Tag: public speaking

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🎀Ornamented – Toastmasters Zuriberg Themed Meeting 🥂

An ornamented speech isn’t just about the facts… it’s about the flair! 🤩 It’s the art of using vivid descriptions 🎨, poetic language ✒️, and vocal sparkle ✨ to make your message truly beautiful. It’s what makes a good speech an unforgettable one! So come ready to adorn your words, polish your delivery, and let your language absolutely shimmer!

🗓 Date: Tuesday, December 09, 2025
🕡 Time: 18:45
📍 Location: Weisser Wind, Oberdorfstrasse 20, 8001 Zürich
🎨 Theme: Ornamented – Adorn your words, polish your delivery

“It’s not what we say but how we say it that matters.”
— Federico Fellini

Adorn your speeches with poetic flair and festive charm. This is the season of sparkle—so let your language shimmer. 🎁💫

🌿 Guests are warmly welcome — please sign up via Meetup:
👉 meetup.com/zuriberg-toastmasters-club

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🍽️Feast of Words – Toastmasters Zuriberg Themed Meeting 🥂

Get your appetites ready… tonight we are serving a Feast of Words! 🥳 This is where every speech is a delicious dish 🍲, every evaluation is a sweet treat 🍰, and every round of Table Topics is a zesty appetizer 🌶️! So come hungry for knowledge 🧠, ready to savor every story, and share your own unique ‘flavor’ with us all. Let’s dig in!

🗓 Date: Tuesday, November 25, 2025
🕡 Time: 18:45
📍 Location: Zum Grünen Glas, Untere Zäune 15, 8001 Zürich
🎨 Theme: Feast of Words – Savor the flavor of language

“Words, like nature, half reveal and half conceal the soul within.”
— Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Join us at the banquet of storytelling and flavorful ideas. Indulge in eloquence and savor every syllable. 🍷📜

🌿 Guests are warmly welcome — please sign up via Meetup:
👉 meetup.com/zuriberg-toastmasters-club

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🔥 Kindling – Toastmasters Zuriberg Themed Meeting 🕯️

Kindling is that essential spark that lights the fire! 🔥 Join us this evening, where it’s the small story 📖, the powerful question 🤔, or the flicker of passion in your voice that will ignite an entire audience. It’s how we turn a simple idea into a roaring blaze of inspiration 🤩. So come ready to be the spark and let’s light up the room!

🗓 Date: Tuesday, November 18, 2025
🕡 Time: 18:45
📍 Location: Karl der Grosse, Kirchgasse 14, 8001 Zürich
🎨 Theme: Kindling – Ignite your inner spark

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.”
— Plutarch

A spark, an ember, a roaring flame—ignite the room with your passion. New beginnings and fresh fires start here. 🪵✨

🌿 Guests are warmly welcome — please sign up via Meetup:
👉 meetup.com/zuriberg-toastmasters-club

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🤫Whispers & Echoes – Toastmasters Zuriberg Themed Meeting 🍂

This Tuesday, our theme ‘Whispers & Echoes’ explores the subtle power of spoken word, from the quiet confidence of a whisper to the lasting impact of an echo. Discover how to command attention, whether speaking softly or projecting boldly, and ensure your message resonates long after.

🗓 Date: Tuesday, November 11, 2025
🕡 Time: 18:45
📍 Location: Weisser Wind, Oberdorfstrasse 20, 8001 Zürich
🎨 Theme: Whispers & Echoes – The subtle power of lingering echoes

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
— Maya Angelou

Sometimes the quietest voices speak the loudest truths. Join us for an evening where we tune in to subtle strength and lingering thoughts.

🌿 Guests are warmly welcome — please sign up via Meetup:
👉 meetup.com/zuriberg-toastmasters-club

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👻Haunted – Zuriberg Toastmasters Debate Evening 🎃

Dare to step into the shadows this Halloween season as we face our biggest fears—the fear of public speaking in a special Debate evening.

The debate topic will be: “This House Believes That the primary measure of a country’s success should shift from Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to a Gross National Happiness (GNH) index.“

🗓 Date: Tuesday, October 28, 2025
🕡 Time: 18:45
📍 Location: Zum Grünen Glas, Untere Zäune 15, 8001 Zürich
🎨 Theme: Haunted – Conquer the fear of the unknown

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be defeated.”
— Neil Gaiman

Join us for a spooky, yet spirited, evening where you’ll conquer the ghosts of doubt and unearth your most courageous voice during our Debate special event.
🌿 Guests are warmly welcome — please sign up via Meetup:
👉 meetup.com/zuriberg-toastmasters-club

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🦋Metamorphosis – Zuriberg Toastmasters Themed Meeting

As autumn transforms the world around us, it’s a perfect time for our own Metamorphosis.

