Preston Persuaders

Travel was the theme from last night's meeting, led by Toastmaster Janak. Our invocator, Durai, reminded us that sometimes we have to face our fears in order to venture into the world and achieve our goals. Most of us have to face fears around public speaking in Toastmasters, too, and the effort is worth it! The fun and learning gained through travel, achieving goals, and Toastmasters is enhanced by great company. At Preston Persuaders, you're always in great company! Here's a pic from before the meeting last night...

Chris and Bahman were our featured speakers. Chris talked about the Law of Connection, inspired by the book, 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. He explained that just like we are connected through social networks and business networks, events in our lives may also be interconnected. Have you ever found connections like that - fate? coincidence? synchronicity? 

After your first 10 speeches, you choose your advanced speaking manuals, which cover many different specialty areas of public speaking. Bahman is currently working out of the Facilitating Discussion manual, and last night he led the club in a discussion about cloud storage. His speech objectives were to overcome behavioral problems from audience members. Members were assigned to be chatty, to argue, to interrupt, and to withdrawl from the discussion so that Bahman could practice dealing with those distractions in a way that continued to encourage discussion. 

We welcomed Jay, Marie, and Marevi as guests to our meeting last night, and we loved their participation in the Table Topics (impromptu speaking) portion of our meeting, led by Mark.

We ended our meeting with a thoughtful story by Janak, and the message, "When you travel, you not only enrich your own life, you enrich the lives of others as well." Kudos to Janak for serving as Toastmaster for the first time! Great job! 

Special congrats goes to Chris for being awarded the Toastmaster of the Month award for June! Way to go Chris!!!

See you next week for another great Preston Persuaders meeting!

Ribbon Winners

Best Speaker: Neither qualified
Best Evaluator: Melanie
Best of the Big 3: Janak
Best Table Topics Speaker: Marevi
5-Star Helper: Max
Sparkplug: Ed

 

Tonight, Toastmaster Mike made us consider dilemmas in life, and Chris chose the perfect word of the day, quandary. Here's what we learned from our 4 speakers:

Mark encouraged us to make the most of our web experience by making sure our web browser (chrome, explorere, firefox, etc.) stays updated. This will also help safeguard us against hackers because we'll have the latest security fixes. Mark (a web designer) highly recommends the Google Chrome browser. You can check your browser and update it at WhatBrowser.com. 

Sanju gave us a fascinating history of Bollywood, the film industry of India. They are known for their song and dance numbers, but did you know early themes centered around religion? 

Brian led us all to consider those key moments in life when we choose to make the best of a situation...or not. One of his life-changing moments happened in college when his family moved to Nebraska, leaving him to stay in New Jersey. His living situation and level of comfort changed, but he decided to make the best of an unexpected situation. We all have those moments when we can choose - look on the bright side, or wallow?

Shiny shared the entertaining and meaningful story of how her relationship with her mom is changing as they grow older. She encouraged us all to savor the time with our parents. If they require more care and attention as they age, remember how they cared for you as a child. We wish you well on your trip to Taiwan to see your mom, Shiny!

We were pleased to have 9 guests tonight! Thank you to Mare vi, Marie, and all the members of the ESL meetup group! We loved having you join us, and you're welcome back anytime! We also want to wish Mike's nephew, Rahul, a fun and enjoyable college adventure in Phoenix! 

Kudos to Sofia for performing the role of General Evaluator for the first time! Great job!!!!

Join us next week for another great meeting of Preston Persuaders! Guests are always welcome.

Ribbon Winners

Best Speaker: Shiny
Best Evaluator: Hugh
Best of the Big 3: Mike
Best Table Topics Speaker: Ed
5-Star Helper: Sarah
Sparkplug: Shiny

This week's theme was U.S. Immigration, and Toastmaster Rick shared informative statistics to give us another side of the issue than we may typically see in the media. Our Taple Topics participants found creative ways to incorporate the word of the day, repatriation, into their speed-dating question topics (thanks for that fun topic, Mickey!), and we learned yogic breathing, win-win negotiation skills, and how to use a microphone like a pro from the scheduled speakers. 

Durai demonstrated several yogic breathing techniques to reduce stress and improve health. You can learn more about some of the techniques Durai mentioned at DoYogaWithMe.com.

Lisa taught us how to prepare for and execute a win-win negotiation. Her tips were to know what you want ahead of time, know what the other person wants and some objections they may have so you can be prepared to address their concerns and offer compromises, and know at what point you will withdrawl from the negotiation - know your bottom line. 

Melanie shared the proper way to adjust a microphone stand, how to hold the microphone, and some additional things to consider when you're speaking using a mic. Some of her helpful hints are to hold the mic with your fingertips, at an angle as if it is an extension of your chin, and from 1 to 3 finger-widths away from your face. You can practice your mic technique by videotaping your speech while holding a hairbrush. Notice if you drop the mic down at any point or forget to hold it in front of your mouth when you turn your head.

Congratulations to Chris J. for serving as General Evaluator for the first time! You did an awesome job! And of course, thank you to all of our members and guests who helped make the meeting fun, friendly, and informative. It's always a great way to spend Monday evening!

