Yet another thought provoking post by Seth Godin. This time the post refers to using price as a competetive advantage. It was the closing line that hit me though…
The scalable, profitable strategy is to change the game, not to become the most average.
If you want to become the best speaker you can be, you need to stop doing what everyone else does. A New Year is fast approaching. Use 2010 as an opportunity to redefine yourself. Here are some ideas:
- Compete in all the Toastmasters contests. Yes, even Table Topics.
- Prepare. Prepare your speech. Prepare for the contests. Talk to the speaker before the meeting.
- Join an advanced club. Start a new club that pushes the envelope.
- Present outside your club. At a job group, Kiwana’s, Rotary, etc.
- Push the limits of all of the Toastmaster roles. Act out the Quote of the Day, do a backwards meeting, etc.
You left your comfort zone when you joined Toastmasters. You regained it by being a member for a year or two. Now is the time to push the envelope again. Join me, and have fun!
Posted under Toastmasters
This post was written by john on December 30, 2009
Hmmmm….it reminds me of what I read in Georgia O’Keefe’s biography. First she studied the masters and soaked up all the ways to paint the “right” way. Then she consciously chose to stop painting according to everyone else’s rules and paint only to make herself happy.
Perfect Jen!
Okay I guess it’s time to start pushing the envelope some more. It’s been two years for me since I joined TM! Thanks for the suggestions.
Yaaay, Linda!
GREAT advice John! I competed in the International Speech Contest this year for the first time and made it all the way to District! I LOVED the experience. So, I found that the fastest way to improve is to compete, compete, compete. So, I am entering both the evlauation AND Humorous speech contest this fall. I’m VERY excited!