Chairperson Katina decided “change” was her theme for the 2 September meeting, Grammarian Dale followed suit with “change” as the word of the day, and Table Topics Master Darril used change-themed topics to challenge speakers. Jinny was awarded best Table Topics Speaker.

Speech 1 by Junior called “Power of the Convince” was a masterclass in how to sell something, and used the acronym P.I.T.C.H.E.R. Evaluator Mike thought Junior’s speech was engaging, with lots of audience interaction, especially when he displayed a softball at the beginning and asked the audience two questions.

Junior was awarded the best speech of the night.

Speech 2 by Ash was introduced and evaluated by Jocelyn. Ash told us how he packs his gym bag every day to be ready for anything, and opened with “Standing in my room, ready to pack my gym bag …” He then went on to describe the impact of the RSV virus on his son when he was a toddler, and how he is now playing touch rugby and loving it. Evaluator Jocelyn suggested Ash could signpost his speech more to let the audience know where his thoughts were going.

Speech 3 by Dale called “Using your hands in swimming” described the five hand positions used in swimming and how each one had its pros and cons. The audience had to guess which hand position was the best. Evaluator Dieter thought it was a very engaging speech with lots of body language and he looks forward to the next speech in the series “Using your feet in swimming”.

Speech 4 by Jinny was actually a “Marketing Meeting” where she used powerpoint to show us facts about the operation of her YouTube channel, finishing with a list of action points for the next three months. Evaluator Katina said this was obviously a “passion project” for Jinny and she liked the clear structure and explanations.

Timekeeper Quentin ran through the timings for each speaker and evaluator, and said this was his second time as timer and he loved the role.

General Evaluator Dirk said he enjoyed the meeting theme of “change”, and gave each evaluator a helpful tip for next time.

If you like the sound of a Toastmasters meeting, where you have a lot of laughs, learn something new, and enjoy great company, then come along to our next meeting on Tuesday 16 September. You’ll be most welcome. Contact us on spinnaker@toastmasters.org.nz for more information.