To The Reader
Tag: confidence
Opportunity Knocks!
Last month I had the opportunity to speak at my very First conference. It was held at the Pepper Manor House in the Southern Highlands of NSW. A beautiful, grand old house in quite a picturesque location.
I was invited to speak at ICCare (formerly known as Wollondilly Support and Community Care Inc) which is based in Picton, NSW but its coverage also extends to the Camden, NSW region.
ICCare provide quality, professional service/support to people who are frail, aged, people with a disability and their carers.
My topic for the presentation was, “Public Speaking” and I was advised that I would be speaking for an hour and then there would be time for questions.
As with many of the general population, some of the staff have had challenges with public speaking and this is how the presentation came about.
Although my presentation was by PowerPoint, I was careful not to present too many slides with bullet points only, as this can be quiet boring for an audience.
Instead, (on some slides) I used images to represent ideas that I was talking about.
During the presentation, I gave tips on overcoming nerves, preparation, speech structure, public speaking techniques and also gave a demonstration of ‘Impromptu Speaking’ or “Thinking On Your Feet’ as it is sometimes known.
I then invited a member of the audience up and another member of the audience gave them a topic to speak on for one minute.
After that, I invited 4 members of the audience up to participate in a ‘Round Robin’ which is another Impromptu Speaking exercise but much more fun.
After a 20 minute question period we adjourned to lunch and shared a few stories.
Thank you to Lisa Smith, CEO of ICCare for this opportunity.
I found it to be a thoroughly enjoyable experience and can’t wait for the next public speaking opportunity!
Written by David Johnson
16 May 2019
For more information on the services provided by ICCare, please click on the following link: http://wsacci.org.au/
The Cauldron Of Life
Let Your Voice Unwind!
The Toastmaster’s Journey
Raise The Bar
Review your goals
Raise the bar
Look to the future
You’ll see from afar
Roll up those sleeves
Dig right in
Look at that dream
And start to begin
In no time at all
You’ll be on the road
Moving forward
Instead of being towed
That mental check-up
You gave to yourself
Was the key
To your self-help
Reward yourself
Along the way
The journey of growth
Is your payday!
Written by David Johnson
January 2016
© CommunicatingCreatively/David Johnson 2016
Sit And Listen
Sit and listen
What do you hear?
I hear the sound
Of a New Year!
A New Year that brings
Promise, excitement and cheer
Opportunities abound
To all those who are near
It’s time to let go
Of all those fears
Work hard for your goals
Be sincere
Achieve your dreams
Make it your year!
Written by David Johnson
January 2016
© CommunicatingCreatively/David Johnson 2016
Listening With The Mind
Why Toastmasters?
I was a ‘born introvert.’ At school I would not volunteer to ‘read things out in class’, at parties (even as an adult) I would only talk to people I knew, and at meetings at work I would have an idea though I would be too nervous to speak in front of others.
What led me to Toastmasters?
It was a chance meeting with a former work-friend, Wendy White in 2008 who was then President of a Toastmasters Club. (Wendy is currently District Director of District 70 in Australia).
I saw the changes in her (from when I knew her previously) and suspected that Toastmasters had something to do with this.
So what is Toastmasters?
Toastmasters International is a world leader in communication and leadership development. It has 313,000 members around the world in 14,650 clubs in 126 countries.
Members improve their speaking and leadership skills by attending the meetings on a regular basis, either weekly, fortnightly or monthly depending on the individual Club and applying themselves through the Educational program.
I joined Toastmasters in March 2008 for the following reasons:
1. To gain a greater general confidence
2. To improve my photographic judging evaluations at Camera Clubs
3. To overcome nerves
Joining and putting myself well and truly into the programme has been a life-changing experience because it has helped me in 18 different ways/areas of my life i.e.
It has helped me in the following ways:
– gain greater general confidence
– am able to control my nerves prior to and during photographic judging/speeches
– am able to take photos in front of others without getting nervous
– am now able to walk up to strangers and introduce myself
– has improved my networking/business capabilities
– have no fear of speaking in public
– have no fear of taking on leadership roles
– has made me a better leader
– it has made me a better listener
– to evaluate better
– I can now ‘think on my feet’ better (impromptu speaking)
– improved my performance at job interviews
– has enable me to write & deliver coherent speeches
– has enabled me to win speech contests (who would have ever thought)!?
– has improved my writing capabilities to the point that I am now in the process of writing a book
– has given me the confidence to start writing poems (133 at last count)
– has opened up ‘outside of Toastmasters’ speaking opportunities including me being able to accept an MC role at a wedding & being able to speak at community clubs
– has enabled me to have a positive impact on people within and outside Toastmasters
As with life in general, the learning never stops! In all of the above areas there are still improvements to be made but when I look back I am thankful I had the courage to walk through the door of a Toastmasters Club.
Members, both experienced and new will be there to support you and cheer you on!
Whether you are an employee or are in business for yourself, consider visiting/joining a Toastmasters Club.
It will change your life for the better!
Click on http://www.toastmasters.org to find out more and ‘Find A Club’ in your area.
To your Success!!!
Communicating Creatively 