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Dear All,

A special thank you to the speakers who took on a somewhat daunting task: studying a piece of work by a poet unknown to most of them. Then to provide a reading, using their best vocal variety and further helping us understand what the poet was trying to tell us!

Many thanks also to Thomas, who brought both light-heartedness and seriousness into his Toast to the Lassies. Your example of Jane Goodall, whose monumental work with primates shames our efforts into nothingness, was a superb choice. To Vanessa for her Toast to the Laddies, and finally to Yesi: who captured the spirit of Burns’ Address to the Haggis, and made it personal as well as clear to the audience what this was all about!

Huge thank yous to our team of bard interpreters: Denisse – you captured the essence of what Robert Burns tried to tell us. Samira, your eloquent embracing of Burns’ Mountain Daisy was outstanding. And, Roland, old faithful: who was already familiar with Burns, chose one of his most illustrative poems to share with us!  

Thank you, also, to the Evaluators, Timer, and Vote-counter who rounded off the evening.  

I’ve had many messages of thanks and congratulations from fellow members since yesterday evening! So, I think we can safely say the event was a success!

Kindest regards

Harry

Fellow Toastmasters Zuriberg and friends, 

Last Tuesday, we gathered for yet another exquisite evening at our beloved Zuriberg Toastmasters club. While the space was limited, our spirits were soaring high, and the word of the day was “exquisite.”

The Evening’s Flow

Our Toastmaster of the evening, Elias, guided us through an intriguing exploration of what delicacy means to each of us. Delicacy, as we discovered, transcends mere food; it encompasses the subtle beauty in nature, cherished memories, and, in our Toastmaster community, the art of delivering a near-perfect speech. Elias’s eloquent introductions set the tone for an evening filled with charm and grace.

Elias closed the evening with a personal inspirational quote: “Delicacy is a fine speech. That speech keeping you on your toes. That speech that is composed not by words but by exquisite music. That speech that we will remember forever”.

Speaker Highlights

“Conquering Procrastination”: Ruxandra‘s speech emphasized that the pursuit of perfection can hinder our growth. She shared techniques to overcome procrastination and encouraged fearless public speaking. Her message was clear: achievement triumphs over perfection. Christina’s engagement to the speech resulted to an inspiring passionate evaluation resonated with the audience.

“My Bed, Your Bed, or Our Bed?”: Ana-Maria artfully coupled conflict management strategies with storytelling in her speech, depicting the comical situation of sharing a guest room with two unwilling cats. Her creative approach earned her the Best Speaker award. Ettienne, provided a well-constructed evaluation to help Anna to bring her speech to the next level of story-telling. The holistic analysis approach  with the engaging delivery, granted him the best evaluation award.

“The Language of the Body”: Svetlana explored the impact of body language, highlighting its role in conveying attitude, mood, and vulnerability. Anna’sevaluation provided practical insights into controlling nervousness through breathing techniques.

Kevin brought a delightful array of table topics, from memorable childhood moments to mastering new skills. Pietro’s tale of the perfect gelato recipe earned him the Table Topics award.

The evening concluded with a thoughtful evaluation by General Evaluator Thomas and his team. Fereshte, Vadim, and Gabriele provided their insightful reports on time, filler words and use of language, while Thomas emphasized the power of a passionate engaging evaluation in both educating the speaker and captivating the audience.

Conclusion

Toastmasters Zuriberg proved that delicacy extends beyond the culinary world. It resides in the finesse of speeches, the art of storytelling, and the skillful evaluation of our fellow members. As we continue our Toastmasters journey, we are reminded that it is not just about perfection but about growth, engagement, and the joy of sharing our voices.

What is on the horizon? 

The next regular meeting is on October 10th under the theme, “appraisal”. On October 17th we host the panel discussion, with two panels proving insights on two topics: “Impact of Technology on Daily Lives” & “Ethical Leadership”.

 Kind Regards 

Vanessa Stournari

President TMC Zuriberg

Last night, in the cozy ambiance of Thai Heaven restaurant, we hold another invigorating Zuriberg Toastmasters meeting.

Our Toastmaster for the evening, Monica, set the stage with a well-researched introduction on the theme of the day: the illusory phenomenon of Fata Morgana. This question got us thinking, what is our own Fata Morgana?

Learning Through Speeches

Our evening was filled with three captivating prepared speeches, engaging table topics, and insightful evaluations, all contributing to our ongoing journey in mastering the art of public speaking.

Joran kicked things off with his icebreaker titled “Time for Some Action.” He shared his journey in overcoming his fear of public speaking, emphasizing the value of preparation, reading on public speaking, and inspiration from fellow Toastmasters. Svetlana, his evaluator, praised his colorful language, making his icebreaker truly engaging.

