The Cart before the Horse

 “Well, why don’t you stop by for a visit and see what Toastmasters is all about?” 

This is the way I would normally finish my posts.  At today’s meeting it was appropriate to start at the end and work toward the beginning of our typical meeting.  You see, our meeting today was in a backward format.  We closed the meeting at noon and opened the session at 1 o’clock.  The speech evaluations were presented before the speeches and the awards for best presentations were awarded before the votes were counted.  So I am starting the way I normally conclude.  A little confusing, you are right, but a whole lot of fun.  Because of the format, speakers really had to pay attention so they could incorporate those things pointed out in their evaluation into their presentation.  I think everyone was somewhat successful and we all had a lot of fun. 

As far as the presentations go, both were project 5 from the Competent Communicator manual.  Chris talked about his experiences while being a perfect Horse Dad. It turns out his daughters are heavily involved in showing horses and we heard about all the different jobs he takes on before, during and after a show.  Not only is he the driver but also the meal/snack planner, barber, supporter, cleaner and tack jockey at his daughter’s events.

Melissa asked us if we were loosing the art of communication.  She started by asking us who remembered using the old style rotary phone and who sends text messages with their cell phones.  Melissa went on to explain that in the past most conversations were either in person or over the phone where now a lot of information is relayed with text messages.  She explained some of the benefits and drawbacks with text messaging, concluding that you can see the change in our communication skills even when you are not connected to your phone.  She gave example of poor spelling and the inability to carry on a conversation.  Things which we often see in our daily lives.

The meeting theme was HUGS, January 21^st was National Hug Day, and our table topics questions followed the same theme.  It turns out that for most of those in attendance, hugs were appreciated but everyone liked to receive them in a non-public area.  Public Displays of Affection were frowned upon.

We ended the meeting by introducing ourselves while trying to use the theme and word of the day in our introduction.  After our introductions the word of the day was announced.  I am not sure if the two guests at the meeting could follow what was happening.  I hope they return to see how one of our regular meetings is conducted.

Hello