Young Guns Speechcraft: Edith Cowan University

Young Guns Toastmasters recently visited Edith Cowan University to deliver a Speechcraft for accounting and finance students. A Speechcraft involves presenting the basics of public speaking to non-members, usually in the format of Toastmasters club meeting. However, at Young Guns we like to do things a bit differently. Our session was aimed at getting the students up on stage as much as possible and consisted of three main segments: prepared speeches, icebreakers and Table Topics.

Prepared Speeches

Three of our most experienced Young Guns were tasked with delivering a speech on one or two of the topics in the Competent Communicator Manual. Tim gave a fantastic example of an icebreaker speech and also talked about how to organise your speech using the rule of threes. Lois discussed the importance of how you say it in delivering an effective speech. And finally, Rimma compared the differences in researching your topic between academia, work and Toastmasters.

Icebreakers

We surprised the students by asking them all to prepare their own 2-minute icebreaker speech for the audience. Many of those in attendance thought they would simply be listening to a lecture about public speaking – not getting up on stage themselves. Our Young Guns got into groups with the students to help them construct their speeches over a 15 minute time frame. We were very impressed by the quality of the icebreakers, especially given that there was very limited preparation time.

Table Topics

It wouldn’t be a Toastmasters meeting without Table Topics! Many of the students got up on stage for a second time and gave responses to some interesting topics put together by Seb. Those in the audience were kept on their toes with speeches ranging from award acceptances to zombie escape plans.

And of course, all the students were timed and evaluated because one of the most important things about Toastmasters is genuine feedback. The general evaluator for the evening, Liam, provided some personal feedback for each student, both commendations and recommendations. Of course there was also a timing report, delivered by Sarah, before our President, Shil, closed the meeting – or at least the formal part of it. Both students and Young Guns stuck around to chat about the session and network together.

If you would like Young Guns to come to your workplace or community organisation to deliver a Speechcraft, let us know! You can find us on Facebook or contact us through our website https://youngguns.org.au/