🗓 Date: Tuesday, October 21, 2025
🕡 Time: 18:45
📍 Location: Zum Grünen Glas, Untere Zäune 15, 8001 Zürich
🎨 Theme: Metamorphosis – From Cocoon to Confidence

“Every change in the season brings with it a chance for a new leaf to turn in your own life.”
— Anonymous

Join us to shed old habits, embrace new skills, and transform your communication from timid to triumphant. Witness and share the power of personal evolution!
🌿 Guests are warmly welcome — please sign up via Meetup:
👉 meetup.com/zuriberg-toastmasters-club

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🌳Rooted – Toastmasters Zuriberg Themed Meeting

Rooted

Just as mighty trees stand firm, drawing strength from deep within, join us for an evening to explore the foundations of powerful communication. Let’s grow our voices, strengthen our presence and branch out with confidence.

🗓 Date: Tuesday, October 14, 2025
🕡 Time: 18:45
📍 Location: Zum Grünen Glas, Untere Zäune 15, 8001 Zürich
🎨 Theme: Rooted – Cultivate your core message

“A tree with strong roots laughs at storms.”
— Malay proverb

Join us for an evening where we focus on internal growth and balance, on nurturing our roots, so that the next time we bloom 🌱, it will be a great spectacle of words.
🌿 Guests are warmly welcome — please sign up via Meetup:
👉 meetup.com/zuriberg-toastmasters-club

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𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭-𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫, 𝐝𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞 🌞🌞, 𝐝𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 🥇🥇 – Area Contest report by Christina Yap

Thanks to Christina Yap for allowing us to re-post her report from her double awards at the E4 Area Contest.

I am deeply honoured and thrilled to have received two No. 1 awards at Toastmasters. In this post, I share the recipe for success. 

For those of you out there who are up for your next challenge, may it inspire you to embrace challenges with a #growthmindset. Everyone else has a role to play too! Read on..

🚀 𝐄𝐦𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐞𝐭 🚀
“𝘛𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘸.”

Nine months into my Toastmasters journey, I was selected to represent my local Toastmasters club at the annual area speech contest. Last Friday, as I stood next to seasoned competitors, I could have succumbed to nerves.

However, I chose to embrace the opportunity. My passion for continuous learning, #personaldevelopment and the thrill of embracing new challenges kept me focused on the mission. As we navigate the AI revolution, I believe that cultivating a growth mindset and readiness to approach challenges with collectedness becomes more essential than ever before. This contest was a great opportunity for me to walk the talk.. 😉

All I had to do was be myself, try my best, apply all my transferable skills, knowledge, experience. And see what happens with a healthy dose of spontaneous #creativity…

The result?
🌞 𝑯𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒅: I received “𝑭𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝑷𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒆” awards in the
 🥇 ‘𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘦𝘤𝘩 𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯’ and
  🥇 ‘𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘴’ 
categories. I am truly humbled by the next opportunity to compete at the Divisional level…

𝐌𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬?

🎙️ 𝑰𝒏𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑨𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒔: The spellbinding techniques and motivational speeches delivered by my esteemed competitors truly inspired me. I learned much from observing everyone in action and by what they shared. 

🌟 𝑬𝒏𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒅 𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆: Everyone played a role in supporting the event in a hybrid context. A heartfelt thank you to our host, UBS, for providing the venue and every individual who collaborated to make it a success.

🙏🙏 𝑫𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒆: A big thank you to all the judges, my distinguished Zuriberg Toastmasters Club, committee and members for their much valued feedback, support and vote of confidence. Immense gratitude to my mentor, Roland Straub, for believing in me, Dr. Vanessa Stournari for her support, Alice Nuslova, PMP® for her guidance and to Ben Nordemann for introducing me to this fun path!

𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲? 
There’s a first time for everything! We just need passion, readiness to embrace new challenges and a supportive network!

𝐂𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐨𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥: where everyone has the opportunity to learn, grow and hone their #leadership skills.
Where Leaders Are Made✨

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A Night of Vibrancy  amidst Hibernation – meeting 14th November

Dear Zuriberg Toastmasters,

Tuesday’s gathering was far from hibernation—it was an evening of vibrancy and growth! Despite a last-minute change in venue, Ana Maria, our adept Toastmaster of the Evening, skillfully guided us through the night, showcasing the power of preparation in handling unforeseen challenges.

