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thinking about toastmasters
HI all, Merry Christmas to those who are in a Christmas area/country. Otherwise happy holidays of the mid winter variety. I must admit I am not aware enough of Buddhist holidays to celebrate those but I move between Christianity and Buddhism as I have for many years. In that balance of finding community for myself and my family with practicing Buddhism as I can I started to attend a United Methodist Church here in Denver. It is a very nice place with interfaith services later on Sunday and regular services on Sunday morning. I like that it is a familiar service like what I grew up with however I feel no pressure to 'agree' or make a choice concerning Buddhism when I attend.
I got an email from the minister asking if I would do a reading on Christmas Eve! This is pretty darn cool. There is a well known jazz singer in Denver who is performing at the service and it should be packed. So I am deciding on what to wear and all that. I have seen myself as an introvert but I doubt that anymore. A few things have come together in a serendipitous way, getting some effective behavior management at winter break camp, reading at church, picking up a book I thought was one thing and then reading it last night (it was about major public speaking for women) and then my own continual pull towards some type of leading meditation. So I found the local toastmasters group and sent an email. They meet weekly here and it could be a good thing to do next.
So I have to share and anyone who works with kids will understand. I was doing groups in the gym with games, the oldest group of 10 kids (7-11 years old) are real arguers. We tried 2 games and they both ended up being stopped because the arguing took over the game, shouts of he cheated, the rules are this, i am not out, etc. So after the 2nd time I stopped the playing I sat them down and we talked about how in professional sports the players do not run up to the ref and start arguing like they did with me. Then I had them sit in the circle quietly for one full minute. I started an activity silently, just telling them I would not talk so they had to watch and figure it out. We did this 'pass a clap around the circle' team builder 3 times to get good at it. The energy changed when success was not on competition and instead on cooperation. Then they got the prize toy thing they could play with in the gym. I had a lot of the same kids over summer at camp and I can see where if I have them again we have specific things we can work on rather than arguing during play time. I am not sure how taking a group of kids and calming them is related to public speaking, however I can see a connection in some way. A moment where I love my job and yet know I could take this to do more and earn what I need.
I got an email from the minister asking if I would do a reading on Christmas Eve! This is pretty darn cool. There is a well known jazz singer in Denver who is performing at the service and it should be packed. So I am deciding on what to wear and all that. I have seen myself as an introvert but I doubt that anymore. A few things have come together in a serendipitous way, getting some effective behavior management at winter break camp, reading at church, picking up a book I thought was one thing and then reading it last night (it was about major public speaking for women) and then my own continual pull towards some type of leading meditation. So I found the local toastmasters group and sent an email. They meet weekly here and it could be a good thing to do next.
So I have to share and anyone who works with kids will understand. I was doing groups in the gym with games, the oldest group of 10 kids (7-11 years old) are real arguers. We tried 2 games and they both ended up being stopped because the arguing took over the game, shouts of he cheated, the rules are this, i am not out, etc. So after the 2nd time I stopped the playing I sat them down and we talked about how in professional sports the players do not run up to the ref and start arguing like they did with me. Then I had them sit in the circle quietly for one full minute. I started an activity silently, just telling them I would not talk so they had to watch and figure it out. We did this 'pass a clap around the circle' team builder 3 times to get good at it. The energy changed when success was not on competition and instead on cooperation. Then they got the prize toy thing they could play with in the gym. I had a lot of the same kids over summer at camp and I can see where if I have them again we have specific things we can work on rather than arguing during play time. I am not sure how taking a group of kids and calming them is related to public speaking, however I can see a connection in some way. A moment where I love my job and yet know I could take this to do more and earn what I need.
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Comments
One thing you can do when invited to do public speaking is practice out loud at home. Time yourself, to make sure your speech fits in the allotted time, and psych yourself. You can even practice in front of a friend, or borrow a classroom at school, after classes, and stand in front of the room and read your speech as if it were a full room.
You might discover you don't need toastmasters.