Toastmasters International Speech Contest on ZOOM

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by Moe Wozniak

A North Grenville Toastmasters member will be competing in the 2021 Toastmasters International Speech Contest.

Speakers who have placed in their local club contests this winter will now move on to the second level of competition on Friday, March 5. The fifth and final step takes place at the Toastmasters (TM) International Convention. Last year, the event was scheduled to take place in Paris, France; however, with the onslaught of COVID-19, these plans had to be cancelled. All competitions and conferences this season have been through video conferencing, and this year our ‘Division: A’ semi-final contest will be held on Zoom. The third step on the ladder to finals is ‘Division’, fourth step is District 61 (Eastern Ontario, Quebec and upper New York State), and the final step takes place at the Toastmasters International Convention.

Every speech contest needs an audience. You are invited to come and support our local speakers at this semifinal event. These events are enjoyable, entertaining, and the admission is free. Speech topics and content must consist of original material, and topics can be about anything you can possibly imagine. Thanks to video conferencing, a global invitation is open to anyone with a computer/internet connection from anywhere in the world. Last spring, the District competition brought over 700 attendees to the Zoom competition. Toastmasters International is a non-profit educational organization found in 143 countries worldwide with more than 358,000 members.

In addition to the TM International Speech Contest on March 5, the TM Evaluation Contest is another competition being held at this event. For this competition, the contest Chairperson introduces a ‘Test’ speaker at the beginning of the contest. Each contestant must then respond with a short evaluation of the test speaker’s presentation regarding structure, speechcraft, confidence, diction, grammar, and body language – all within a two minute window. Evaluation is a big part of the Toastmasters learning experience, where members receive feedback about the positive points of their speaking skills and how to improve with confidence and finesse.

Guests are always welcome at Toastmasters events. If you are a person searching to improve your communication skills, this event is a must-see. Business owners and restaurateurs require confident communication skills to speak effectively with their employees, clients, suppliers, and media connections, especially with ‘lockdown’ news these days. Sports coaches, real estate agents, artists, musicians, and media people may be interested in improving their communication and leadership skills. Perhaps you have an upcoming wedding, or family event, for which to prepare a speech or presentation. If so, this event is for you. Be sure to invite your family, friends, and neighbours to your own Zoom party for this scintillating event … on Friday night … no travel … no parking … order in.

Zoom portal opens: 6:30 pm. Event: 7:00 pm.

Get the Zoom link for this event: https://northgrenville.toastmastersclubs.org

North Grenville Toastmasters is meeting now with Zoom. The North Grenville Toastmasters meet on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month. Our regular meeting place is at O’Farrell Financial Services, 292 County Road 44 in Kemptville. For more information about Toastmasters and its new education venue, Pathways, visit the North Grenville Toastmasters website: https://8032.toastmastersclubs.org.

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