Language Evaluation (Leng Kee Advanced TMC, 15th May 2019)

The following is a recording of my language evaluation, at Leng Kee Advanced Toastmasters Club, on the 15^th May 2019.

Leng Kee Advanced TMC as Project Evaluator, 07th February 2020

On the 07^th February 2020, I was at Leng Kee Advanced Toastmasters Club, as project evaluator.  This was my 157^th club visit on the 222^nd day of the Toastmaster year.

Being an innovative club, Leng Kee Advanced Toastmasters Club held two simultaneous meetings at adjoining rooms to accommodate their members speaking needs.

The sergeant-at-arms was Robekka Purba.  The table topics master was Sarah Geiger.  The ah counter, solely for the impromptu speeches, was Junie Seow.

Room 1

The Toastmaster of the Day was Steven Yap.  The timer was Robert Ng.

The evaluators were Jeevan Mahendran, Steven Yap, and myself.  I evaluated two speeches back to back.

The speakers were Angeline Tjhin, Deborah Ong, Terra Tea, and Julie Ong P. S.

Room 2

The Toastmaster of the Day was Patrick Oei Kian Seng.  The timer was Junie Seow.

The evaluators were Ivan Lee Kuan Seng, and Thomas Chen Jun Ying.  Both evaluated two speeches back to back.

The speakers were Sandra Interdonato, Ikumi Usuda, K. S. Rajan, and Sebastian Chong.

Angeline Tjhin cited Thanos’ snap, and mentioned that, perhaps, Thanos was not wrong.  She spoke about the overcrowded Earth, and the strain on resources, and the effects of the loss of biodiversity.

Deborah Ong spoke about her discovery of coffee, and its effects on her body.  She talked about the stimulant, caffeine, found in coffee.  She listed the benefits and the detrimental effects of consumption.

Terra Tea gave a speech on absurdism, and memes.  She explained how her generation coped with its own existential crisis, and nihilism.  She mentioned the role of Dadaism, and the repudiation of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.

Julie Ong P. S. gave a reflection of her second path, Visionary Communication.  She is well on her way towards her DTM.

Best Speaker: Angeline Tjhin & K. S. Rajan;

Best Evaluator: Myself & Thomas Chen Jun Ying; and

Best Table Topics Speaker: Terra Tea.

Leng Kee Advanced TMC as Chief Judge, 15th January 2020

On the 15^th January 2020, I was at Leng Kee Advanced Toastmasters Club, as chief judge.  This was my 145^th club visit on the 199^th day of the Toastmaster year.  This was the table topics contest for the club.

The sergeants-at-arms were Sophia Ngo Thi Van, and Li Shan Shan.  The contest chair as well as Contest Toastmaster was Raymond Zhang.  The tally counters were Joan D’ Souza, and Naveen Giri.  The timers were Putu Sanjaya Setiawan, and Angela Lansbury.  The photographer was Steven Yap.

Prior to the contest, there was an induction of new members.  The club has already recruited twenty new members for the Toastmaster year.  That is more than the membership of some clubs, which is very impressive.  All these new members on the day took part in the contest, which is a testament to the club’s dedication in pushing people on that journey of public speaking.

The question was: “Do you think it is possible to predict technology trends?”

  

Winner: K. S. Rajan;

1^st Runner-Up: Anvi Sharma; and

2^nd Runner-Up: Rina Tay Sim Seck.

Leng Kee Advanced TMC as Language Evaluator, 20th November 2019

On the 20^th November 2019, I was at Leng Kee Advanced Toastmasters Club, as language evaluator.  This was my 122^nd club visit on the 144^th day of the Toastmaster year.

The Toastmaster of the Day was Honey Yee.  The sergeant-at-arms was Steven Yap.  The timer was Kirby Lim Aik Boon.  The ah counter was Rina Tay Sim Seck.  There was no table topics section.  In lieu of that, there was a workshop by Abigail Chay.

The president, Julie Ong P. S., spoke about the need for the club to give back to the wider community, not just Toastmasters, by having more of such workshops.

The guest of honour, Member of Parliament, Dr. Chia Shi Lu spoke about the challenges of giving a humorous speech, and made it humorous.

Mitsuru Ichigo introduced himself as “Russel Mitsuru”.  The reason is because most people, even some Japanese, cannot pronounce his family name.  He named himself after Bertrand Arthur William Russell, the celebrated British polymath.  He recalled the Singapore of 1990, and how he fell in love with that city, and that is why he is here.

Edmund Chew recounted his 18-year journey in Toastmasters.  He spoke about his childhood adventures.  His father served in the British Army.  He would disappear for days, hitching rides on lorries to Malacca and back as a ten-year-old.  He spoke about the values that shaped him, and how they served him well as a Toastmaster.  He calls himself a “retyred” Toastmaster, back with a second wind.

Anubhav Sharma spoke about how laughing together makes us more human.  This is how we develop deeper connections.  It is this creation of community that makes us truly human.  In this current age of social media, our greatest societal challenge is maintaining those connections.

Abigail Chay gave us a masterclass on commanding the stage, and the use of body language and vocal variety in giving great speeches.

The evaluators were Rinoa Tsai, Patricia Lum, Celine Goh, and Steven Chua.

Best Speaker: Edmund Chew; and

Best Evaluator: Patricia Lum.

There was no table topics session.

Leng Kee Advanced TMC as Project Evaluator, 02nd October 2019

On the 02^nd October 2019, I was at Leng Kee Advanced Toastmasters Club, as project evaluator.  This was my 76^th club visit on the 94^th day of the Toastmaster year.

The Toastmaster of the Day was Rinoa Tsai.  The timer was Junie Seow.  The ah counter was Belinda Lee.  The table topics master was Steven Yap.  The induction officer was Robert Ng.

Anubhav Sharma spoke about his trip to Fiji, to give a speech to a group of executives.  He was nervous, and this was the catalyst for him to join Toastmasters.  Despite the less than ideal delivery of the speech, he found the people of Fiji to be very friendly, which is in sharp contrast to what he is used to.  They gathered in the evenings, around bonfires, to share stories and drink.  He said that stories are the currency of human understanding.

Ikumi Usuda introduced herself to the club.  She was born in Niigata Prefecture, an area known for its ski resorts, national parks, and hot springs.  Due to work, her company transferred her to the Singapore office.  She loves the food, and the weather here.  She is an avid participant in sports, and is a qualified judoka.  She still travels extensively.

Vaibhav Agarwal spoke about his efforts to curb his use of pause fillers in speech.  His most used pause filler was “so”, and he used that alone, twenty-five times in his last speech.

Lim Tse Nan spoke about adapting his communication style, to others, in an attempt to be a more effective, a more skillful communicator.  He expounded greatly on the different communication styles, and how he relates to them: direct, initiating, supportive, and analytical.

Jeevarajan mentioned the importance of having an effective mentor.  He then expounded on hi search for effective mentors throughout his working life.  He went into some detail on the steps to identifying, and qualifying potential mentors, and how one is insufficient.

Steven Yap gave a humorous speech on his superpower: thinking quickly on his feet.  He recounted the challenges, and the hilarious solutions, in his last trip to the Da Lat highlands, in Vietnam, with his wife, and son.  It was a tales of misadventures of epic proportions.

The evaluators were Hasniza binte Khalil, Jenny Rachel Wan, Sin Ren Peng, Rina Tay Sim Seck, and myself.

Best Speaker: Steven Yap; and

Best Table Topics Speakers: Patrick Oei Kian Seng, Edmund Chew, and Jenny Rachel Wan.

There was no voting for best evaluator.