Discon 2012 Speech Winners

The 2012 district conference showcased the best speakers in the Philippines, from division’s A-K, compete for 1^st place in three categories: Table Topics, Humorous and International Prepared. All of them were amazingly talented communicators. However, there can only be one champion for each category. The winners for this years discon are lucky because, aside from the usual trophy, they also get to receive a perpetual trophy. This is one additional baggage the contestants were happy to lug around, I bet. The perpetual trophy contains the names of the past champions for each category. The champions get to keep it for 2 months after which they have to surrender it to the district governor so that it can be passed on to the next speech champion. There is one perpetual trophy for each category – International Prepared, Table Topics, Humorous and Evaluation. All four trophies have been given to the district by TM Khris Albano. District 75 thanks you for your generosity Khris!

Here is a list of the winners for the 2012 Speech contest.

Table Topics Speech Contest

1^st Place: Richard John U. Cua-Ho – Division C (Taipan Toastmasters Club)

2^nd Place: Daryl B. Ponard – Division G (Pines City Toastmasters Club)

3^rd Place: Amanda Fe C. Echeverria – Division E (Durian Toastmaster Club)

Humorous Speech Contest

1^st Place: Carminia M. Borja - Division C (Aboitiz Toastmasters Club)

2^nd Place: Michael Benedict J. Unson – Division H (Alabang Community Toastmasters Club)

3^rd Place: Maria Teresa S. Chiew – Division E (Durian Toastmaster Club)

International Prepared Speech Contest

1^st Place: Herminigildo V. Garrobo – Division G (Pines City Toastmasters Club)

2^nd Place: Celia Castillo– Division E – (Durian Toastmaster Club)

3^rd Place: Meg Angela Amores – Division I – (MEZ 1 Toastmasters Club)

Congratulations to all the contestants who fearlessly competed in 2012 Discon. Kudos to Division C for winning two categories – Humorous and Table Topics and to Division G for winning the International Prepared Speech category – for the fourth year in a row! I wonder what Division can break this streak? See you in next year’s district conference!

Discon 2012 List of Contestants

The sun, the sand, fantastic food and a parade of the best speakers in the Philippines - the perfect ending to any summer. For those who were able to attend the 2012 Discon in Samal Island with me, I’m sure you would agree that this was one of the best discon’s ever. It wasn’t just because of the great venue or even the good food. The real stars were the 29  contestants for all three speech categories – International Prepared, Humorous and Impromptu. I’ve attended several discons already and this year was one of the best contestant-wise. All of the contestants were so good. It was truly a battle of the best of the best. For me, they were all champions.

To give credit to all the contestants, here’s a list of who competed in this years district conference:

