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I stuck to the guidelines and delivered within the allotted time.

Summer Lotus 3 days ago 4 min read

Recently, I joined my Toastmasters Club’s Evaluation Contest. We had a ‘surprise’ test speaker (no one knew who was going to be the speaker until announced) and all evaluators would listen to him speak before being placed in a ‘holding room’ on the Zoom meeting.

After the speech, we were given five minutes to organize our evaluation. In our past contest which was a physical meeting at a venue, the evaluators were given 5 minutes to organize our feedback on a piece of paper.

By prior balloting, the first speaker would enter the room to deliver his presentation while the rest of the evaluators had their written notes kept away until the next speaker is called.

The advantage of the last speaker is that he or she has time to mull over what he wants to say but has no chance of listening to how the rest evaluate before him. The first speaker has the challenge of performing almost off the cuff without the leeway to go over his points that other speakers would have.

Anyway, it was a test of one’s mettle and spontaneity.

Every evaluator was given up to a maximum of three minutes, during which the flashed green card would signal 1 minute had passed, 2 minutes at the amber card, 3 minutes at red, during which the evaluator must wrap up his speech or he would be disqualified after 30seconds passed when the buzz sound.

It was quite amusing. In the holding room, the Sergeant at arms(member in charge of logistics) would make sure our hands were visible and our eyes looked forward to prevent us from glancing at our written papers.

In my head, I knew the scoring system. Toastmasters Evaluation Contest requires the following Judging items; Analytical Quality to be about 40 points, recommendations 30 points, Technique 15 points, and Summation 15 points. The specific range of values was given under each category labeled from fair, good, very good to excellent.

As I evaluated the speaker and elaborated under the judging items, the 5 judges were scoring each evaluator on their performance by imparting a value to the category mentioned.

The test speaker spoke on “ My Leadership journey since my re-employment.

As I was the last speaker, I had no idea how the rest gave their feedback.

I thought the easiest and logical manner was to go by the judging items.

I began by praising the speaker for his honesty and humility to share a heartfelt story on his retrenchment and getting back into employment.

Under analytical quality, I commented that his topic was very current with recession already rearing its ugly head and it was a positive speech as it showed his comeback to a new post and he had put in his best to become a trainer to much younger colleagues.

He showed that he had a good command of the English Language, speaking simply and directly, occasionally employing rhetorical devices like alliteration, pun, and metaphor. That made his speech very interesting to listen to. He also injected humor when he said that he tried to make miniature of his junior colleagues, a self-effacing phrase to play on his much bigger size.

He was obviously a confident speaker, with no signs of nervousness and he spoke at a comfortable rate and volume with a gentle disposition.

His technique was the storytelling method which was effective as most people like to listen to stories and he had from the beginning launched into how he was retrenched and became re-employed through a stroke of good luck.

In the body of his speech, he related interesting experiences and lessons learned in the new environment with younger colleagues and how he was inspired by his boss handling of office matters.

Recommendations are mandatory in an evaluation speech so I advised three things:

1 wrong spelling of a word – intricacies instead of ‘intricacities’ and recommended prior check of uncertain words

2 As his delivery time taken was 5 minutes 48 seconds instead of 7 minutes 30 seconds, he could have gone into more details to contrast his leadership style with his boss’s which he admired.

The extra time could also be used to summarize the points mentioned so that the conclusion was more complete.

3 To dress more smartly in office attire though we meet on zoom more frequently these days to maintain a more formal ambiance.

In my summation, I praised the speaker again for his sincerity in sharing his experiences. I reminded him that he could bring his speech and delivery to a higher level as he was already an articulate person. I thanked him for the effort he placed in his speech preparation.

I was surprised to be awarded the best evaluator for this contest. Evaluation is a very important skill to develop as it allows one to be more discerning of a speaker’s strong and weak points. Hence, we could also adopt these ideas into our own speeches.

Follow the guidelines of Toastmasters International for powerful tips.

Summer Lotus Oct 20 · 4 min read

I have been a toastmaster with Toastmasters International for more than 30 years. Over this period of time. I have honed my communication skills, thanks to Toastmasters International’s comprehensive program that has benefitted more than 364.000 members worldwide in more than 145 countries.

It takes time and active participation to see results. I have witnessed positive changes in myself as well as members whose personal lives, career and businesses have improved because of good communication skills. A champion speaker wins for the reason that they wrote and delivered a great speech.

We all have experienced speakers who would drone on and on with their speech, falling short of quantity and quality that was expected of them. Toastmasters’ Clubs is the place for everyone and anyone who is serious about improving speaking skills, listening skills as well as critical thinking.

