Business Talk Toastmaster Second in Metro Division Contest

Business Talk club member Gail Smyth did a great job at the Metro Division Contest on 13 March 2010 in Melbourne.  RMIT was the venue for a long guelling day of competitions which saw Gail do her club proud competing in both the Humorous and International speeches. Well done Gail coming in second in the tough International Speech - you are a great role model for us all!

Table Topics started the day 9.30. The topic was ‘Be a good listener, your ears will never get you in trouble’. The contestants were Paul Eaton, Colin Lewis, Ross Turetsky, Vivien Ellard, Max Warlond, Raj Gopiraj and Philippa Martin. Results- 1st Place- Philippa Martin, 2nd place Ross Turetsky, 3rd place Paul Eaton.

The Humorous Contest gave plenty of laughs and enjoyment. The contestants were: Gail Smyth with ‘CPA Capers’ a delightful tale of what accountants and auditors get up to; Marian Adamcewicz with ‘I have a dream’ the dream of a perfect world with Myki and a innovative public transport system; Simon Quail with ‘Saving an Icon’ protecting VB beer from those other beers such as Mexican Lemonade and Euro Trash; Robert McIlroy with ‘Who loves ya baby?’ the joys of having many friends with new babies, Trish Brown with ‘It’s Criminal’ an expose on pantyhose and Samantha Rennie with ‘Getting un Stressed’ and how to take off those layers of stress. Results: 1st place- Robert McIlroy, 2nd place Simon Quail, 3rd place Samantha Rennie.

The Evaluation Contest kicked off after lunch. Laurell Staunton was the test speaker with a presentation titled ‘Looking Forward, Looking Back’ a speech covering many aspects of her life journey and the inspiration to ‘enjoy being who you are and who you are becoming.’ Contestants: Max Warlond, Elena Kelareva, Zita Paprota, Trish Brown, Ross Turetsky and Philippa Martin. Results: 1st place- Philippa Martin, 2nd place Max Warlond, 3rd place Trish Brown.

The highlight of the afternoon was the hotly contested International Speech Contest. A feast of thought provoking and inspirational topics. The contestants were: Philippa Martin- ‘You can’t do it’ an intriguing title that revealed the key word you can’t do it ‘Alone’ ; Michael Atkinson- ‘Inspire Someone’ with the challenge for us to ‘be the change you want to see in the world’; Vivien Ellard- ‘The Treasure Chest’ pirates are not the only ones who can discover treasure in the most unlikely of places; Raj Gopiraj- ‘Free Money’ a new program to assist people starting out a new business; Helen Thomas – ‘Stress’ what we can do to relieve this common problem; Gail Smyth- ‘Beauty to Behold’ a thought provoking message about true meaning on self worth; and Paul Higgins- ‘Revelation and Inspiration’ how you can be involved via your PC in problem solving worldwide issues. Results: 1st place- Michael Atkinson, 2nd place Gail Smyth, 3rd place Raj Gopiraj.


To view a few photos from the day click on this link Metro_Division_Contest_2010
Thanks to Trish Brown for providing details of the contest.

Business Talk ends the year on a high note

The great end of year debate was once again a feature of the last meeting for 2009.

Here are the contestants and the winners

Has Santa lost the plot?
Is Christmas too commercialised?
Is there an alternative to wishing someone “Happy Christmas?”

This Christmas, the Club continued its traditional Famous Annual Debate. Our newer members gave debating a try. Strong points were delivered with force and the judges congratulated all on an impressive presentation.

Daniella Anderson and Darren Saunderson narrowly won over John Stamatakos and Luke Maguire. Everyone enjoyed the entertaining debate from all four members. Well done!

Business Talk Meeting #303 - more to celebrate!

Special guest Adrienne Bowd visited us today bearing gifts! Adrienne, 2008-09 Area Governor presented Business Talk with a beautiful plaque in recognition of achieving President's Select Club status last year. We were the only club in Area 23 to reach this level. Well done club members - its your achievement so revel in the glory!
Great news of club member George O'Keeffe - placed 3rd in the semifinals at Toastmasters World Speaking Championships in the USA. Thanks to fellow ozzie toastmasters for sending the news via Twitter straight after the event! Pics to follow when George gets back!

Business Talk celebrates its 300th on 25 June 2009

A special meeting to celebrate acheivements and get motivated for the years ahead! Special guests included Bruce Hill District 73 Lt Gov Eduaction & Training, Adrienne Bowd immediate past Metro Division Governor and Bert Naik incoming Division Governor. A full house and a full program with one of the best ever mini workshop on gestures from fellow Toastmaster and corporate trainer Kevin Kosky (http://www.kevinkosky.com/) - mastering the flick, the dab, the slash, the glide and many more. George O'Keeffe gave his contest speech "Grab the Girl" for the US International Finals as he gears up for August! A motivational speech "We are All Admirals" by Vivien Ellard reminded us how Toastmasters can make us leaders of the future.
There were plenty of awards for the club and members alike: Division Club of the Year 2008-2009; Presidents Distinguished Club Only one in Metro Division; a triple crown for three educational awards in one year to our President Shanta Hallock CC, CL, ACB; and individual recognition for club members: Competent Communicator & Competent Leader - Verena Engbarth; Advanced Communicator Bronze - Gail Smyth; Competent Communicators - Ranabahu Wickramasinghe and Jo Stephenson.
All in all a great year! View the pics here

District 73 Convention May 2009

Business Talk's George O'Keeffe has taken out the coveted International Speech title for District 73 (Victoria, Tasmania, Sth Aust & WA)! Before an audience of more than 300 delegates George blitzed his way to the title and a place at Toastmasters International Convention in the USA for the Finals.
George's win was made even more significant by achieving it in front of TMI International President Jana Barnhill and past International President Bob Barnhill. They both paid homage to George's speech, using it to illustrate their presentations on the final day of the convention.
George dedicated his win to Rosetta Muscat.
Congratulations George - we are all so proud of you!
Not only did George do us proud but so did Business Talk's representative in the Humorous contest - Our own Andrew Monaghan bared his chest yet again in pursuit of excellence and as the final speaker after a long conference day lifted his audience from weariness to joyous laughter that did our souls good! While he didn't take out the title he made us all believe that the journey was so worthwhile.

View pics from the convention (courtesy of Max Warlond "Capturing Concepts") http://picasaweb.google.com.au/BusinessTalkTM/District73ConventionMay2009GeorgeOKeeffeWinsAPlaceInWorldChampionships?feat=directlink

Metro Division Contests Feb 2009

Business Talk Club members win at Metro Division Contests! George O'Keeffe (International Contest) and Andrew Monaghan (Humorous Contest) delivered stunning speeches and will now go on to the District 73 nationals in South Australia in May.

Club member, and ex President, Rosetta Muscat won the National Speaker's Association of Australia Idol Contest in February. Against a strong field of 13 professional speakers Rosetta has earned a place in a national contest in Sydney at the end of March.

Final meeting for 2008

Business Talk's final meeting for 2008 took place on Thursday 11 December - everyone got to have their final say for the year with a rolling story of gigantic proportions and the hotly contested traditional Christmas Debate. This year's Christmas Debate was won by the all girl team Jo Stephenson and Vivien Ellard (seen here giving the trophy some love!) who narrowly beat Rosetta Muscatt and George O'Keeffe. Sadly, Rosetta announced she is passing on the Club President's mantle while she focuses on her health but luckily she will continue as a club member. Rosetta has inspired us all with her drive and determination and has shown us that passion and sincerity are winning ingredients in public speaking.