to my old mumbling self, and dropped to third place. I realized I can only progress so much on my own. I may have completed a speech without replacing most of it with babble and silence, but I know my body was stiff during the whole speech. I remember when going back to my seat, a friend of mine who was sitting next to me asked me: “Why did you look like you’re about to murder someone?” I realized I can talk to mirrors all I want, but those eyes that looked back are the very same that greets me every morning. They don’t give the same deer-in-the-headlights effect as a stranger’s eyes do. And until I can overcome that power, I will still fail when asked to speak on the spot. It happens all the time in 1 on 1 conversations, and it’s sure to happen in front of dozens of people.
In order to remedy this, I need people who are willing to sit down and lend me their ears, and grabbing them from the streets isn’t an option. Thankfully, this book has another trick up its sleeve. It speaks of these groups that can be found in some cities around the world called Toastmasters’ Clubs. I looked up Toastmaster on the internet, and found that there is no club in I-lan, where I live. There are many in Taipei, but back then, with school and everything, I simply had no means to get to one. I put the thought on the back burner, and went on with my life, until now. Today, I join the Toastmasters. Today, I stare down at the limelight, and walk away unscathed.
Dear Friends
If you are not Toastmasters, you probably have no idea what is Toastmasters and what will you learn in Toastmasters. Here is the video to introduce Toastmaster Regular Meeting. You can take a look at this video and join our meeting next time. .
If you are not Toastmasters, you probably have no idea what is Toastmasters and what will you learn in Toastmasters. Here is the video to introduce Toastmaster Regular Meeting. You can take a look at this video and join our meeting next time. .