This article focuses on the essence of a good speech. I shall divide it into a few categories; Delivery, Content, and Language. In Toastmasters’ International Speech Contest, the scoring is based on delivery 30%, Content 55%, and language 15%

OnDelivery (30% score in speech contest)

1 Physical aspect such as appearance count, as to whether the speaker was appropriately dressed for the occasion. Body language comprises body postures, hand gestures, facial expressions which should be congruent with the message.

A confident posture score points as it showed self-confidence and appropriate hand gestures allowed the emphasis of certain points made. Facial expressions also lend credibility to what was being said.

2 Voice plays a very important role in delivery. Was the speaker audible? Was his diction clear? Was it spoken in a monotone or were there inflections involved to make it interesting?

3 The manner in which the speech was made may make or break the presentation. A good speaker should come across as enthusiastic and energized unless it was a somber subject in which case he had to be congruent in his mannerism to convey sobriety.

A speaker needs to come across as sincere and self-assured if he wants to drive home his message.

About the Content (55% score in speech contest)

1 Speech Development has three parts — Structure, Organization, and Support material.

a) Structure refers to the framework of the speech in which there is an introduction (10%), body or content (80%), and conclusion (10%). In this way, there is a beginning, a story, and an ending, so to speak. This makes the speech easier to follow.

b) The Organization of the speech refers to the pattern in which the ideas are categorized. For example, a common organization pattern is topical or using topics to become the main points of the body.

Other patterns include chronological (which can be grouped into the past, present, and future) spatial (different locations), Compare and contrast, Causal ( cause and effect), Problem-cause-solutions (generally persuasive), and Biographical ( usually to describe a person’s life and generally informative or even entertaining).

c) The Support material refers to the evidence presented to give credibility to the main points. This either comes from statistics, studies, or research and may come in the form of quotes by eminent authors, poets, and artists. An evidence-based speech engages the audience for its authenticity.

2 Effectiveness of the Speech

An effective speech has a great impact on its listeners. It should grasp the audience’s attention and moved them to action. The speech should fulfill its objectives; whether it was informative, entertaining, inspiring, or persuasive.

If the audience applauded well, showed interest, and laughed where they were meant to, then it has succeeded in eliciting the audience’s response.

About the Language(15%)

In the Toastmasters International Speech Contest, the Language aspect scores only 15% but nevertheless, it is very important as it impresses the audience during your delivery.

1 Good Language use involves correct grammar, clear pronunciation, excellent choice of words, and appropriate to the speech purpose.

2 To score well, use simple, active sentences, and employ the use of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, euphemism, pun, compare and contrast, etc to make the speech more interesting.

3 Humor also scores well, especially in a Humorous Speech Contest.

Use of Rhetorical devices can be accessed here.

Time Allotted

An important fact is that the speaker should speak within the time allowed to show respect for the program that is usually tightly scheduled. It is also to prevent him or her from cutting into another speaker’s allotted time.

In a speech contest, a speaker who speaks outside or beyond the time given is automatically disqualified from voting by the audience in the top three winners.

People, young and old are advised to join Toastmasters International. The clubs are available in many countries and a well-run club has a history of champion speakers and good meeting attendance.

As many of the members are from different backgrounds ethnically, culturally, and education-wise, I have learned a lot from the interactions at the Toastmasters meetings. Persistent participation and presentation of projects eventually result in growth, not only for the speaker but for the audience.

Besides developing good communication skills which involve speaking, listening and critical thinking, toastmasters develop leadership training, networking, friendships, time management skills, ability to give motivating feedback to other speakers, improving grammar and vocabulary, writing good content, and are generally a highly positive group of people.

Go and join the Toastmasters Club or encourage someone who wants to brighten up their lives and prospects. It is a decision that no toastmaster has ever regretted.

Have a great time, not all is lost.

Summer Lotus Oct 11·5 min read

Every chance I have, I would explore. The more you step out of your comfort zone, the smaller the world gets. More information will be accessible to you because of a new experience.

You see things, you meet more people and you learn more. The more you stay put at where you feel is convenient and comfortable, the smaller your world becomes and you become confined to your little niche until one day, you stepped out…. you realized the world has changed and you had missed out a lot.

We, human beings are creatures of habit. I used to subscribe to the old adage, “ It’s ain’t broken, don’t fix it”. So I would go to the same cafe, do the same things and go out with the same circle of friends. But this does not allow growth. Growth can only occur if your senses, your rationale, and your attitude are challenged or awakened.