Ribbon Winners

Best Speaker: Melanie
Best Evaluator: Brian
Best of the Big 3: Mickey
Best Table Topics Speaker: Janak
5-Star Helper: Susan
Sparkplug: Janak

What's your B.H.A.G. (be-hag)? This week's theme was goal-setting. Allison taught us about setting Big Hairy Audacious Goals, inspired by the book Built to Last, by Jim Collins. A goal needs to have four qualities to be considered a B.H.A.G.:

Aligned - It's true to your values and who you are
Audacious - Initially, it seems impossible
Articulate - The stated goal should be easy to understand
Arduous - It requires a different thought pattern to accomplish

To prevent feeling overwhelmed, focus on one tiny step at a time, and celebrate your smaller accomplishments along the way.

In other news, kudos to Susan (Invocator), Durai (General Evaluator), and Chris (Table Topics Master), who were first-timers in their roles and did an awesome job!

Our Area Governor, Dell, joined us to perform our officer induction ceremony. Congratulations to our new officers, and thank you for stepping up to serve our club!

It was another great meeting at Preston Persuaders! I hope you have the conation (Word of the Day) to make Preston Persuaders a bright spot in every week!

Ribbon Winners

Best Speaker: Allison
Best Evaluator: Sanju
Best of the Big 3: Mark
Best Table Topics Speaker: Shiny
5-Star Helper: Mickey
Sparkplug: Melanie

We had another fantastic meeting last night, led by our Toastmaster, Ed! We learned about water conservation, heard hilarious table topics with the prompt, "If I were a [aquatic animal] I would...", and enjoyed a panel discussion led by Bahman that highlighted the cultural diversity in our club. With representatives from the Arab countries, Mexico, India, United States, Iran, and China, we learned about different customs and cultural differences in a unique and informative way.

The Word of the Day (WOTD) was aqueous, which fit in perfectly with our water theme, and the fun and celebration continued as the Toastmaster of the Year and Rookie of the Year received their trophies! Join us next Monday for another fun and educational Preston Persuaders meeting!

Ribbon Winners

Best Speaker: Bahman D.
Best Evaluator: Mickey B.
Best of the Big 3: Brian T.
Best Table Topics Speaker: Dean E.
5-Star Helper: Hugh D.
Sparkplug: Tim (guest)

 

This was the last meeting of the Toastmasters year (July 1st - June 30th), and we ended it with pizazz at Angela's at the Crosswalk. Amid laughter and delicious appetizers, we celebrated our individual and club accomplishments of the past year.

Our speakers tonight were Larry and Chris. Larry gave us these three tips to stay focused and be more productive: maintain a clean and organized environment, eliminate distractions, and create a schedule using time blocks.

Chris told us how his time in Toastmasters helped him excel during a recent speech to hundreds of colleagues. Some of the helpful speaking tips he's learned include making eye contact and focusing on delivering a line to one person if you get nervous, consciously focusing your points to different areas of the audience to prevent pacing, and sharing personal stories to keep your audience entertained and engaged.

Allison invited us all to play fun speaking games for table topics tonight, including having a conversation using only questions, creating definitions for made-up words, and trying to fit unusual words into a conversation in a natural and playful way. 

We aspired (WOTD) to have an educational, fun, and meaningful meeting to end the year, and we succeeded!

Three special awards were given tonight!

Rookie of the Year: Durai K.
Toastmaster of the Year: Mark R.
Toastmaster of the Month (June): Janak P.

Ribbon Winners

Best Speaker: Chris J.
Best Evaluator: Jeff W.
Best of the Big 3: Allison B.
Best Table Topics Speaker: Shiny W. 
5-Star Helper: Mickey B.
Sparkplug: Allison B.

Meeting Recap

The meeting got started off with an invocation by Mickey beseeching all to believe in themselves. He encouraged everyone through his personal toastmaster experience of the power of self confidence and trust. Stephanie, the toastmaster for the meeting talked about hobbies, the theme for the meeting. Citing her own hobby of gardening, Stephanie detailed the many blessings of taking up a hobby that can be stimulating, nurturing and rewarding mentally and physically.

Wen was the first speaker and his speech was titled – where am I from. Using slide presentations and other facts about his background, Wen discussed his quest to unearth his ancestry and the interesting paths that quest took him through. In the end, Wen came to the conclusion the famous book of common prayer referred to as - dust to dust, earth to earth, ashes to ashes – as he said , “ My place is placeless with a trace that is traceless “. For the final speech of the meeting, Max spoke about – My grandfathers’ Ice cream. Max narrated another story of touching love from his vast repertoire of deep personal experiences. Max told the story of a young woman at a toastmaster meeting in a prison, who shared her joy and remembrances of her grandfather every time she ate an ice cream. Max’s recounting of the young woman’s feelings for her grandfather added a new dimension to the word love.

Table topic master, Lisa had come very prepared to discuss the subject of hobbies. She posed thought provoking and amusing questions about hobbies that ended up revealing a lot about club members and their hobbies. A gamut of hobbies was discussed and members had a relaxed (WOTD) feeling doing it.

