Dear Zuriberg Toastmasters and friends,
Marathon speaks for endurance, inspiration, and praises the human mind! Our recent Speakathon was last Tuesday was a vibrant showcase of that, a testament to the art of communication!Seven back-to-back speeches, spread over all pathways levels, unfolded a night of eloquence and diverse insights.
Our Toastmaster of the evening, Thomas, guided us through the night with carnival colors, aligning with the Fasnacht or Swiss Carnival atmosphere. A huge thank you to each participant for making it such an enriching experience!
Celebrating our Speakers
Julian visited us from the “Walk the Talk TMC”, and offered us a compelling narrative on “how to fail like a leader” teaching us the valuable lessons embedded in failure.
Fereshteh took us on a “Poetry” journey through time and Iran, engaging the audience with metaphors and well-constructed content — a testament to the essential elements of an informative speech, both reflecting and insightful. What made us to embark on the travel with her? Inviting the audience to close their eyes and delve in the world of poetry, is an exceptional move for an immersive experience of the audience! Everyone followed!
Aaron unveiled the meaning of a happy life or “Ikigai” structuring his speech on its four key elements! Aaron’s educational speech featured an excellent structure, relatable examples, and a harmonious conversational tone. Closing the eyes and immersing in the topic, is an excellent trick to beat the urge for using filler words and engage to more vocal variety!
Christina shared her personal story and, emphasized the importance of language pronunciation for effective communication, in a speeech delivered with humor, while educating the audience on how not to get “lost in translation”. Adding to those speech winning elements, the masterful use of the English language, it was no surprise she captured the first speaker award.
Sabina demonstrated the use of our different platforms (Basecamp, TMI and Easyspeak) in our Toastmasters journey and she skillfully handled a challenging audience, showcasing communication skills beyond the ordinary. Talkers, interrupters and chatters, cannot steal your stage shine, managing the audience is a learnable skill!
Kevin masterfully persuaded the audience with a well-researched argument on how our brain works. The “Unseen strings” of his speech was marked by an engaging opening and impeccable delivery. Content and delivery are both equally required for pursuading any audience!
Alessandro introduced himself with an icebreaker! Sharing his objectives and his passion, for Italy and parmesan. An engaging icebreaker, showing us what to come from our new member!
The Art of Evaluation
A masterful evening with evaluations helped us understand the difference between advice and feedback. Evaluation speeches not only support the speakers to their public speaking journey, but are also educating the audience! Alice and Richard shared the first-place award, emphasizing constructive observations and storytelling.
Final thoughts and Thanks
This Speakathon was a testament to the diverse talents within our club and the supportive environment that fosters growth and learning. Each speech was a step forward in our journey of personal and professional development. Our event΄s success was also due to the seamless coordination and support from everyone, our Grammarian, Ah and Vote Counter, Evaluators and the committee Anna, Samira, Harry for organizing the welcome process! A big thank you to all for your energy and participation!
What’s in the Horizon?
Let us carry forward this momentum and continue to support each other in our speaking endeavours!
Many regular meetings are coming up, at different venues! Explore various themes & stages:
February 20th – Regular meeting with Theme: “Strategic” and Svetlana as our TME: (Zunfthaus zur Zimmerleuten).
February 27th – Regular meeting with Theme: “New Beginnings” and Michelle as ourTME (Gross Saal in Karl der Grosse).
March 12th – Regular Meeting with “Shocking” Theme and Joanna as our TME (L200).
Special Events
Area E4 Contest: Friday, February 23rd, 17:30 to 22:00 in Europaallee (or join online).
Come to support our club winners, Thomas, Christina, Elias and myself, Vanessa at the international, evaluation and table topics speech contests.
Engaging speeches and mingle with the other Toastmasters clubs of our area is what to expect (Walk the Talk, Top Notch, Credit Suisse Corporate Club and St. Gallen). Register here.
Area E4 German Speech Contest: Saturday, February 24th, online.
How are speeches of our area doing in German? Join to explore and maybe support. Register here.
Kind Regards
Vanessa Stournari
President Zuriberg Toastmasters Club