These days, I would go off onto untrodden territories. Stuff that I usually don’t do until this Covid-19 era when traveling is curtailed and we look for things to do to deal with the mundane.

With more time on my hands, I started to explore. I would go cafe hopping following safe entry and safe distancing rules of course. No more the same Cappucino which I think is the world-best served by the cafe opposite my workplace. The internet has made it easier as all you need to do is finger work. Type “ Best cafe near me”. A list appears and many of them have google rankings, reviews, and websites.

Every cafe has its distinctive attractions. Some beckons because of their website, some for their menus, some for their unique surroundings. I needed a jolt to my bored brain to stimulate ideas.

I found out for myself why some cafes do well. To me, the product such as the quality of the coffee and cake is very important. The ambiance that allows me to settle in for at least a half-hour where it is suitable for people watching and brewing new ideas for writing on the medium is desirable. If the service is excellent and the price is comparable to the market rate, then that is the supreme choice for me. Ultimately, my search for the cafe that motivates me will always go on.

So far, I find that given that aroma-giving cuppa and a delicious cake, I have been able to write something or at least come up with a theme to write about. Maybe it is the caffeine in the coffee or the oomph factor of the cake, I am thrilled for the “side-effect”.

The other day, at a City cafe, I spotted a dark chocolate cake which I felt was of good value. It was a dollar less than most places and was at an established chain. The appearance of the slice of cake told me it was not all cream which I detested, it looked moist and the name “dark chocolate” appealed to me. It did not disappoint.

The taste of the piece of cake triggered some emotions in me — fleeting between peace and elation. I started to wax lyrical and came up with poetry which was quite a surprise to me.

The poetry that was written; What Is It About Real Dark Chocolate Cake?

Being a dentist, I have a very sequential mind and by that I mean, I think in terms of steps and protocol as in our dental procedures. I was glad that there was some ‘art’ in me to write even though it may not meet other people’s standards but it was jk a start for me to get creative. I have found my outlet. It also helps me to appreciate the ‘now’ more.

One day at a cafe, I was quietly sipping their Cappucino, reading and occasionally looked up to watch people around me. I noticed that a lady sitting alone at the table opposite me, talking to herself and gesticulating. She had no ear-piece in either ear and was not holding a handphone. I noticed with empathy that she must be so stressed mentally to be talking to the air and disputing her troubles. I prayed silently for her.

It reminded me that we have to take care of our mental health. I believed that after venting her emotions her way, she would feel better. After all, she managed to order and pay for her food, so it could just be her way of managing her problems. I have my way to dissipate stress and could be seen as pathological to others too.

At another cafe, I noticed an unusual theme used to attract customers. In the showcase were many attractive desserts symbolic of Singapore such as Kueh Tu Tu( originally a grated, sweetened brown coconut in a flour exterior with the shape of a petal), a bak chor mee (a traditional famous dry noodle), and a nasi-lemak dish(conventionally coconut-infused rice served with egg and fried fish with the famous sambal chili paste), just to name a few.

However, it was food art and none of the food tasted the real thing but was dessert. A lot of effort and creativity had gone into them. One bite into this food and what you get is dessert in the highest art form of Singapore’s famous street food. For example, the yellow noodles were made from passion fruit, a half-boiled egg made from yogurt mango, and chili from strawberry and lemongrass!

The alphabet soup disguised lychee mousse with lychee bits and raspberry and a layer of rose jelly topped with milk agar. So soup was the dessert. There were beautiful fruits to charm you at the end of each meal but they were desserts.

The Yuzu ‘fruit’ is made from Yuzu milk chocolate mousse, lighten yuzu curd, green tea whipped frosting, almond chocolate sponge, coated in yuzu spray.

We were spoilt for choice by the art of food here.

Feast your eyes before you feast your food but your taste buds will be delightfully deceived for this unique experience. A mind-boggling, altered encounter of the senses, great for a conversation piece and ice breaker!

My exploration of cafes and their unique traits continue. It was a very stimulating experience, especially in such COVID-19 times. It is not only to show support to these cafes that tried to stay afloat, many deservedly so for their effort but also a way to break the monotony of being confined within my country. One starts to discover that we have so much to see and savor in our backyard.

Covid-19 may stay around for a while but our ways to overcome restrictions in our mobility should not only help others but help ourselves to move forward in many supportive ways.

The globalized world did not disappoint me.

Summer Lotus Oct 9 · 3 min read

Today, I passed by a “Japan rail cafe” in the business district of Tanjong Pagar, Singapore. My, how the place has changed over the years.

Huge, upmarket restaurants and cafeterias now dot the area, catering to the crowd in this supposedly dense office/apartment/hotel district.

