Page 32 - February 2017 Voices

Speechcraft Coming to Umpqua

Community College

by Jim Daniel, ATMS, CL

People in Douglas County will soon have schedule
WINTER 2017
a simple, quick, and economical way to learn
to lead a meeting, give a talk, speak off-the-
cuff, evaluate others, and communicate
more effectively. Usually the first step in
this process is overcoming fear of standing
up in front of a group.
The course runs 8 weeks this Spring
at a UCC local campus. Each week will
cover several topics and handling
situations where participants can
sharpen their skills and learn to
become standout managers, leaders,
and instructors. Learning techniques
for introducing a speaker, keeping
a meeting running on time,
developing your own personal
story, organizing a talk, using
body language and gestures, and
more are aimed at making you a
leader. Management techniques
include evaluation and skills for
leading discussions & public contact
skills.
Additional sections cover making your
voice more interesting and easier to listen
to, saying what you really mean clearly,
and keeping it short and simple. Details
of concluding a talk and mentoring others
are interwoven into the course.
The course starts and ends with solid
self-evaluation and tracking your skill
building.
Backed by 90 years of experience from
Toastmasters.org, this course syllabus
was created over many years by highly
experienced trainers and professional
speakers. It has been presented hundreds
of times around the world and this is the first
time it will be available in Douglas County.
Jim Daniel joined Toastmasters in 1997. He is
a member of Wonderful Oregon Wordmasters and
Roseburg Club. Jim is currently serving his clubs as
VPPR and VPM. He also serves as a contributing
photographer at District 7 events.

32 VOLUME 3 ISSUE 8 FEBRUARY, 2017