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PUBLIC SPEAKING
The Depersonalization of Public Speaking
David Freedman
A few weeks ago, I decided to attend our
regular club meeting from home. Babble-On
Toastmasters, like many clubs nowadays, is
a hybrid club, and some weeks it just feels
easier to attend virtually. What I hadn’t
counted on was that spending so much time
online, especially during the pandemic, had
made me a bit lazy. I watched the room fill
with people from my computer screen. On
this afternoon, almost all attendees came in
person, with only two of us online. I watched
the camaraderie among our club members
and guests and realized with some surprise
that meeting in person was really what I
needed more of. Even though we have been
outside of our pandemic-induced isolation
for a couple of years, some habits were still
hard to break, particularly when I’d gotten
so used to meeting with people virtually.
Seeing people online, while not nearly as
fulfilling as meeting in person, had become
a necessity for a time. Now it was a reminder
that some of my skills as a public speaker
may have atrophied from lack of use in front
of a live audience. Somehow, I doubt I was
the only one.
Ironically, being an Area Director helped
prepare me for the pandemic, or at least
the virtual aspects of it. Months before the
pandemic officially began, I would regularly
attend Zoom meetings with the larger
Toastmasters community and discuss issues
mostly within District 7. When the isolation
period began, I immediately noticed that
many people who gave speeches online
28 ONE COMMUNITY
needed more practice adjusting to the virtual
medium. At our Toastmasters Leadership
Institute in 2020, I created a presentation
addressing this very issue, “How to Create
Better Stage Presence on Zoom.” And
gradually, regardless of whether people saw
my presentation or not, people did indeed
adjust, including during the contest season
when giving outstanding speeches was of
paramount importance. All our clubs rose
to the occasion, and the speakers were no
less prepared. When the isolation ended, to
no one’s surprise, people slowly trickled into
hybrid meetings until many members were
reassured that we could congregate safely
without too much fear of contagion. My
tenure as Area Director ended shortly after I
was vaccinated. My habit of going to virtual
meetings persisted to the present day.
Let me be clear: If you’re in another country,
if you’re sick, or if it’s simply more convenient
to attend meetings virtually for any number
of reasons, there’s nothing wrong with this.
Sometimes it’s necessary to have a day
where other needs are met, personally or
professionally, and meeting online fits neatly
into the schedule. But as public speakers and
leaders, we have an obligation to be where
the people are, and most often circumstances
dictate that we attend meetings in person.
As many meetings are now hybrid in nature,
it’s sometimes tempting to stay home where
it’s convenient to grab dinner and a movie
after finishing a meeting. However, just as
I noticed that skill building was essential