Anna earned the Best Speaker award with her speech “In the Mind of a Tour Guide.” She skillfully wove her experiences as a Zurich tour guide into a compelling storytelling technique. Roland, her evaluator, praised her excellent technique,  giving the characterization of the perfect packaging. Roland not only praised Anna, but he also coupled masterfully the storytelling technique of her speech into his own evaluation speech. And that succesfully granted him the best evaluator award. 

Toastmasters isn’t just about public speaking; it’s a community where we grow, connect, and find inspiration for life projects. Eric, a long-standing Zuriberg member celebrating a significant milestone of 10 years with Zuriberg, delivered an engaging speech titled “Reaching Out for Research.” He shared how his Toastmasters experience had helped him master the art of interviewing, emphasizing the values of intent, trust, agreement, and comfort.

Michelle provided a tailor-made evaluation for Eric, highlighting the need for more information about the project while acknowledging his passionate delivery. Speeches can be informative, humorous, or personal, but it was Eric’s personal, participative style which resonated with the audience.

Meeting Reflection

Our General Evaluator, Tatyana, and her team diligently monitored the evening, commending the meeting organization by our Sergeant at Arms, Samira. They also highlighted the effective evaluation techniques used by our evaluators. Our grammarian Seline and ah counter Fereshte contributed with excellent language usage and real-case filler word avoidance.

The word of the day, “spectre” (wisely chosen by Seline), was aptly matched to the theme, adding a touch of mystique to our evening. Table Topics, curated by Pietro, further embraced the Fata Morgana theme. Elias won the Table Topics session with a captivating tale of overcoming drinking problems by making a deal with the devil, delivered with vivid facial expressions. Tall-tale at its best, let the imagination go wild!

What’s on the Horizon?

While delivering a speech may seem like a Fata Morgana for many of us, there’s no better way to turn fear into achievement than by taking the stage. Our next regular meeting is scheduled for September 26^th. Please step up and assign roles and speeches through Easyspeak. Additionally, note that our next meeting will be held in the first-floor restaurant, so kindly confirm your attendance or absence in Easyspeak ahead of time.

Don’t forget to sign up for the Panel Discussion on October 17th! With two moderating panel discussions, each featuring four panelists and an open floor for Q&A, it promises to be an exciting event.

Best Regards

Vanessa Stournari

President Zuriberg TMC

Fellow Toastmasters and Friends,

At the recent Toastmaster’s meeting held on September 12^th, we came together to celebrate the arrival of autumn. The evening was filled with three captivating prepared speeches, engaging table topics, and energetic evaluations, all contributing to our ongoing journey in honing our public speaking skills at our favorite guilt hall of Blue Monkey. 

One notable moment during the meeting was the selection of the word of the day, “Laurels,” well chosen by our Grammarian, Zsolt. Best speaker laurel was awarded to Christina for her vibrant speech titled “Care for Tea.” In her speech, Christina shared a personal and engaging story, accompanied by expressive body language, recounting how human connection over a cup of tea helped her overcome a burglar’s intrusion during her days in England.

Fereshte also made an impact with her icebreaker speech titled “Resilience.” Through her compelling storytelling, she transported us to Iran and her childhood, where she learned to develop resilience skills that continue to serve her well today. Fereshte’s speech beautifully illustrated that once we know how to confront life’s challenges, they cannot hold us back.

Michelle, with her charm and creativity, offered insights into the world of coaching in her speech. She explored the intriguing topic of coaching oneself, addressing the question of what happens when you attempt to coach the most challenging person in the room—you. Her speech emphasized the importance of self-love as a key factor in positive coaching for both the body and the mind.

The Art of Evaluation

Alice excelled in her role was laureled by the audience. Not only ahe provided constructive feedback but also educated the audience on how to build the intensity of a speech. Alice dissected Fereshte’s speech to highlight its build-up, emphasizing that evaluation speeches are not just about feedback, but also about educating the audience on the effective use of speech elements. Ana-Maria and Ruxandra, our other evaluators, also contributed significantly, demonstrating how well we can learn from one another.

Table Topics Creativity

Our Table Topic master Habiba selected a fitting autumn-related theme, allowing us to delve into what autumn means to each of us, from cherished memories to seasonal clothing and rituals. Table Topic laurel was awarded to Samira for her adept use of creativity, speech structure, and body language in her response.

What’s on the Horizon?

As we embrace autumn, we continue to grow and thrive in our public speaking journey, learning from one another and setting new milestones. We look forward to the two upcoming  regular meetings scheduled for September 19^th and 26^th. Be sure to step up and take roles in Easyspeak. Additionally, please note that we will be at the first floor, the Thai Heaven, so kindly confirm your attendance or absence in Easyspeak ahead of time.

In an exciting development, I am happy to announce that we will be hosting a panel discussion on October 17th! Save the date, and more information will follow shortly.