Our Table Topics Master curated a session inspired by the animal kingdom, leading to engaging impromptu speeches. Seline’s witty response not only avoided a frog kiss but earned her the Best Table Topics Award.

Special guest Santhiago, our former member and current Area Director, enlightened us about his role in Toastmasters Organisation. What is his vision for his year of service? His efforts are focused to enhance our public speaking journey through intra-club speeches, with available slots for the upcoming club Walk the talk—contact our VP Education Alice for a chance to participate.

Speaker highlights

  1. Pietro: Infused his speech on decision-making with acting flair, humor, and vivid storytelling, showcasing the importance of creativity on stage.
  2. Joran: Landed the Best Speaker Award with a tall tale that was imaginative, absurd, and humorously enriched with body language elements.
  3. Vadim: Explored stoicism with parallelism and philosophy jokes, delivering a well-structured speech with strong takeaways and audience engagement.
  4. Habiba: Shared insights into her leadership style, navigating us through her personal experience with emotional vocality. Trust and empowerment were key strengths in discovering her democratic and liberating leadership style. Thank you Habiba for sharing your story with us!

The art of evaluations

Our General Evaluator, Sabine, provided insightful feedback to all evaluators, emphasizing how well they demonstrated the speakers΄strengths and areas for improvement. Michelle received the Best Evaluator Award, celebrated for her unique style.

What is in the horizon?

A lot of events are coming! Animal kingdom may hibernate in winter, but Zuriberg Toastmaster make good use of the cold rainy days to hone our public speaking skills!

November 21st  – Regular Meeting with theme Music and Riccardo as TME!

November 22nd – Cross-club speech opportunity – contact Alice for seizing it.

November 28th – Award Dinner with Roland as our Host! Information to follow!

December 12th – Regular Meeting with theme Last Minute with Christina as TME!

December 19th – Christmas party –surprise, confirm attendance in Easyspeak!

The evening was a testament to the diverse talents within our club, fostering an environment to learn, grow and excel together.Let’s carry this inspiration into our next meetings!

Warmest wishes, 

Vanessa Stournari

President TMC Zuriberg
Please click here for details of our next club meeting

Vanessa Stournari

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Meeting 16. April 2013, Report by Kevin Boomsma

Nicola von Lutterotti, Vice President Membership, opened the evening and after welcoming our guests for the evening, reminded all of us to register for the Toastmasters Division E Spring Conference that takes place on April 27th in nearby Zollikerberg. More information is available at http://tmspringconference2013.wordpress.com/.

Former Area Governor Celine Horan announced that our club officer committee elections are coming up on the 14th of May and reminded us that serving the club as an officer is a great way to not only learn leadership through experience but also a chance to give back to the club.

Hui Mei Liew Kaiser (evaluated by Kevin Boomsma) opened the speaking session of the evening with her 4th speech in the Competent Communicator track entitled “Malaysians flying home to vote” in which she shared a personal story of how she and other Malaysians abroad go out of their way to make it back home for elections. Just as impressive were the efforts made by Malaysians in their homeland to help those abroad return home for the elections. Hui Mei’s speech was a source of inspiration to go that extra mile for the benefit of of the collective, whether they are our countrymen or fellow club members.

Ben Nordemann (evaluated by Martin Hahn) introduced us to an alternative approach in medicine in his 9th speech in the Competent Communicator track entitled “Biophotons – a better way?”. Ben introduced us to the realm of biophotons by first explaining what biophotons are and from where they emanate. He then described the current methodology of utilizing biophotons in the emerging field of biontology for diagnosing and treating disease through administering light therapy as part of a holistic approach. The topic captivated the audience and initiated an impromptu Q&A session immediately following the speech!

Nicola von Lutterotti delivered a Table Topics session that will go down in the books as one of the most encouraging sessions ever. Contestants had the opportunity to elaborate on something that is or was their favorite. I believe that I even saw a show of hands for the opportunity to be called on next! Even two of our guests tried their hand at the 1-2 minute speech. Guest Toastmaster from the TM Club of Budapest Csaba Kötcsei told us how his favorite occupation would be bus chauffeur. When asked about his favorite activity in retirement, guest Barry Wynter told us not only his favorite activities but also shared some Jamaican wisdom on living well by stating, “We get up early in the morning so we have more time to relax.”

The winners of the evening were Martin Hahn for his speech evaluation and our guest Barry Wynter for his Table Topics speech (and tip on how to relax).