In Your Back Pocket!

Friday's meeting brought into focus an issue at ALL Toastmaster clubs.  What do you do if scheduled speakers cancel or if no or limited speakers even sign up for a particular week?  The answer is "The Back Pocket Speech!"  This was the theme of today's meeting.

Toastmaster Karla Reese introduced the idea of "All Things Winter."  Josh Gravley presented his joke about hunting.  Then Jeanne Resen prompted three responders to table topics.

Then it was Back Pocket Speech time.  A description of the back pocket speech can be found no where on the otherwise articulate, well-informed Toastmaster’s International site.  No where on Toastmasters.org will a search produce anything!  Many online dictionaries will have an explanation such as this one:  "In one's back pocket: Available to use as a resource for one's advantage whenever needed; in reserve."

Clubs internationally need this resource.  Not all veteran members have a 5-7 minute speech project to instantly call upon.  Even our trusty Ron Climer, holding on to notes of his past hundred speeches, is away in Florida until April.  So, who do we call?

You.  

Every member has at least one story to tell, one topic he or she is passionate to briefly talk about after just a bit of reflection.  Toastmasters teaches of the tools to deliver a good speech.  Calling together the material of a back pocket speech,  in a couple of hours or less, is in any member's grasp.

Stan Coss led a workshop by having members read out examples and strategies for preparing a great speech.   He set the perimeters for a good back pocket speech as a hybrid, a blend of TT’s & a practiced, prepared project speech to run not one to two minutes and not five to seven minutes but solidly in the middle: 3 1/2 minutes at green,  4 minutes at yellow, and  4 1/2 minutes at red.

All present had a copy of Brian Woolf's excellent resource:  The Speaker's Blueprint.  And all turned to Page 11,  Choosing Your Message:   What do I want my audience to think, feel, or do as a result of this presentation?  Use just the back of a business card for this answer.  If you cannot do it in one sentence, you are not ready to speak.

Next on Page 16 came Choosing a Framework.  Basically, this was to be a single story or a two-part story speech.  (The five to seven minute speech typically has three stories, but this is to be a hybrid.)  There are various formulas on how to arrange the parts, but this was just a 30-minute workshop.

Incidentally, one of these three people, captured from a video 20 years ago, made a guest appearance to the meeting as a prospective member, the same man who had been a member of Stan Coss's video production class in Polk County.


Next was Page 28 that gave examples of the all-important Opening.  Melinda was one of the  volunteers; she shared from a speech called "Catching the Wrong Bus."

On Page 51  was Connecting, holding attention especially in the body of the speech by using special techniques like simply saying you instead of "many of you," etc.  Volunteers read out various examples.

The importance of instilling Emotion was shown on Page 113, which had a list of 108 different ones.  Humor on Page 121 was a prime resource.  Volunteers shared various examples of a sure-fire way to provide humor in Twists.

There was not time to cover the senses as a way to show emotion, and there was not even time to cover closings.  One great example was on Page 212.  It was "Restating the Message."  Brian Woolf had opened a speech by suggesting there were probably thieves in the audience and saying, "The greatest thief is he who withholds deserved praise.  His closing was this:  "Friends, my message tonight is simple.  Let's stop stealing from our family and those around us!  Let's stop withholding praise from those who deserve it.  Let's be generous in giving it.  For we must never, ever let it be said of us... That WE were counted among life's greatest thieves."

Even without a proper coverage of closings, the audience gave a great closing.  Each member had written down from 3-10 topics or messages to consider doing a back pocket speech on, and each announced in about 30 seconds the one he or she was committed to pursuing:

Karla- Doing something she never thought she could do
Karen- Doing something she never thought she could do with 27 waterfalls
Ray- His first memorable accomplishment
Josh- Life lessons with baseball
Betty- The biggest surprise she ever had as Realtor of the Year
Melinda- Doing something she never thought she could do before 125,000 people
Sally- What is her current life's mission
Danielle- What is her current life's mission
Hoyt- The horrors of being nonplussed
Molly- The most memorable teacher
Grant- Life with an 11-month old
Stan- Having a blast with the past

The TTE was Sally Jones, and the timer was Don Groff.  The presiding officer was Karen Alexander.

Captured in this same video from 20 years ago is Guest Grant in the red karate kid costume. He was facing his greatest adversary, Crouching James.  James's eye is that at the very top of the page; he was awakening in pain from his last encounter with Grant. Grant's sudden appearance gave Stan his idea for a Back Pocket Speech.

Be working on those BP speeches, at one to three hours tops,  so FSTM will always be prepared!  Stan said he will be checking progress so member names can be put on the online schedule
to be called on as needed.

Members attending were the following: Karen Alexander, Stan Coss, Molly Garnett,  Josh Gravley, Hoyt Griffith, Don Groff, Sally Jones,  Melinda Lowrance, Betty McCallister, Danielle Messer,  Karla Reese, Jeanne Resen, New Member Ray Daley, and Guest Grant Guffey.