UM Masters Are Sweethearts!

Toastmaster Andrea gave us the theme of 'Sweethearts' for the meeting, which gave us all a warm friendly feeling, as she asked us to think about friends/colleagues/family members who were good to us and who we considered sweethearts. Cameron entertained us with his humour which was so enthusiastically delivered, and Deb encouraged us to speak in a 'cogent' manner.

This week the meeting was a mix of seasoned members, those who joined in the last year, and a couple of really fresh members, and under Andrea's encouragement almost everyone had soon volunteered for a role (or two).

Cathy delivered Competent Communicator speech number 6. Her challenge was to use data and information in a way that informed us. She told us about how the scheme for learning English as a second language works. Cathy demonstrated why it helps to choose a topic you know a lot about or are passionate about. As a trainee TESL teacher, Cathy showed her enthusiasm and interest in helping others learn English. It was a pleasure to listen and learn.

Selena walked to the podium as Table Topics Master carrying a black tin, which created an air of mystery in the room. The tin was passed round and Toastmasters helped themselves to cookies with messages on them - Selena had been inspired by the topic of the day, which had reminded her about candy called 'love hearts', which come with messages. 

Everyone had a cookie, and they waited in anticipation to see who would be called. With everyone taking a role, Selena's choice of 'victims' was limited, but she persuaded just enrolled Charith, and new member Sharon to talk about the topic on their cookie, or not - rules of Table topics allow for participants to choose their topic if they can't think of anything to say on the topic provided. Charith did this confidently and to good effect.

Our evaluators Julie, Tiffany and June did a fine job of evaluating all aspects of our meeting, and Sharon and Deb showed they had been listening hard as they fed back on 'ah's' and use of grammar, and Cameron gave a through breakdown of our use of time.

Toastmasters – the proven way to grow your communication and leadership skills.

If you would like to take part in a UM Masters meeting, we’re located in Winnipeg at the University of Manitoba. Our meetings are held every Wednesday from 12:05 –12:50 PM in Room 111 at St. John’s College (which is part of the University of Manitoba).

If you're in Winnipeg and interested in sitting in on a club meeting to see if Toastmasters is right for you , please feel free to contact Dianne Winser at dianne_winser@umanitoba.ca, phone 204-256-7550.