This is my sixth Toastmasters speech which I presented at Farnham Speakers. The goal was ‘Vocal Variety’.
I am pretty happy with how this one went and it also won ‘Best Prepared Speech’ on the night. The vocal variety was commended but of course there are always going to be things that I need to work on:
- HANDS: Distracting. I do use body language for effect pretty well nowadays (and avoid pacing!) but the hands do attract comments. This may be a tough one to break.
- SHADES OF GREY: I do a good job of quiet/loud and soft/harsh switching in this speech. Is there room for more though? Shades of grey and smoother transitions between the two? That said, the ‘snap’ transitions were deliberate…
- EYE CONTACT: I loved this suggestion! While I make eye contact with the audience I do not quite let it linger enough to make it as powerful as it could be. It’s something to experiment with.
One thing I found very interesting when giving this speech was the audience reaction. Yes, they laughed as I hoped but it was clear some thought the transition to the serious part of the speech was just a set-up to another gag. I wonder what can be done about that? Or is it just a recognised hazard with giving a 6-7 minute speech which is trying to cross both worlds?
My next speech will have the goal of ‘Research Your Topic’ so I need to get thinking…
Finally, everything in the speech is true!