As some of you may already know, NUS Toastmasters club held a Speechcraft workshop on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week! In brief, the Speechcraft workshop is mainly targeted at prospective Toastmasters and anyone who is interested in learning more about public speaking. It was heartening to see so many fresh faces at the workshop, which is clearly a testament to the “bench-marketing” skills of our Toastmasters!

The Speechcraft workshop was mainly centered around getting our guests to step out of their comfort zone and get a feel of the excitement and sense of accomplishment that public speaking can bring to an individual. As such a sizeable part of the workshop was dedicated to introducing our guests to the segment of every chapter meeting we all know and love, Table Topics – more on that later.

Firstly, we kicked off the workshop with an introduction by our Toastmaster-of-the-Evening, the articulate and very animated Michael. Following that, the Club President, Nathaddeus gave a rousing opening address to our dear guests to give them a proper welcome to the workshop. The first Educational Talk, Taking the Terror out of Talk of the evening was held by Wekie Tay, DTM. It is always a pleasure to be the audience when Wekie is speaking – there is never a dull moment. The main takeaway from the first Educational Talk was how to overcome your fear (of public speaking). Wekie shared with us many useful tips no doubt gained from his vast experiences in public speaking. Moving on to the next Educational Talk, How to Tackle Table Topics, we had Darryl Lee, ACB, ALB to share with us how to go about tackling table topics. He shared with us many useful tips and various methods on how to go about tackling table topics. Darryl’s charming demeanor and megawatt smile captured the attention of everyone in the room with ease.

After that we had some volunteers (some involuntarily so, thanks to Andrew!) from the audience to try out some Table Topics! There were definitely many talented individuals in the room that day, and it was interesting to hear what they had to say. The guests were then split into five groups for a “Breakout Session” whereby everyone got a chance to try out Table Topics within their groups! It was an encouraging sight to behold – individuals who only moments before had their own inhibitions about public speaking, picking up the courage to step out of their comfort zone. Is that not the whole point of being a Toastmaster

After a short refreshment break, we entered the final phase of the workshop which comprised of the last (but definitely not least) Educational Talk, How to Organize Your Speech by Chin Jun Han, CC. Jun Han delivered the talk flawlessly and with unwavering confidence. Organizing your speech is a skill that many spend years perfecting, and I am glad Jun Han was able to share his knowledge with our guests. Lastly, our beloved Wekie took the room by storm once more by conveying to us the importance of communication and leadership in the world of the present and future (How Communication and Leadership Can Help You Succeed). All in all, it was such a thoroughly convincing segment and I am sure many of the guests felt the same way too! Alas, all good things do come to an end (as it would seem for the workshop and this post – just kidding!), with that the workshop drew to a close.

It was a very informative and structured workshop, with plenty of opportunities for our guests to interact with each other and speak up if they have something to say. I do hope to see most, if not all of them joining NUS Toastmasters in the near future! As some of you may have noticed, I have carefully avoided going into the specifics of the material that was taught. Perhaps you wish to learn more about Toastmasters or to gain some more valuable public speaking skills? It’s easy!

NUS Toastmasters holds variety of workshops and events catering to various facets of public speaking all year-round. Our arms are wide open for our members, prospective members and guests!

Entry by: Ong Leon Jin (PR Subcomm)