Table Topics Speech Contestants

Division A: Miriam Jane R. Santos – Presidents Toastmasters Club

Division B: Arthur Bhenedict K. King – UECP

Division C: Richard John U. Cua-Ho – Taipan Toastmasters Club

Division D: Jared Karl Ulric D. Rubin – Riverside Toastmasters Club

Division E: Amanda Fe C. Echeverria – Durian Toastmaster Club

Division F: Stefanie L. Uy – Iligan Toastmasters Club

Division G: Daryl B. Ponard – Pines City Toastmasters Club

Division H: Jean Marriell R. Cetra – Abojeb Toastmasters Club

Division I: Alpha Mae A. Del Mar – MEZ 1 Toastmasters Club

Division K: Rowena Micah R. Sula – Spi Global Toastmasters Club

Humorous Speech Contest

Division A: Jeffrey H. Garcia – iConnect Toastmasters Club

Division B: Andrew Gonzaga - UECP

Division C: Carminia M. Borja - Aboitiz Toastmasters Club

Division D: Leandro L. Severino – First Farmers Toastmasters Club

Division E: Maria Teresa S. Chiew – Durian Toastmaster Club

Division F: Alquine Roy Taculin – Iligan Toastmasters Club

Division G: Regina T. Pedrono – Pines City Toastmasters Club

Division H: Michael Benedict J. Unson – Alabang Community Toastmasters Club

Division I: Eugene Tan – MEZ 1 Toastmasters Club

Division K: Marilyn M. Mercado – IAME and Associates Toastmasters Club

International Prepared Speech Contest

Division A: Rey G. Pineda – Greenhills Prime Toastmasters Club

Division B: Louie John M. Banta – TOPS Toastmasters Club

Division C: Darwin John N. Moises – Lexmark R&D Toastmasters Club

Division D: Meliton E. Sillador Jr. – First Farmers Toastmasters Club

Division E: Celia Castillo– Durian Toastmaster Club

Division F:Ramonette L. Olandesca– Golden Friendship Toastmasters Club

Division G: Herminigildo V. Garrobo – Pines City Toastmasters Club

Division H: Maria Lourdes E. Ranario – Metro Lipa Toastmasters Club

Division I: Meg Angela Amores – MEZ 1 Toastmasters Club

Division K: Votaire R. Victoria – PHILCOMAN and Associates Toastmasters Club

5 Reasons Why You Should Join A Speech Contest

Have you ever tried joining a public speaking contest? If you have, then you can understand my sentiments when I say that it’s one of the best experiences anyone can have. Whenever I join a speech contest, I feel so alive. It’s like my emotions are heightened. I feel a combination of many things at the same time. Fear, excitement, trepidation and a sense of anticipation. It doesn’t matter how long you have been a toastmaster or how old or young you are. There is no discrimination here in Toastmasters. Whether you are 18 or 78, as long as you are eligible, you are free to join your category of choice. And unlike beauty pageants there is no height requirement.

How many times have you tried joining a speech contest? Once? Twice? Or perhaps you have yet to try it. The 2012 District Conference is drawing near. Ok, so it’s still 6 months away. But remember that there are many levels - the club, area and division level. If you want to compete at discon, decide now so you can prepare your plane fare, hotel fare and oh, your speech material too in advance.

Here are 5 reasons why you should join a speech contest.

It makes you feel alive. Whenever I join a speech contest I feel many conflicting emotions all at the same time. I feel excited and scared. I feel like I have both diarrhea and constipation. I can feel my heartbeat thundering in my ears and my hands becoming cold and clammy. Really. It’s the best feeling the world. But please. Don’t take my word for it. Try it yourself.

 You might win. I’m not kidding. Even if you've been a toastmaster for only a few months and think that you don’t know anything at all about public speaking, there's a good chance that you might win. Especially if there are only 3 contestants and you are guaranteed a spot no matter how badly you do. Even if you don’t get to be the champion, hey, they also give trophies to the runners up. You can then proudly display that at home people will think you are such a good speaker. You can even include that in your resume to impress potential employers.

Learning experience. Joining a speech contest is a great learning experience. Whether you win or not you get to improve. You learn. You become better. It’s not only the contest itself that allows you to become a better speaker it’s the preparation involved. The more time you invest in preparing for the contest, the better your chances of winning. Aside from it being a learning experience, it’s also a humbling experience. You learn how to accept defeat graciously.

You might meet your next love match. This is another excellent reason for joining a speech contest. Who knows? Your next boyfriend/girlfriend might be a fellow contestant. I have a clubmate who met his girlfriend through a speech contest. They were both contestants for the international prepared speech. He wasn’t able to get the trophy but at least he got the girl.

Registration refund. Are you a bit tight on budget? Here is the good news. If you represent your division in the District conference in any of the categories, you get a 50% or full refund on your registration fee. I know someone who joins contestants for this very reason. You know who you are. But seriously I get a kick about getting freebies too! 

How to Improve Your Speaking Skills – Overnight! (Or can you?)

We would all like to improve our speaking skills. Why? So we can give a great presentation, impress our boss at work or break up with a boyfriend – smoothly. There is no doubt about it. Good speaking skills are an asset. But good speakers are made – not born. And most people don’t want to go through all the trouble in order to be a good speaker.

So the question is how can you improve your speaking skills overnight? The answer is – you can’t! Not really. There is no shortcut to developing one’s speaking skills. Just like get rich quick schemes won’t allow you to keep your wealth for long, quick fixes won’t do the trick. The road to becoming a great public speaker is a journey. And it is not the same for everyone. We all travel at our own pace.

They say that practice makes perfect. And that holds true when it comes to public speaking. The more you do it, the better you become. My own journey in improving my public speaking skills wasn’t easy. But it certainly was interesting. Toastmasters often pushed me to step outside my comfort zone. I learned how to be comfortable in uncomfortable situations. I learned how to make it work.

I did many things to hasten my improvement in speaking. And I did see a difference. Only, it didn’t happen overnight. I played an active role in club meetings, gave speeches, said yes to hosting gigs and joined speech contests. And when I was able to compete and win in the 2011 Evaluation contest I felt that it was all worth it. Of course I lost more often that I won but that didn’t matter to me. Because every contest that I joined helped me improve my speaking skills in some way.

Most people only see the victories. They look at champions and think, “He’s so lucky,” or “Oh, he must be born that way.” But I’m telling you, luck often has nothing to do with success. You create your own luck in this world. If you want to win in anything you have to be willing to work hard for it. You have to be willing to get your hands dirty and roll in the mud.

