We all had such an enjoyable time yesterday at our fortnightly Toastmasters meeting. The theme for the meeting was ‘Dream Big! Think Big!’ and there was ‘big’ enthusiasm throughout the evening. Being in lockdown meant the meeting was held on Zoom, but that did not lessen the enthusiasm of the evening. I was Chairman for the meeting and Yetabel did an amazing job as Toastmaster. Steve challenged us with the word of the night being “whakamoemiti” meaning to praise or express thanks. Jie also showed some ‘big’ initiative with her innovative time keeping!
The ‘Smile Story’ last night was presented by Lakshman who entertained us before we heard from four prepared speeches. Ade gave her icebreaker speech which was very well delivered and she informed us about her work experience and family. Secondly, we heard from Saane about mentoring with passion and overcoming your fear with courage. Richard then led a panel discussion on ‘Savings’ with Daniel, Heather, and Waala in which we found out about KiwiSaver and ethical investing. Finally, Kevin gave an educational speech which inspired us to encourage the next generation to look forward with positivity and not to be fearful. These speeches were effectively evaluated by Jacquie, Liz, Les, and Prenha.
It was wonderful to share the evening with some guests who also joined in our Table Topic speeches. As Table Topics Master, Saane gave us some thought-provoking questions which fitted the theme of the evening. One thought I took from the Table Topic speeches was how a ‘small’ idea can become a ‘big’ success if we continue with persistence. Lakshman and Chris provided some excellent evaluations of the Table Topics speeches.
The meeting ended with a thorough meeting evaluation from Anji followed by some comments our guests shared about how much they enjoyed the evening. Can’t wait to meet again in a fortnight on 7th October!
