Fordingbridge 93 Club, Hampshire
On 20 August I spoke for the third time to Fordingbridge 93 Club, a men's group similar to a Probus and named after the year of its formation.
This is a popular club (they have to limit the attendance at their meetings to 80) and their morning talks are delivered from a low stage at the award-winning Sandy Balls Holiday Centre following a lively business meeting.
As I was setting up for my talk, assisted by a very helpful Speaker Host, I noticed a 1p coin on the floor at the back of the stage. My presentation about Groucho Marx includes the story of the Marx Brothers unsuccessful shows in the UK before they became famous worldwide and how Groucho came out with a brilliant ad-lib when an unappreciative audience threw pennies at the stage. When it came to the point in the talk when I was about to deliver this material, I mentioned the coin, went and picked it up and then told the story. It was too good an opportunity to miss, using this to lead into the tale and transport my friendly audience from looking at a small stage in a holiday centre to imagining a large, hostile crowd glaring at performers in a London theatre some 90 years earlier.
Public Speaking Tip #348: You may have carefully planned what material to include in your presentation but sometimes on arriving at the venue you may notice something that enables you to introduce part of your content in a totally different way.
As always, the 93 Club were a great audience (when I sold booklets, they handed over their coins instead of throwing them!) and I enjoyed a very nice lunch as their guest afterwards.
My thanks for the lift from Fordingbridge town centre and back.
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"This is an unusual blog; the art of public speaking is crucial to politics and yet there's not much devoted to it specifically. This blog does, with posts combining accounts of the writer's recent engagements with some handy hints. Given some of the turgid speeches we're forced to suffer in the Commons, more MPs could do with reading it". politics.co.uk
"Nick spoke at our joint meeting with Kingston 41 Club. It was a brilliant evening. Nick is an engaging speaker, witty, topical and very interesting. He spoke for three quarters of an hour without notes, a most knowledgeable man. I cannot recommend Nick enough and can assure you that engaging him is a worthwhile endeavour. I wish you a great evening like ours". Manny Martins Vice Chairman of Hamble Valley Stick Club and 41 Club Regional Councillor, Region 24.
"Your speech to our 9 Rotary Clubs in North Surrey was much appreciated by me and I have received lots of feedback which was very positive about you. It was so refreshing to hear someone who has the wit to make us laugh throughout the evening without resort to 'blue' material and swearing. I do hope many others will get the chance to experience your talents". Howard Smith, Assistant Governor Area 1 Rotary District 1140.
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Wednesday, December 2
Coining an anecdote!
by
Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking)
on Wed 02 Dec 2009 04:05 PM GMT
Tuesday, December 1
Public speaking: no show is a no no
by
Nick R Thomas A.L.A.M. (Public Speaking)
on Tue 01 Dec 2009 01:35 AM GMT
Yateley & District U3A, Berkshire
I spoke at a Monthly Meeting of Yateley and District U3A at the Sandhurst Community Hall on 4 August, my second booking for them, I arrived at Bournemouth station in good time, got on the train and waited for its scheduled departure at 08.45. And waited. And waited... This happens so often but delays on the roads in my area can be even worse (accidents and road works on the A338 can leave motorists stuck there for up to several hours). There was no way that I was going to make the connection at Basingstoke in time to be picked up from Fleet station at the arranged time so I rang my contact from the U3A and kept him informed as I made my way there. He waited for me very patiently and we reached the venue around 45 minutes later than planned. Public Speaking Tip #347: If you experience unexpected, serious delays in getting to an engagement (and it can happen to any speaker) you may well feel tempted to cancel and turn back but, in most cases, you should continue with your journey. People are expecting you and are unlikely to be able to organise a stand-in at such notice. The time slot for your presentation may be rearranged or you could still have time to deliver a shorter speech. After their business meeting, the U3A moved their raffle (usually held after the guest speaker has finished) to an earlier time. I did not have to cut my talk on Patrick Campbell short but I hated being late. About 150 attend these meetings and the last time I had spoken to them I had not only enjoyed a fantastic response but also excellent booklet sales and other speaking work on recommendations from them. I began by saying that I had two words for them: 'I'm sorry'. 'Not good enough!' a lady shouted, jokingly. 'OK, then, here are two more: Virgin Trains'. That seemed to do all the explaining I needed and the talk got a great reception from this sharp audience who picked up on every nuance. And special thanks must go that ever-patient Committee member for the lifts from Fleet and back. |
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