Best Regards, 

Vanessa Stournari

President Zuriberg TMC

Dear Fellow Zuriberg Toastmasters,

What a delight to see so many of you last Tuesday evening at Blue Monkey!  Autumn made its dynamic appearance and an audience of 20 was present to learn about mentoring and to enjoy the amazing atmosphere of our Zuriberg community.

We had a full agenda of two icebreakers and our long longed-for mentoring workshop.

Breaking the ice

Our new members, Gabriele and Zsolt, shared with us their well-prepared ice breaker speeches. Gabriele described his career transition from architect to software engineer with vivid metaphors and humorous elements. His title ‘Navigating new Adventures 2.0’ could not have been better suited to his life story.  From a very young age, Zsolt was driven to discover mankind΄s secrets, encrypted in our DNA: it is the code of life and holds the secrets of our past. He took us on a journey through time and geography, even unraveling the secrets that DNA reveals about the past of Native Americans.

Diving in to the depth of proper mentoring

The epitomic event of the evening (word of the day) was none other than the mentoring workshop. Mentoring is one of the backbones of our club. It connects us, fosters relationships between members, helps us learn from each other and progress with our public speaking goals. Harry and Roland guided us through the fundamentals of how to best build and foster a relationship between mentor and mentee. Are there specific traits for each role and what are these traits? During the second phase of the workshop, the interactive part, we had the opportunity to sit in pairs and try out both the roles of mentor and mentee. The do΄s and don’ts were then discussed in the open round with Harry and Roland moderating the discussion to extract the essence: Discuss goals with openness, effective listening and taking care to avoid mirroring.

A big applause and thank you to Harry and Roland for creating the content and organized the workshop with such passion and energy.

Autumn is here and we get back into our regular meetings to progress with our goals and speeches. In September, we have 3 regular meetings coming. The next one is on September 12^th with the theme “Autumn”. There are still some roles open, step up and take them!

Please confirm attendance or absence in Easyspeak, it helps all of us with planning and smooth run of the evening.

Looking forward seeing you on September 12^th! 

Best Regards

Vanessa Stournari

President Zuriberg TMC

 Fellow Toastmasters,

Last week the new committee was incepted in an evening dedicated to Leadership. As the committee members completed their High Leadership Projects (Level 5), they presented their last year’s work, shared their learnings, shed light into the purpose behind their officer roles and, most importantly, explained their motivation to serve the club in the upcoming term.

We thanked our immediate Past President Roland Straub for his immense contribution to the club. In his speech, Roland shared with us insights into Leadership what the gained during his presidential tenure, in particular his experimenting with different leadership styles and balancing between previous experience in the corporate world and a volunteer organization.

The meeting closed with an energetic table topic session on new beginnings moderated by Aaron Huànico-Ramos.

We achieved so much in the last year, as individuals and together as a club. As we progressed on our paths we saw new members coming in and evolving into competent speakers, earned numerous external nominations for our members’ accomplishments; 

• Elias Miano and immediate Past President Roland got nominated for the triple crown
  award in the District Conference, and saw our members
• Alice Nuslova
  and Monica Vlad compete and win the second place at the Speech
  contests at Division Level.

 At the club level, 

• we attained the President’s Distinguished Status and, 
• our VP Mentoring Harry Loots and Karina Castella got acknowledged at the District Conference for their contribution to the Toastmasters Organization.  Harry and Karina organized multiple contests and got us established in the Toastmasters world.

 I could not be prouder of being a member of this club and its exceptional committee, which works tirelessly to create room for all of us to thrive.

Toastmasters ethos is to develop its members into confident public speakers and leaders. Same to a sailing boat, leadership committee roles, where everyone has an equally important role to play has been the essence of my personal learning xperience, having served as VP Membership, VP Education, and transitioning to President.

The pleasures of sailing, such as basking in the joy of the sea, are similar to the great speeches we relish every Tuesday at our club. However, for the ship to sail, substantial administration work must be done and there are many rules we adhere to, by the 
captain and the crew. Similarly, every club officer needs to deliver on their tasks, and each one of them is an equally important member of the Toastmasters boat, Additionally, every one gets the chance to shape the future of our club.

Shaping a supportive environment, giving back to the community, getting a glimpse into the Toastmasters organization, and understanding the significance of their role for the club, as well as the impact they have on their fellow members are key motivators for our committee members. These elements inspire them to continue serving the club, whether in their current role or in a new one, in the upcoming year.

Next year the Zuriberg Toastmasters’ resolutions are to continue working together towards achieving our goals, learn collectively in this great environment but also to live up to the heritage of being the biggest and one of the best clubs in our District, but without losing focus on our main goal: having lots of fun while learning!

To accomplish that, we prepared a highly diversified agenda full of interesting workshops, engaging debates, and an Award Dinner that will open up the opportunity to practice diverse speech styles. Come up and declare interest to be part of these events!

Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow, the meeting theme is Culture! 

Best Wishes,

Vanessa Stournari, IP5

President
zuribergtoastmasters.ch