Now let me ask you, do you really want to be a good speaker? Do you want to be able to sway people with your reasoning and convince them with your logic? If so, then there is one sure-fire way to do so and that is to speak. Yes. It’s that simple. Just speak. Do it as often as you can. If someone asks you to host an event, say “yes”! If someone asks you to give a presentation, say “yes”!  If your VP for Education asks you to deliver a speech next meeting, say “yes”!  There is no better way to improve as a speaker than to do just that. Speak and improvement is inevitable. 

Coming Out Of My Shell: Eric Marcelo

Contributed By: Eric Marcelo, CC

                      Automation Specialist

1st Place - 2007 Area International Speech Contest

1st Place - 2007 Area Table Topics Contest

1st Place - 2008 Area Evaluation Contest

3rd Place - 2009 Area Table Topics Contest

If there ever was an unlikely person to be a public speaker, it would probably be me. On the other hand, if there ever was a person who needed Toastmasters, it would also be me.

I happen to be a very quiet person. In the words of a friend, “a man of the fewest words.” Don’t get me wrong, I’m still a generally quiet person. It’s just that Toastmasters helped me be a speaker if I had to be or if I chose to be.

It all started when I was signed up (read, forced) to attend a Speechcraft training seminar in 2003, sponsored by my employer. I found I seemed to have a knack for it so when the company formed it’s own club, I was one of its first members.

Having dived into the pool, I suddenly got cold feet. It took me a year and three months to get the courage to deliver my first speech as a Toastmaster. After that first one, however, I began delivering a speech every month or two, gaining confidence and skill as time went on. I joined my first contest in a division speechfest where I delivered my Basic Speech Number Eight. I didn’t win but I got a tremendous boost out of it.

I had not prepared to join the area speech contest so all I did was watch. Looking around, however, I noticed that the crowd was four to five times the number of attendees in our club and since Speech Number Ten was about inspiring people, I resolved to deliver my graduation speech during the division contest as the test speaker for the division speech-to-evaluate contest. I did well enough that then District Governor, Elisa Tay, invited me to the 2006 District Convention in Davao, to re-deliver the same speech (On Being a Toastmaster) as a guest speaker, not as a contestant.

Attending the convention was a great experience for me. The quality of the speakers was amazing and I decided I’d want to try competing in the next convention. I continued honing my skills and began venturing into other clubs to attend their meetings and deliver speeches. Almost a year later, I won at the area contest but got first runner up at the division level. The champion, however, would be out of the country during the district convention so, as the second placer, I got my chance to compete.

I can’t say that I am not nervous about delivering speeches, especially at a contest but the jitters only last until I start talking. After that, it becomes easier. There was, however, one instance where I got lost. I forgot the next line! Fortunately, Toastmaster training came to the rescue and I jumped to the next sentence. No one noticed. I didn’t win at the district level but I got a lot of compliments about my speech (Opportunities and My Dad).

Competing has done wonders for my confidence in addition to honing my public speaking skills. I’ve had occasion to use these skills several times outside of Toastmasters.

Once, I attended a seminar-workshop where I presented the result of my group’s activity. The others listened to my presentation with elbows on the table and chins on their hand. I thought they were bored but when I asked for questions, the first one was, “were you ever a teacher?” They remarked that the presentation was so clear and easy to follow.

In one other instance, the factory manager wanted the supervisors to make a presentation about how we use contractors. Two presenters would be invited every week at the top management meeting. I was one of the first.

Using tips from numerous speeches (my own and others, I listen to their evaluations as well), I decided on three points: How many contractors I used, what they do, and what time they worked. My presentation was all of three slides, took about 15 minutes to deliver and I only had a few questions to answer. The next presenter had no less than 15 slides, took more than 30 minutes and had to answer dozens of questions and clarifications. At the conclusion of the meeting, the factory manager instructed the other managers to prepare the presenters for next week and to, “use Eric’s template.” For the next two days, I distributed copies of my presentation to the other supervisors. Following this, I was tapped to make presentations on safety and environment and to conduct training-seminars for other employees.

I have been a technician for almost 30 years. Since I became a Toastmaster, however, I’ve found that I had a teacher’s heart. It’s manifested in the seminars I’ve conducted, in presentations I’ve made, but most of all, it’s manifested in a Toastmaster’s meeting when I do speech evaluations. I just love helping people learn.

Learn how to speak like a champion. Check out my interview with Public Speaking Champion Stephen Michael Lumanlan