Stories are powerful
This meeting was great in that we listened to the stories of two of our newest members, Daphne and Ayako, who delivered their Ice Breaker speeches (the very first speech any Toastmaster delivers in a club meeting to introduce themselves.)
They told us why they joined Shin-Osaka Leaders Toastmasters Club. Both of them have had tough times and have seen some hope in trying something new. They joined us to open a new chapter of their lives and in their pursuit of finding who they are and who they are not. They reminded us how important it is to have the right mindset when something negative happens. They proactively opened new doors and saw the light in overcoming their challenges. Hope their experience at Shin-Osaka Leaders will lead them to open more chapters in their lives.
Happy debuts
In addition to these two new members, we welcomed another new member, Miyu, with an induction ceremony. Miyu made her debut as a Toastmaster and she also delivered her first Table Topics speech as a member. Also making her debut (as a Timer) was Luting. In some Toastmasters clubs, new members are assigned to the Timer as their first role because it involves the least spontaneous speaking. However, in Shin-Osaka Leaders, we wait until a new member has experienced other roles such as Ah-Counter, Grammarian, Topicsmaster, and evaluator. This is because the Timer role is simply challenging. They are tasked with timing speeches and showing timing signals to let the speakers know how much time they have left. They also need to report the exact time each speaker spoke in a timely manner. On top of that, they help the club secretary by recording what time each segment of the meeting started. Yes, they are busy indeed. Luting did a fabulous job as the Timer today, helping the meeting run smoothly and finish exactly on time.
With two Toastmasters guests from overseas, we enjoyed this 100-minute meeting to the fullest with a variety of prepared speeches, an interesting and challenging topic for the Table Topics session, and supportive yet constructive evaluation speeches.
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