This cafe caught my attention as I am a Japanatic. With travel restrictions, this is the closest that I can get to Japan which I used to go at least three times a year.

The lunch did not disappoint. The display of the array of Japanese food on the glass panel beckoned me and I was game for Kanazawa Black curry. Some years ago, one might not have heard of it. In recent years, almost anything is available.

Not one to frequent restaurants often, I am again up to learning new things. It’s common these days to order food on the iPad. Waiters are freed to concentrate on serving instead of waiting for customers to order.

The shiny iPad screen makes all the food emit a luster that makes my mouth water. A gentleman sat next to me and I instinctively passed the iPad menu to him.

He said, “ Thank you but wouldn’t my food be charged to you”? Then it occurred to me that I had handled him my iPad menu like a hard copy menu but the former was supposed to be exclusive to each customer.

Abashed, I said,” Oh, then it would just be a treat from me”.

“You must be new around here”, he continued and I said “yes, just checking this cafe out”, then went back to tucking my meal in.

Kanazawa Black Curry rice did not disappoint. The breaded pork was crunchy outside and tender inside, the rice was authentic sticky white rice and the egg was just fried crispy at the base. Shredded cabbage was a good addition.

A delectable meal alright. I finished off with a Hokkaido Milk Soft Serve. The rich and creamy milk melted in my mouth and caused me to reminisce about my trip to Hokkaido sampling the incredible range of soft serves.

I whipped out my iPhone and started recording this experience. An article to be shared on medium.

The world has indeed become so globalized especially in Singapore. You can find the most unexpected delicacies from far-flung areas of the world and sample them if you bother to seek them out.

Covid-19 may have restricted our travels but in today’s world, one has to roll with the punches. If not for the decision to explore within the surroundings in my country, I may not have known that everything has evolved so much as the world changes.

We can still enjoy our country if traveling is out of our ‘to do” list because globalization and technology allow us to connect in many ways whether it is food, ideas, work, or lifestyle.

“Every day is an adventure if you care to explore”

You will be impressed by how technology can uplift you.

Summer Lotus Oct 8 · 3 min read

It is a hot, sultry afternoon and due to Covid-19 fear, business is still far from brisk. On this day, I went to explore Funan Digital mall which had undergone a massive facelift and opened in June 2019.

It is a mixed-used development comprising a retail mall, two office towers, and a serviced apartment tower in the Civic District in Singapore. To me, it is a one-stop food and entertainment place with a wide array of shops offering a myriad of services from health/wellness to IT stuff and other lifestyle goods. There is also a challenging indoor rock climbing gym and a cycling path.

This is the shopping mall of the future and seems to cater to the young and active. As long as your heart is young and you are willing to explore, there is plenty of fun to be had.

This afternoon, I went to Hologate Singapore with my young friend who is game to try out the Virtual Reality session. It was a mind-blowing experience.

We tried the game called “Cold Clash”.😊 With our VR headsets donned, and even though we were just rooted to the spot with the cables, it was a different experience when the VR was on.

My friend and I were pitted against each other to collect as many gold coins as we could. Each of us had our own hovercraft to maneuver on a frozen lake. As I turn the corner here and there, I fired my power laser weapon at the penguins, each holding a treasure chest about their head. When struck, the wooden chest disintegrated in a shower of glitter, spilling gold coins onto the icy floor. Then, I would fire at the coins and they popped into my cart and my score went up. In the distance, my friend was working hard fighting for her survival too.

The snow fight is between my friend and me to see who collected the most coins. The challenge was ducking the crazy, territorial yeti who would shoot at us. I was so engrossed in avoiding the hits that I ducked and bobbed crouched and crawled on the floor of the hovercraft. Not to mention the Oohs and Ahhs in our excitement.

Momentarily, I remembered that I was in a virtual world but I preferred to be in it anyway as it seemed so real and fun. The jumping, ducking, and sudden cowering to escape “fire” really caused me to break out into a sweat and was indeed a workout.

When the time was up, my friend scored ( I was glad I did not kill her to steal her points) and we noticed the in-charge had doubled up in laughter. She must have been quite entertained by our body movements, gestures, and postures, especially seeing a mature woman like me enthralled by children’s games.

However, I think this is a fun activity for people of all ages. I am looking forward to getting a few friends to engage in the next game and getting a work out as well.

Technology is indeed fun. I am ready to fight robots, zombies, and dragons. Immerse in VR for a moment of fun from long depressive news about Covid-19, recession, and world politics. Everything bad would soon pass.

