November 10, 2008 Minutes

From Austin Toastmasters (Balcones, Club #3407)

Dan Naden, our Toastmaster, chose “what do you like about living in America?” as the theme of the day.

• Megan Morris’ Prayer & Pledge urged compassion for others.
• Kyeli Smith instructed us about her timekeeper duties and reported evaluators and table topics participants stayed within time.
• Anne Child, grammarian, picked “esteem” (high regard) as the word of the day. It was used by Dan, Cathy, Jim, Steve, Mike, Megan, Fred and Sonny. Ums were present but few.
• Cathy Lovelady’s One Minute Toastmaster message was immediately useful to table topic participants. She urged us to keep a rolodex of stories ready, have a beginning-middle-end, and read the first sentence of novels to learn great beginning lines.

Jim Comer, the Table Topic Master, directed questions to the participants about their American influences.

• Steve Gonzales’ American hero is Abraham Lincoln who dealt with a divided country, made unpopular decisions, and brought opponents together.
• Mike Prentice – Best Table Topic – Mike would urge President Obama to address the energy crisis. Dependency on foreign energy is a root cause to other issues.
• Megan Morris – Most Improved – Megan spoke of her grandfather who spent time talking to his furniture store clients rather than trying to sell them furniture.
• Fred Maynard remembered Jessie Stewart, an author from his home in Appalachian Kentucky. He wrote stories of local people who struggled but wanted only a hand up not a hand out.
• Jane Sanford’s living hero is her father. He wrote a letter about growing up in Alabama during the depression. This taught her to focus on the good things.

Dugg Tankersley – Sell your home for the highest price – Dugg mentioned that curb appeal, cleanliness, easy access for viewing and professional marketing are all important to selling a house. But correctly pricing the house is at least as important. If you price it too high, it will take longer to sell and you likely get less than you wanted. Compare your house to others in your market, visit the comparables in your area, then set the price accordingly to square footage considering how fast you want to sell it.

Jerry Barrett – Wanted Toastmasters – Jerry persuaded us to attend the conference May 1 & 2 in Austin. It will provide education (from 3 former world speaking champions), networking opportunities (with fellow Balcones members and others), entertainment (speech contest), and a chance to get credit for volunteering. The cost is a mere 2 days and $100.

Pace Smith – Best Speaker - That makes me really happy – Pace recounted a wonderful birthday (good day at work, time with son, party with friends, dinner with Kyeli) that was overshadowed by a letter from the IRS. She explained that dwelling on the unpleasant is a remnant of survival instincts. Cave Pace learned to avoid the watering hole because the large tiger lurked there. To counter this, imprint happy events by saying aloud “that makes me really happy!”

Sonny Sonntag, General Evaluator, introduced the others and was thankful for everyone on the program.

• Gordon Baker evaluated the table topic participants. Jim asked thoughtful questions. Steve’s response was organized but he holds his hands as if holding two ice cream cones. Mike was thoughtful. Megan should have just told the story of her father, without explaining she wasn’t going to answer her question. Fred was direct and to the point but seemed nervous. Jane was at ease but rubbed the tips of her fingers together.
• Glenn Nielsen evaluated Dugg. Dugg’s greatest strength is humor that comes naturally. His opening was slowed by distributing his handouts. Doug washes his hands. He could have set the road map better distinguishing directly between his minor and major points. His speech is comfortably conversational.
• Mary Buker evaluated Jerry. She liked Jerry’s costumed entrance as a sheriff but was confused by his switch to being a bounty hunter. Jerry accomplished his goal of inspiring and convincing. His use of “May Day” ensures we’ll all remember when the conference will take place. He brought in the audience with a show of hands. But Jerry swayed as he stood to the side of the lectern.
• Antoinette Griffin – Best Evaluator - evaluated Pace… for the third time. She appreciated Pace’s self help topic. The first story of the birthday sounded memorized but Pace used great imagery and timed her speaking to allow for laughs. She clears her throat and grabs her finger still.

Balcones Toastmasters won the Smedley Award for bringing in 5 members in August & September.

Officers elections are next Monday 11/17. We’re still looking for a secretary.

The annual Holiday Party will be held at Antoinette’s house Saturday December 6th. It’s potluck and includes a White Elephant gift exchange.