It might have been the first meeting for 2024 after six weeks with no meetings, but we came back to a challenge: Toastmaster Jonathon asked us to be "Daring Greatly" and explained on the evening that the theme was selected in honour of Brené Brown who had written the book "Daring Greatly - How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead" reflecting on the famous speech by Roosevelt. Jonathon wanted us to venture out of our comfort zone in 2024 and be bold.
Narelle was our stand-in Sergeant at Arms and not only welcomed us all to the meeting and went through housekeeping, but also read us the mission statement.
President Gail H opened the meeting and was kept busy with a list of tasks: she firstly welcomed the three first-time visitors Amy, Russell and Tracey. She then passed on congratulation wishes from Area Director Suzanne that we have qualified as Distinguished Club (reaching five out of ten goals). Afterwards, she had the privilege to present Will with his badge before reminding us of the upcoming events and conferences. Before handing over, she also gave us the changes as stand-in Vice President of Education.
Jonathon braved the task of a changed program well and called on Marlene to give us the Toast. Marlene reflected on her first visit and how daunting it was, so she toasted to our courageous "First time visitors".
Word Master Narelle followed provoking us to not just use, but also show "vulnerability" since Brené Brown talks about this and shame quite frequently.
Round Robin Master Peter led us into a confronting discussion to the statement "There is nothing good about living in Brisbane during summer." He had many followers agreeing with him (escaping the heat to Dunedin, camping or Melbourne or simply the aircon in the office or car as well as reminding us of the mosquitos); yet a few disagreed and brought up arguments of chilling temperatures in Canada or still doing yard work. The topic was a hot discussion point since all three visitors felt inclined to give their opinion as well.
It was time for the (prepared) speeches:
Christiane presented the fifth speech of a six part series on her job experience with a certain company titled "The straw that broke the camel's back". The speech was evaluated by John.
Trevor's speech was an impromptu speech with Peter giving him his title literally seconds before he came up to deliver it: "What I would do if I were the prime minister of Australia". This lead to some strong statements and Trevor's mission in life to wake the world up ever since the flu vaccinations. Peter evaluated the speech appraisingly, however, marveled on the word pictures which Trevor drew.
As the Raffle Master, Marlene enticed us with the opening line of "something that you've never seen before." And she was right as we admired a moving safari book. She also included a public speaking book as well as chocolate in the raffle.
Gail W undertook the task of being our time keeper and squared off the changed program by keeping us running smoothly.
In the supper break, we not only bought raffle tickets, but also sampled the goodies provided by Gail H and Narelle. It was also the time to find out more about our visitors as well as catch up on 6 weeks of news.
The second half saw Will as Table Topic Master inviting eight speakers to speak off the cuff.
Christiane with "What is a daring decision you've made in your life, and how did it shape your character?" spoke about her move to Australia from Germany.
Peter with "Imagine you are facing a fear that holds you back. How would daring greatly in that situation impact your personal growth?" disclosed details about his tandem parachute experience.
Marlene with "Share a story of someone you admire who exemplifies the concept of daring greatly. What qualities make them inspiring?" told us about her mother's courage to stand in front of Charlie, the bull to save young Marlene and her relatives.
Narelle with "In the spirit of daring greatly, describe a time when you took a calculated risk that led to unexpected positive outcomes." revealed firstly her move to the western suburbs of Sydney (from the country), then her move to the UK for work.
Paul H with "How can embracing vulnerability contribute to the success of a daring endeavor, and have you experienced this in your own life?" confronted our excuse of possible failing with the argument that in the long-term we have a learning experience when trying something new.
Trevor with "Discuss a situation where daring greatly meant challenging societal norms. What can we learn from such instances?" continued his speech, calling himself a conspiratorial theorist.
John with "Share a personal experience of overcoming self-doubt to achieve something you initially thought was beyond your capabilities." displayed susceptibility by explaining about his balance difficulties and how Flinders Peak was a scramble encounter for him.
Visitor Amy mustered enough courage to answer "If you could encourage others to embrace daring greatly, what advice or insights would you offer to inspire them?". She summarised her mini-speech by a quote she lives by "You can't expect different outcomes if you always do the same."
The Table Topics were evaluated by Rosie and Carmy.
While Narelle collected the votes, Jonathon was able to share more about his own knowledge of comfort zone and self-growth.
Word Master Narelle reported on the usage of "vulneraibility" and congratulated all to have used the word often, however it was called a tie between Jonathon (having a slight advantage being Toastmaster) and combined efforts of our visitors Amy and Russell.
Paul H conducted the general evaluation and congratulated John for using an attention-grabbing introduction to Christiane's speech. He reminded all evaluators to only repeat speech segments if they demonstrated a point you made beforehand.
Raffle Master Marlene asked visitor Tracey to drew the winning ticket - and a very happy Rosie was able to take the safari book and the other treats home.
In closing, Gail H asked our visitors for feedback and then presented awards to:
Best Evaluator - Rosie
Most Improved - Will
Best Table Topic - John
Best Speech - Christiane
With January having five weeks, please be reminded, that our next meeting is on February 13.