It is a very important activity in the Covid-19 era.

Summer Lotus Sep 29 · 5 min read

I am into writing these days besides reading. After years of Toastmasters activity, I find that we can enhance our communication skills greatly through these two habits.

As I have spoken about reading before, let’s focus on writing.

What is writing? It can be your personal journaling, writing fiction, nonfiction, a blog, an essay, a letter, anything, as long as your put your pen to paper or you tap away at your keyboard.

Why should we write?

1. Promotes better thinking. When you write down ideas and thoughts, they may appear unconnected and vague at first. If you continue to write with a structure such as having a goal, supporting evidence, relevant anecdotes, a listicle, et cetera, your ideas will start to take shape and solidify.

Your thoughts become more critical, concrete, and organized. Solutions and answers may arise when you least expect it.

2 Allows reflection of past events. When you write a personal story, you think about what happened, it’s pros and cons, where you did right and what went wrong, and derive important lessons.

That is why History is so important and we have the authors to thank for documenting them.

As they say, those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. So we can learn from what we have written.

3 The more you write, the better your vocabulary as in learning any skill. It is a good habit to inculcate whether it is for personal growth or in a business setting.

Personally, it’s good for your mental health as you can see issues clearer and feel more confident as your writing skills blossomed.

At work, Your colleagues will like you for the clear and concise messages to get work done.

4 Everything stems from excellent writing – Speeches, videos, meetings, lectures, memos, and so on.

When you write well, you feel more confident to speak well.

Are we not We are always moved by speeches that have a succinct message, poignant points, and a logical flow. Remember Obama’s message, “ Yes, we can?” Or any of our founder LKY’s speeches. Obviously, it is from a well-written script.

5 We write for another practical reason. Writing is a legitimate career in today’s world. People are making money with their writing. As authors on writing platforms, bloggers, freelance writers, content writers, and so on.

It is an alternative source of income in this Covid-19 period where you can work from anywhere and do not require a hefty investment. It requires you to be passionate about reading, researching, and writing.

As more businesses move online, people who write well are much sought after by companies to attract potential customers to their sites through the use of their words. We Toastmasters should know what makes an effective script.

It is achievable but requires diligence.

It was not easy for me to start writing even a 5 min speech for the Toastmasters project but improvement does happen. It gets a little effortless with time.

When facing writer’s block, I did the following things which may or may not suit you.

1 Tap on your emotions — We all have a wide range of emotions — from anger to sadness to sorrow to happiness to joy to embarrassment to apathy to disgust to frustration to fear to horror and so on.

Think of an incident that made you very happy or very angry or very sad. You can crystallize a speech out of that incident. Just trust that you can because, in extreme feelings, one has a lot to say. I see it on social media when people write three pages of grouses or two pages when joyful.

It is only useful if you can derive some lessons from your experiences. It also trains you to describe them in the best way possible. But remember to consult your dictionary for appropriate words. Consult grammarly.com to put your grammar right. There is a free version.

2 Take a walk — When at a loss for words, no pun intended, stop, and go for a walk. According to research, walking is a superpower activity that goes beyond just building good health for your brain, heart, muscles, and bone.

Novelists and poets have long believed that walking and writing are connected. Now there is research to back that claim. Among the past literary luminaries known to be avid walkers are Charles Dickens, Virginia Wolf, Ernest Hemmingway.

The research found that walking for forty minutes three times a week enhanced the connectivity of important brain circuits, reduced declines in brain function associated with aging, and increases your cognitive performance.

3 Look for sources of inspiration. Flip through your albums — See which photos provoke or incite you the most and write your feelings down. What could have been better? How have you dealt with your situation? What were you grateful for?

The best source is reading books or other people’s writings. Filter them through your mind, come out with your own spin or perspective on the story and write your own story making them inspirational and encouraging. There is no lack of sources nor lack of time, only a lack of discipline and passion.

4 Check yourself out.

You are a treasure trove of ideas with your unique experiences each day. Find out your passion, your achievements, and your dreams. Every day is a happening one, if you do, ask, and observe.

In conclusion, writing is an exciting activity. It takes you on a journey to explore your own world. This article arose because I was stuck with what project to do until I started to put on paper, “Why I write, and How to overcome my writer’s block”. In the process, I found my answers and solutions.

Start writing no matter what. The water does not flow until the faucet is turned on. — — Louis L’ Amour

Wield your pen, tap your keys.

Persist.

The magic will come.

Words will flow, ideas will connect, and a message becomes imminent. Your article will be ready. You have finally written. You are ready to give the speech and your future is ever so bright because of honing these two skills.