“Stymy” – what a word!

Chairperson Katina opened the meeting and introduced our guest Kim who was online from the UK who was acting as our General Evaluator for this meeting.

Grammarian Kathy’s word of the day was “stymy” – meaning to block or inhibit something. In her report Kathy complimented speakers on their innovative use of language, new words and the word of the day “stymy”.

Table Topics run by Dale was along the theme of “feasts and celebrations”. Each speaker was asked about an aspect of this or an event they have attended (or not). Evaluator Gary liked the themed approach which every speaker was able to tackle with their own stories. Gary awarded Angela with the best table topics award for her humour.

Speech 1 by Megan, introduced by Ron who was completing a level 3 assignment in the Visionary Communication Pathway, so he was looking for interesting and rich language. “Sight Unseen” was an inspirational and emotional speech about what it might be like to suddenly lose your sight, and how you would navigate and learn when visiting a new house. Evaluator Ron said Megan did not disappoint with her speech using lots of colourful word pictures, great language and vivid descriptions of smells. Ron suggested Megan try to use her notes more efficiently in the future to keep eye contact with the audience.

Speech 2 by Jacqui, introduced by Jocelyn who described the speech Jacqui was about to deliver about reflecting on her year as a Division Director for her High Performance Leadership Project. She had to present her goals at the beginning of the term, and this speech was her reflection on her year of work, its successes and issues. Evaluator Jocelyn said “wow what a workload” she took on as Division Director, and thought that Jacqui’s presentation need more about her reflections rather than the processes. Jocelyn suggested Jacqui try this speech again focussing on her reflections, her learnings, and what she found worthwhile during her term.

Speech 3 by Mike, introduced by Angela who is doing his level 3 Strategic Partnerships Pathway, project is “Connect with Storytelling”, and this speech called “Travelling in your 20s vs in your 40s”. Mike described what it was like to travel in his 20s needing confidence and stupidity. His first stop was London where he discovered the great cheap RyanAir. Now he is in his 40s travel is all about the experience than the adventure preferring cooking classes to nightclubs. Mike says he has actually been to 45 countries and as long as you are smart and keep safe, don’t be afraid to see what the world has to offer. Evaluator Angela said Mike gave a flawless American accent at the beginning of the speech, and set the scene for the humour and classic delivery lines. Angela recommended Mike try using his notes differently with more memory joggers rather than writing it out word for word, and that she wanted to hear more of his travel stories.

If you would like to visit Spinnaker Toastmasters to find out what public speaking is all about, just email us on spinnaker@toastmasters.org.nz with your details and we’ll send you an invitation.