Consider using this evaluation sheet to provide feedback to the Toastmaster during your meetings.  Typically the Toastmaster only will get feedback from the General Evaluator.  Clubs that utilize this form can provide feedback to the Toastmaster.  I like that there is a mixture of information provided.  Give it a go, and feel free to comment on your experience.

Have you given the Toastmasters module entitled “The Art of Effective Evaluation?”. If so, please let me know your thoughts in the comments. I am planning to give it in January and am looking for your experiences with it.

At a recent public speaking seminar, I evaluated a number of short speeches.  There were a number of storytelling techniques I was looking for.  Here is the list I created from my evaluation:

1. Humor.
2. Show, don’t tell.
3. Use of metaphors and similes.
4. Dialogue.
5. Being specific with details.
6. Using more than one sense.
7. Using stories.

When you are creating your next speech, whether it is an elevator speech, a sales pitch, or a Toastmasters speech, incorporate one or more of the above techniques to make your speech come alive.

Of those techniques, I would say that the most neglected is dialogue.  Most speakers I have seen could do a better job of using dialogue to tell their story.  Give it a go!

I recently had the pleasure to interview Rich Hopkins, a 2-time competitor in the World Championship of Public Speaking (WCPS), about evaluations.

In addition to finishing 3rd in the 2006 WCPS, Rich has been a 5 time District Evaluation Contest Finalist, winning 3 of those 5 times.  He has been a Toastmaster for over 10 years and has expanded significantly on Toastmaster evaluation theory as a professional speaker and presentations coach.

Visit Rich’s blog to see his current progress towards making it a 3rd time to the WCPS and also follow Rich on Twitter.

Starting Monday on this blog and continuing until Friday, Rich will answer  questions on evaluations including:

• How to describe evaluations to someone that has never been to a Toastmasters meeting.
• How to get more comfortable evaluating speakers.
• How to improve your evaluation skills.
• How evaluations relate to being a professional speech coach.

There is a very interesting conversation on ToastmastersPrime about evaluations.  The discussion centers around evaluations that center around the content of the model speech without giving any opinions.  I have experienced a number of situations where the evaluator effectively created a summary of the model speech.  Some evaluators even go as far as to repeat all of the humor of the model speech sometimes getting more laughs!

Check out ToastmastersPrime and join in on the conversation.