When you are the Toastmaster of the Day

Toastmaster's Speech

Type of Speech: Speak with Knowledge

From: Phil Brady

Date: July, 1, 2008

Title of Speech: Back to Basics; When you are the Toastmaster of the Day!


Opening:
When we are the Toastmaster of the Day, we are responsible for running the meeting. What does that mean? It means preparation, presentation and evaluation. These are the 3 cornerstones of Toastmasters.

Preparation is planning the meeting in advance. Contacting the participants and making sure they accept their role and will be prepared.

Presentation is starting the meeting and advancing the agenda while watching the clock. Our club has the challenge of making sure we are out of here exactly at 8 a.m. If we don’t leave on time, our brothers who meet after us will let us know. In other words, failure to hit our schedule does not constitute a schedule adjustment for those who follow us. They just barge right in whether we are finished or not. You can’t buy that kind of motivation in a volunteer group!

Evaluation is reflecting on how the meeting went and determining what improvements would make your role as Toastmaster of the Day better, easier or less stressful next time.


Body:
Let’s look at preparation. I like to begin preparing for my role as Toastmaster of the Day at the end of the previous meeting. I do this by paying close attention to the review of next week’s schedule and noting those who are present to see if they accept their role, need a replacement and who volunteers to be the replacement.

Our club is good about sending out next week’s agenda via email ASAP after the last meeting. This gives everyone plenty of time to know their assignment and to be prepared. Our email instructions are simple; Speakers, TT, WJM, HS and ME are expected to confirm their assignment to the TM. The other participants; Evaluators, Ah Counter, Grammarian, Timer and Greeter should confirm to the ME.

As Toastmaster of the Day, I like to contact my speakers via email or phone even if they were at the last meeting just to double check on their participation. I ask them how long their speeches are so I am not surprised Tuesday morning with a 20 minute speech for which I wasn’t prepared. I also remind them to bring me an introduction.

Once my speakers have confirmed their assignment, the TT & WJM are on board I inform the ME how many speakers we have and who they are. The schedule changes so much the ME needs to know this in case they want to reassign evaluators based on the experience level of participants.

Now that the ME has parlayed with me, we have completed our advance preparation. Unless I get a change before the meeting, all systems are GO! I now have the “just prior to meeting” preparation to do. This is a very important step.

At the meeting, arrive early to gather up introductions of the speakers. Read these to insure you can read the person’s handwriting and/or become familiar with their words and phrases. Check with the WJM, TT and ME to make sure they are ready. If there is a hiccup, now is the time to call on the HS to fill in. Once you have touch base with the participants and adjusted to changes, you are ready to go!

The Sergeant of Arms will open the meeting and introduce the president who will make announcements and then introduce you. You may want to provide the president with an introduction of your own. Once you are introduced, take possession of the lectern and begin your role in the meeting by greeting your fellow members and working down the agenda.

I like to use a worksheet agenda when I am Toastmaster of the Day. It has the agenda items and notes to remind me what to do when. From here on, the TM’s role is to introduce the participants, relinquish the lectern, take it back when it is handed off to you and lead the applause.

When it is time for Tabletopics, instruct the TT master to cut off the questions at 7:45 to allow time for the evaluations. After evaluations, call for a review of next week’s schedule while the votes are counted and the WJM fills out the award cards. After handing out the awards, turn the meeting back over to the president.

Once the meeting is over, reflect on how well the meeting went and what (if anything) you could do to improve it next time.


Conclusion:
The role of Toastmaster of the Day is 85% preparation and 15% execution. Advanced planning and a good agenda will help you hone your skills as Toastmaster of the Day. This is one of the valuable skills that can be transferred to everyday life in work, church or civic organizations. The role of emcee, facilitator or leader is usually up for grabs and your stepping into it can make a difference in any organization.

Be prepared, stay on your agenda and most important, SMILE! These are the keys to successful Toastmaster of the Day.



Mr. (or Madame) Toastmaster.


Toastmaster of the Day, Meeting Planner and Agenda


7:00 a.m. Pledge of Allegiance.

7:02 a.m. Greeting and announcements by president.

7:06 a.m. Introduction of Toastmaster of the Day.

7:08 a.m. Introduce the WJM: ___________________________

7:10 a.m. Introduce the ME who will introduce their staff: ___________

7:12 a.m. Introduce speaker #1: ____________________

Please take a moment to write a note for the speaker.

Introduce speaker #2: ________________________

Please take a moment to write a note for the speaker.

Introduce speaker #3: _______________________

Please take a moment to write a note for the speaker.

Call for a timer’s report.

~7:32 a.m. Introduce the Table topics Master: ___________________

7:45 a.m. Call for a timer’s report.

7:46 a.m. Introduce the Master Evaluator: _____________________

7:55 a.m. Call for a timer’s report.

7:56 a.m. Go over next week’s schedule.

7:58 a.m. Hand out awards.

7:59 a.m. Turn the meeting back over to the president.

8:00 a.m. Adjourn.