The meeting ended with club president Allison, reminding everyone about the membership drive meeting on June 30.

Ribbon Winners
Best Speaker: Max R, DTM
Best Evaluator: ---
Best of the Big 3: Lisa S, ACB
Best Table Topics Speaker: Jyo P, DTM
5-Star Helper: Susan B, TM
Sparkplug: Mark R, TM

Meeting Recap

Stephanie was the invocator for the meeting. She spoke about the joys of summer and the many outdoor things one can do in the Dallas metro area. Dean, the toastmaster for the meeting expanded on what summer, the theme for the meeting, is all about. Dean talked about how summer activities are so special and uplifting after a long bout of winter hibernation. He said it is the season when people are able interact with each other more and travel is a much anticipated endeavour. In the spirit of the meeting joke master Jyo brought laughter and cheers to get the meeting rolling.

For the first speech, Sophia gave everyone an insight on the nuances of travel planning. In her speech, planning your vacation, Sophia elaborated various steps one can take to prudently spend on vacation trips without sacrificing the quality. She cited her current summer travel plans and shared the steps she has taken to accrue savings. In an entertaining speech titled –Body language in different countries – Bahman demonstrated the intent and impact of body gestures while speaking in different countries. Particularly amusing were similar gestures in different countries that had diametrically opposite meanings with dire consequences. Bahman’s speech highlighted how, in larger life, sometimes well intended gestures can cause problems devoid (WOTD) of understanding.

With extended time available, table topics master Sarah really stepped up to the “lectern”. She had well prepared thematic questions for all the table topics participants, resulting in a very lively meeting. The evaluators did an outstanding job in providing a positive and constructive feedback to the prepared speakers. The meeting ended with club president Allison, reminding everyone about the Annual Club End-of-Year Event on June 30. The club also named Rick G as the Toastmaster for the Month for May. Congratulations, Rick.

Ribbon Winners
Best Speaker: Bahman D, ACB
Best Evaluator: Rick G, ACB
Best of the Big 3: Sarah W, CC, ALB
Best Table Topics Speaker: Melanie R, TM
5-Star Helper: Mickey B, CC
Sparkplug: Jyo P, DTM

Meeting Recap

The meeting started off with Sarah’s inspiring invocation. Toastmaster for the meeting was Mike Tatachar. The theme for the meeting was -Don’t mind..its the brain. To illustrate the intertwining of the mind and the brain, Mike referenced a movie – Transcendence, which he had seen recently. Mike shared the fascinating movie story of how the brain of the protagonist was captured digitally just before he dies and uploaded into the internet. When this image became belligerent, it had to be destroyed by a virus that ultimately takes the entire internet down. The Joke master Stephanie had tickled everyone’s funny bone with joke about Gore, Bush and Clinton.

The first of the prepared speeches began with Bahman talking about – Iran/ Iraq war. Bahman clearly layed out the basic facts about the two countries and gave us all a firm background of the event. Bahman, then proceeded to describe the unbelievable loss of lives during the war in both countries that was the direct result of the ambitious adventure of the despotic ruler of Iraq. Brahman’s slide presentation was comprehensive with lots of data and numbers. In his very poignant speech – A hospital Visit – Patrick had everyone tugging to their hearts. Patrick shared his story of visiting his very sick neighbor in the hospital that profoundly changed his life. In spite of grueling difficulties the dying neighbor had faced throughout his life, he conveyed to Patrick, with painstaking gestures that he had a good life because he was loved. That singular statement moved everyone in the audience. The final speech – The World would be a better place to live if .. – by Lisa was emotional indeed. Lisa shared her deeply personal experience with a health issue and how she battled back to successfully overcome it. In spite of such a difficult situation, Lisa managed to articulate how each one of us can play a small constructive part that could benefit the world immensely. Table Topics master, Janak parlayed the WOTDpsychosomatic, into entertaining questions and fun responses.

Ribbon Winners
Best Speaker: Patrick M, CC
Best Evaluator: Hugh D, DTM
Best of the Big 3: Mickey B, CC
Best Table Topics Speaker: Jeremy (guest)
5-Star Helper: Brian T, ACB
Sparkplug: Stephanie M, CC

Meeting Recap We had a shorter meeting than usual last Monday with it being Memorial Day. With Melanie as Toastmaster the meeting was a cynosure (WOTD) none the less. Melanie had everyone thinking about WHY they are involved with Toastmasters. Here’s a panoramic photo of our members that were in attendance:

Mark used a compelling powerpoint for his visual aids project. With lots of examples we learned fundamental principles of modern web design: Less is MORE and a website must look awesome on all devices! With all the extra time every member was able to participate in Table Topics, including Stephanie our Table Topics Master. Allison played double-duty as Evaluator and General Evaluator. Thanks to everyone that attended our special Memorial Day meeting! Ribbon Winners Best Speaker: Mark R, TM Best Evaluator: Allison B, CC, CL Best of the Big 3: Stephanie M, CC Best Table Topics Speaker: Melanie R, TM 5-Star Helper: Mark R, TM Sparkplug: Shiny W, ACB